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Home / Life! / Live / Fun things to do this week: April 8-17

Fun things to do this week: April 8-17

by F Diaz
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Lounging around all day and binge watching a show is tempting but you won’t want to miss out on all the things happening around LA County this week. Make your plans and get out there!

The Secret “Wonderland” Circus

3443 E. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90023 | April 8 | eventbrite.com

Dress up in your best “Alice in Wonderland” themed clothes to enjoy a night at this circus featuring burlesque, an aerial hoop performance, pole dancing, a fire juggler, contortion painting, fire dancing, music, tarot, and multiple vendors.

Paint & Sip

San Antonio Winery | 737 Lamar St., Los Angeles, CA 90031 | April 8 | eventbrite.com

Unwind at LA’s urban winery painting sunflowers while enjoying some wine and small bites of tasty food.

Torched Experience

SLS Hotel | 465 S. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048 | April 8-9 | eventbrite.com

Gastro Garage returns to prepare an eight-course “Mechanics Menu” at your tableside using tools such as torches, drills and more. This is a treat for your eyes and palette.

Renaissance Pleasure Faire

Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area | 15501 E. Arrow Highway, Irwindale, CA 91706 | April 9 – May 22 | renfair.com/socal/

Huzzah! The Renaissance Pleasure Faire is back this year with its infamous lineup of bawdy and traditional songs, comedy shows (some rated NC-17 just for adults), jousting tournaments, aerial performances, magic shows and actors on different stages, ax throwing, archery, turkey legs, hand pies and more beer than you could ever imagine.

Performers at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire. | Photo by Matthew Dillon via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

9021FLOAT 

Caffe Roma | 350 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | April 9 | whatthefloat.com

What the Float kicks off spring by spreading dancing and joy in Beverly Hills. Event organizers promise “two hearty helpings of high octane dance power courtesy of two of our favorite DJs, PENNYWILD and Nick Ley.” The afterparty continues at home base.

Rosé Bowl: A Wine Tasting Experience

Rose Bowl Stadium | 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena, CA 91103 | April 9 | feverup.com

Sample over 30 types of rosé wines, enjoy live music and eat gourmet food at the Rose Bowl.

Fires of Varanasi: Dance of the Eternal Pilgrim

The Soraya | 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330 | April 9 | thesoraya.org

Rooted in the expansive South Indian dance form of Bharatanatyam, Ragamala Dance Company manifests a kindred relationship between the ancient and the contemporary. Award-winning creators Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy imagine a metaphorical bridge to a ritualistic world of immortality, evoking the Hindu belief of birth-death-rebirth continuum to honor immigrant experiences of life and death in the diaspora.

The Great Egg Scramble

Robinson Park 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Pasadena, CA 91103 | Victory Park 2575 Paloma St., Pasadena, CA 91107 | April 9 | cityofpasadena.net

Pasadena’s free citywide egg hunt is for children up to 12 years old. There will be multiple egg hunts at each park. Registration is required and open to Pasadena residents and PUSD students only.

Diversi-TEA

Heritage Square Museum | 3800 Homer St., Los Angeles, CA 90031 | April 9 | eventbrite.com

Sit down down for Victorian tea and a vintage fashion show highlighting fashions from the diverse cultures living in 19th century Los Angeles.

Persia Family Festival

The Getty Villa | 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, CA 90265 | April 9-10 | farhang.org

Get transported to ancient Iran through music, dance, storytelling, hands-on workshops (make your puppet, golden wings, jewelry) and other interactive events. 

Bubble Run 5k

Fairplex Gate 17 | 1101 W McKinley Ave, Pomona, CA 91768 | April 9 | fairplex.com

Clad in white t-shirts, adults, kids and strollers run, walk, dance and play across 3 miles. At every kilometer, runners will pass through the “Foam Bogs” full of colored foam to cover everyone from head to toe. 

Martha Redbone Roots Project

The Broad Stage | 1310 11th St., Santa Monica CA 90401 | April 9 | thebroadstage.org

With songs and storytelling that share her life experience as a Native and Black woman and mother in the new millennium, Martha Redbone gives voice to issues of social justice, bridging traditions from past to present, connecting cultures and celebrating the human spirit. She is known for her unique gumbo of folk, blues and gospel from her childhood in Harlan County, Kentucky infused with the eclectic grit of pre-gentrified Brooklyn. Inheriting the powerful vocal range of her gospel-singing African American father and the resilient spirit of her mother’s Cherokee/Shawnee/Choctaw culture, Redbone broadens the boundaries of American Roots music.

626 Night Market Mini 

Lot 27 | 1324 5th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401 | April 9-10, 23-24 | 626nightmarket.com

Starting a new series of events in Downtown Santa Monica from 1-10 p.m., 626 Night Market Mini will have food vendors like Shake Ramen, Tao’s Bao, Chick N’ Skin, Ghostix and Rockin’ Gyoza.

Selections at the 626 Night Market range from the traditional to the extreme and cover everything in between. | File photo by Galen Patterson / Hey SoCal

Rose Bowl Flea Market

Rose Bowl Stadium | 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena, CA 91103 | April 10 | rgcshows.com

Known for its wide array of antiques, vintage clothes, and local art, the Rose Bowl Flea Market has been the flea market to visit for over 50 years.

Served! A Drag Brunch

Redline DTLA – Gay Bar and Lounge | 131 E. 6th St., Los Angeles, CA 90014 | April 10 | eventbrite.com

Sunday brunch levels up with drag show serving looks, stunts and breakfast.

Readings At Sunset: A Queer Poetry Night

Switterbeat Collective | 1114 Echo Park Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90026 | April 10 | eventbrite.com

Spend an evening with 20 local LGBTQIA poets showcasing their work.

In Conversation: Cecile Richards & Holland Taylor

Pasadena Playhouse | 39 S. El Molino Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101 | April 10 | pasadenaplayhouse.org

Cecile Richards (daughter of Texas Governor Ann Richards) and Holland Taylor (writer and star on “Ann” currently on stage at the Pasadena Playhouse) will come together for a dynamic, free-flowing conversation about leadership, legacy and creating change in these times… or anything else that enters the minds of the two cultural trailblazers.

Holland Taylor as Ann Richards. | Photo by Ave Bonar

21st Century Astronomy So Far

The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens Rothenberg Hall | 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108 | April 11 | huntington.org

As part of the Carnegie Lecture series, Dr. John S. Mulchaey will be joined by Crawford H. Greenewalt, chair and director of Carnegie Observatories, to discuss achievements in astronomy over the past 20 years, new discoveries about black holes, planets, galaxy and star formation, and other phenomena of the universe. 

Los Angeles Youth Orchestra Spring 2022 Concert

Ambassador Auditorium | 131 S. Saint John Ave., Pasadena, CA 91105 | April 11 | losangelesyouthorchestra.org

The Symphony Orchestra will perform Sibelius Symphony No. 2 and the Ruth Borun Concert Orchestra will perform works by Berlioz, Schumann, Tchaikovsky and a medley of themes from John Williams’ “The Empire Strikes Back.”

2022 Payton Lecture Featuring Soledad O’Brien

Bridges Auditorium at Pomona College | 450 N. College Way, Claremont, CA 91711 | April 11 | eventbrite.com

Broadcast journalist, producer and documentarian Soledad O’Brien discusses maintaining an anti-bias perspective in journalism and the role journalism plays in democracy.

An Evening Of Wine And Balance For Women

The Saltner Wine & Cicchetti | 108 E. Colorado Blvd., Monrovia, CA 91016 | April 12 | eventbrite.com

This is an evening designed to relax you. Tough Love Fitness will guide attendees through one hour of mindful movement and stretching to get rid of those pesky aches and pains. After the class, taste some wines from around the world.

Yoga In The Garden

Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden | 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia, CA 91007 | April 12 | arboretum.org

Register for a strengthening and tension-releasing evening of yoga in a lush garden sanctuary..

Jacob Collier: Music, Mindset, and Creativity

Bovard Auditorium | 3551 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90089 | April 12 | eventbrite.com

In this masterclass hosted by USC Marshall professor David Belasco, five-time Grammy winner Jacob Collier gives an intimate look into his artistic process. 

Joystick: An LGBTQ Arcade Mixer

Player One | 5126 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, CA 91601 | April 13 | fb.me/e/1i6YLlh7A

Join fellow nerdy queers for a night of arcade games, drinks and prizes.

Sir John Eliot Gardiner

The Soraya | 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330 | April 13 | thesoraya.org

Sir John Eliot Gardiner and the 48-piece English Baroque Soloists perform a program of Haydn and Mozart Symphonies. The program includes Haydn: Symphony No. 103 in E-flat major ‘Drumroll’, Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante K. 364 and Symphony No. 39 in E-flat major K.

Sir John Eliot Gardiner. | Photo courtesy of Sir John Eliot Gardner and The Soraya

Afro-Cuban Ensemble Sitarason With “El Maestro” Lazaro Galarraga

Corazón Performing Arts | 125 S. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290 | April 13 | eventbrite.com

Enliven your mid-week slump with traditional Afro-Cuban songs and dancing.

How “The Handmaid’s Tale” Changed The Conversation About Women

Mark Taper Auditorium Central Library | 630 W. 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071 | April 13 | eventbrite.com

Producer Bruce Miller and reporter Nicole Sperling discuss how television and “The Handmaid’s Tale” reflect progress in women’s rights and ongoing threats to that progress.

“Dirty Dancing”

Rooftop Cinema Club DTLA | 4th floor at Level, 888 S. Olive St., Los Angeles, CA 90014 | April 14 | rooftopcinemaclub.com

Nobody puts baby in a corner! Watch the 1987 classic in an open-air cinema experience between skyscrapers and city lights.

El Salvador: The Invisible Country With Nelson Lopez Rojas, PhD

Museum of Latin American Art | 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, CA 90802 | April 14 | molaa.org

Author and translator Dr. Nelson Lopez Rojas discusses El Salvador’s 1932 massacre, the civil war and the role art plays in resistance in modern El Salvador.

Retro Dance Party

The Grand Star Jazz Club | 943 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | April 14 | eventbrite.com

Kick your weekend off early by dancing the night away to your favorite hits from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s.

Spring Egg Hunt

Barnes Park | 350 S. McPherrin Ave., Monterey Park, CA 91754 | April 14 | montereypark.ca.gov/MPKEggHunt

Thousands of eggs containing prizes will be scattered throughout the field for kids of all ages to find. There will also be game booths, pictures with the bunny and a dessert truck. 

Odd Nights At The Autry

Autry Museum | Griffith Park, 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA 90027 | April 15 | theoddmarket.com

After a two-year hiatus, Odd Nights returns with 18 food trucks, two emerging bands, inflatables, a full bars, 80 crafters and exclusive access to the museum gallery. Odd Nights at The Autry runs every third Friday from 6-10 p.m. from April through September. 

Gene Loves Jezebel 

The Mixx | 443 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 | April 15 | themixxclub.com

Gene Loves Jezebel performs live. Dance and sing along to hits like “Heartache” and “Desire.”

Lupine

Whisky a Go Go | 8901 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069 | April 15 | eventbrite.com

Lupine brings its eclectic mix of indie rock and pop to the Whisky a Go Go stage.

La Santa Cecilia

The Paramount | 2708 E. Cesar E. Chavez Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90033 | April 15-16 | paramountla.com

Grammy-winning, LA-born La Santa Cecilia is known for its mix of Latin and rock cultures. The band has collaborated with the likes of Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones and Pepe Aguilar.

Selena’s Birthday Tribute

The Mixx | 443 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 | April 16 | themixxclub.com

Celebrate the legacy of the TexMex queen of cumbia with a live tribute by Ukulena and her band, and a special video mix by DJ Santi.

Coleadero Baile

Pico Rivera Sports Arena | 11003 Rooks Road, Whittier, CA 90601 | April 16 | ticketon.com

Headliner Chuy Lizarraga is joined by multiple acts like Polo Urias, Azabache, Banda El Coronel, Banda Alta Potencia and many more to get you dancing.

“Jane Austen Unscripted”

Garry Marshall Theatre | 252 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank, CA 91505 | April 16-May 8 | garrymarshalltheatre.org

Starring the critically acclaimed Impro Theatre, join live musicians, delectable tea and treats, and the company members of “Jane Austen Unscripted,” in a modern, Regency comedy. “Jane Austen Unscripted” is a fully improvised play that brings the world of Austen to life with audience suggestions and participation.

Holi Hai: Festival Of Color

Parking Lot of AMC Produce/RYM Media | 1268 E. 6th St., Los Angeles, CA 90021 | April 17 | eventbrite.com

Dress in white and play with color at this family-friendly Bollywood party celebrating Holi Hai, India’s festival of colors. The festival will feature dance performances, color throw, Bollywood dance lessons, food, drinks and photo opportunities. 

Long Beach Antique Market

Long Beach Veterans Stadium | 4901 E. Conant St., Long Beach, CA 90808 | April 17 | longbeachantiquemarket.com

The Long Beach Antique Market bills itself as “The flea market with style” for its offerings of unique, vintage items. From 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (you can pay to enter early at 5:30 a.m.), hunt down some treasures to take home. 

Jimmy Vivino Band

Malainey’s Grill & One Hell of an Irish Bar | 168 N. Marina Drive, Long Beach, CA 90803 | April 17 | eventbrite.com

The famed guitarist from Conan O’Brien’s Jimmy Vivino Band performs the best of the blues. 

Enrique Martinez Celaya “SEA SKY LAND: towards a map of everything”

USC Fisher Museum of Arts | 823 W. Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90089 | Through April 9 | fisher.usc.edu

This exhibit brings together 30 large-format paintings and sculptures created by Enrique Martinez Celaya. Each of the three galleries at the Fisher Museum will present the artist’s writings alongside paintings and sculptures dedicated to one of three motifs—sea, sky, and land. 

Spring Jubilee

LA County Parks | Through April 16 | instagram.com/p/Cb-bKdErBzH/ 

LA County Parks bring Spring Jubilee, featuring arts & crafts, games, egg hunts, story time, music and childrens’ entertainment, to 56 parks across the county. Check online for dates and times.

Knott’s Boysenberry Festival

Knott’s Berry Farm | 8039 Beach Blvd., Buena Park, CA 90620 | Through April 24 | knotts.com

Knott’s “food-inspired” festival features a lineup of dishes with a boysenberry twist, and desserts and drinks only available during this limited time. The festival also features local crafters, live music, stage shows and fun activities. 

Timber Mountain Log Flume and Silver Bullet at Knott’s Berry Farm. | Photo by Jeremy Thompson via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

“Mixpantli: Space, Time, And The Indigenous Origins Of Mexico”

LACMA | 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 | Through May 1 | lacma.org

LACMA is marking the 500th anniversary of the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital and site of Mexico City. According to LACMA, the exhibition “subverts the traditional narrative of conquest by centering the creative resilience of Indigenous artists, mapmakers, and storytellers who forged new futures and made their world anew through artistic practice.”

Tupac Shakur. Wake Me When I’m Free

The Canvas at L.A. Live | 944 Georgia St.,Los Angeles CA 90015 | Through May 1 | wakemewhenimfree

Created in collaboration with the Shakur Estate, this exhibit delves into Tupac’s activism, music and revolutionary art through technology, art and artifacts from the rapper’s personal archives.

“Mapping Fiction”

The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens | 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108 | Through May 2 | huntington.org

This new exhibit focuses on the ways authors and mapmakers have built compelling fictional worlds. The exhibit includes a first edition of James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” early editions of Lewis Carroll’s “The Hunting of the Snark, Robert Louis Stevenson’s maps from “Treasure Island” and “Kidnapped,” J. R. R. Tolkien’s map from the trilogy “The Lord of the Rings,” and science fiction writer Octavia E. Butler’s hand-drawn maps from notes for “Parable of the Talents” (1998) and her unpublished novel “Parable of the Trickster.”

“Archival Intimacies: Queering South/East Asian Diasporas”

ONE Archives at the USC Libraries | 909 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007
| Through May 29 |
one.usc.edu

Three artists-in-residence at ONE Archives at USC Libraries, Prima Jalichandra-Sakuntabhai, Vinhay Keo, and Pamila Matharu were invited to develop new works in response to the archive. Jalichandra-Sakuntabhai and Keo’s work investigates the remnants of embodied history, migration, exile, and queerness. Accompanying these works is “Satrang at 25: Queer South Asian Diaspora(s) in Context,” on view at ONE, examining the history of Satrang, an organization supporting queer South Asian communities in Southern California and placing its evolution in the context of broader queer diasporic histories.

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