It’s expected to be warm this weekend and that is the perfect reason to head outside and visit one of the many festivals popping up in SoCal. Whether you want to celebrate Pride, indulge in strawberry season or explore art and culture in the Inland Empire, SoCal has something for you. Read on to make those weekend plans.

May 19

Monrovia Days

Monrovia Library Park | 321 S. Myrtle Ave., Monrovia, CA 91016 | May 19-21 | monroviadays.org

Monrovia’s annual birthday celebration is back with carnival rides, food games, book sales, a pie eating contest, parade, live music and performances in the heart of Old Town with all its restaurants, bars, movie theater and charming shops. 

Long Beach Proud! Fest

Long Beach | May 19-21 | lbhomeliving.com

Festivities kick off Friday night with support for queer-owned small businesses, bars and restaurants in the “gayborhood,” the stretch of Broadway between Redondo Avenue and Orange Street. Then on Saturday, head to Bixby Park for the free festival featuring a bicycle parade, three stages with musical performances, beer gardens, drag performers, and interactive experiences like art installations and activities. Take to the beach on Sunday to decompress with DJs, food trucks, and more. 

Crawfish Festival

Fountain Valley Sports Park | 16400 Brookhurst St., Fountain Valley, CA 92708 | May 19-21 | crawfishfestival.com

Savor the flavors of New Orleans right here in SoCal by enjoying Louisiana-style crawfish, Cajun potatoes, corn on the cob, tangy remoulade dipping sauces, beignets and more. Entertainment will include the Second Line Dancing Parade, Cajun, Zydeco, and New Orleans-style music, Zydeco dance lessons, carnival rides and games, live sports tent, children’s stage with magic shows and balloon sculptures, karaoke, tequila and whiskey tastings, and much more.

OC Greek Fest

St. John’s Greek Orthodox Church | 405 N. Dale St., Anaheim, CS 92801 | May 19-21 | ocgreekfest.com

As Gus, the lovable but stubborn patriarch in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” told audiences, “There’s two kinds of people: Greeks, and everybody else who wish they was Greek.” Regardless of which group you fall in, this is your chance to celebrate all things Greek. The fest will feature Greek pastries and food, music, traditional dancing, an outdoor marketplace, and activities and games for kids. Opa!

‘The Complete History Of The American Musical Theater Of The 20th Century (With Examples)’

Odyssey Theatre | 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90025 | May 19 | odysseytheatre.com

Odyssey Theatre Ensemble and Los Angeles Musical Theatre Studio join forces to present “The Complete History of the American Musical Theater of the 20th Century (with examples),” a whirlwind tour through the ten decades that brought us Gershwin and Porter, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Schwartz and Sondheim — and too many others to name.

‘The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring’

LA State Historic Park | 1245 N. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 | May 19 | cinespia.org

Gather your own fellowship for a quest to LA State Historic Park to watch Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn and company depart for Mordor to destroy the one ring. Arrive early to take advantage of the free photobooth, grab a drink from the full bar, and enjoy DJ sets from  Zach Cowie.

Barbie Rave

Avalon Hollywood | 1735 Vine St., Los Angeles, CA 90028 | May 19 | avalonhollywood.com

Come on, Barbie, let’s go party! If you too can’t wait to watch Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling on the big screen this summer, dress in your best Barbie-esque costume for a night of drinks, dancing and plastic fabulousness.

‘The Dance And The Railroad’

A Noise Within | 3352 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107 | May 19-22 | anoisewithin.org

Set in 1867, two Chinese artists and their fellow railroad workers stage a strike to protest the inhuman conditions suffered by the Chinese laborers in the American West.

Classic Albums Live Performs The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’

La Mirada Theatre | 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada, CA 90638 | May 19 | lamiradatheatre.com

Classic Albums Live will perform the entirety of “Let It Be” and a second set filled with more hits from The Beatles. 

Odd Nights At The Autry

The Autry Museum | 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA 90027 | May 19  third Friday of the month through September | theautry.org

Odd Nights are back! Pack some blankets and chairs and a big appetite. The Odd Market will feature 18 food trucks, two emerging bands, inflatables, a full bar, more than 70 crafters, and possibly exclusive gallery access. Pets are welcome. 

May 20

California Strawberry Festival

Ventura County Fairgrounds | 10 W. Harbor Blvd., Ventura, CA 93001 | May 20-21 | castrawberryfestival.org 

Indulge in all kinds of strawberry-inspired treats, like build-your-own strawberry shortcake and strawberry beer, at the beach. The festival will also feature more than 40 food vendors, a Ninja Nation Obstacle Course, live music, games, puppet and magic shows, carnival rides, and more than a hundred arts and crafts booths to check out.

Beach Streets Downtown

Downtown Long Beach | May 20 | longbeach.gov

Broadway from Pine to Euclid avenues, and some surrounding streets, will be closed to cars and open for cycling, walking and dancing. Festival hubs along the path will feature DJs, live music, Rasputin’s Marionettes, face painting, caricature artists, bike decorating, skating demonstrations by Skatedogs and more. 

Comic Con Revolution

Ontario Convention Center | 2000 E. Convention Center Way, Ontario, CA 91764 | May 20-21 | comicconrevolution.com

The guest list will include comic book legends, actors, wrestlers, voice actors, celebrities, cosplayers and more. Mercedes Varnado, professional sports entertainer FKA Sasha Banks and Koska Reeves from the Disney + series “The Mandalorian,” will make their inaugural debut in the Inland Empire. Also joining their first Comic Con Revolution are Scott Grimes and J. Lee from “The Orville” and karate’s bad boy Sean Kanan from “Cobra Kai.”

Cruel World

Brookside at the Rose Bowl | 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena, CA 91103 | May 20 | cruelworldfest.com

The festival’s lineup will feature Siouxsie, Iggy Pop, Billy Idol, The Human League and many, many others.

Ontario Museum of History & Art’s Culture Fest 2023

Museum of History & Art | 225 S. Euclid Ave., Ontario, CA 91762 | May 20 | ontariomuseum.org

In conjunction with the quarterly Ontario Art Walk, Culture Fest will feature ive performances, an interactive public art installation, artist vendors, food trucks, art-making activities, exhibitions, and more. Culture Fest will thematically focus on water, in celebration of the opening of the museum’s new permanent exhibition, “Built on Water: Ontario and Inland Southern California.” A roster of performers, varying from a Tongva performance by Motivating Action Leadership Opportunity (M.A.L.O.) and marionette puppetry, to a rendition of Handel’s “Water Dance” by the Southland Symphony’s brass quintet, will be featured. Additionally, Culture Fest will feature public artist Luciana Abait’s large-scale immersive video projection installation, The Glass Wall.

Be Our Guest

The Belasco | 1050 S. Hill St., Los Angeles, CA 90015 | May 20 | ifyouknowitsingit.com

Millennials, this event is for you. Featuring Disney and ‘90s hits, Be Our Guest invites guests to dress and drink up, and sing, sing, sing!

May 21

California Turkish Festival

ShoreLine Aquatic Park | 200 Aquarium Way, Long Beach, CA 90802 | May 21 | instagram.com/Californiaturkishfest

Immerse yourself in Turkish culture, food and history by enjoying traditional Turkish coffee, baklava, folk dancing, live music, performances and more. Admission is free. 

‘The Duke: Ellington As America’s Ultimate Renaissance Man’

The Skirball Cultural Center | 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049 | May 21 | muse-ique.com

The MUSE/IQUE orchestra honors Duke Ellington with performances of classics like “Sophisticated Lady” and “Take The ‘A’ Train”. The show also includes  a magical performance from Ellington’s “The Nutcracker Suite,” an arrangement of the original by Tchaikovsky, by Herman Cornejo, principal dancer American Ballet Theatre, and Skylar Brandt, principal dancer American Ballet Theatre.

MindTravel Live-To-Headphones ‘Silent’ Piano Experience

Santa Monica Beach (on the sand in front of) | 2030 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90405 | May 21 | eventbrite.com

Spend a relaxing evening on the beach listening to composer and pianist Murray Hidary’s real-time compositions on wireless headphones. 

Long Beach Antique Market

Long Beach Veterans Stadium | 4901 E. Conant St., Long Beach, CA 90808 | May 21 | longbeachantiquemarket.com 

Find a new treasure from over 800 vendors selling collectibles, home decor, vintage clothing, jewelry, food and beer.

May 22

Matchbox Twenty

Hollywood Bowl | 2301 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90068 | May 22 | hollywoodbowl.com

The Grammy-nominated band behind “3AM,” “Unwell,” “If You’re Gone,” and “She’s So Mean” is back on tour.

Country Line Dancing

The Pour House | 405 S. Myrtle Ave., Monrovia, CA 91016 | May 22 | eventbrite.com

Put on your cowboy boots for line dancing starting at 6 p.m. If you’re not familiar with line dancing, there are lessons starting at 7 p.m. for $8. There are also pool tables, music, drinks and food. 

May 23

Two Pasadenas: Debate Over Internment Camps

Pasadena Museum of History | 470 W. Walnut St., Pasadena, CA 91103 | May 23 | eventbrite.com

Susie Ling, Pasadena City College professor of Asian American Studies and History, will lead a presentation about the people who did their best to help their Japanese American neighbors during WWII and internment. 

The Cure

Hollywood Bowl | 2301 N. Highland Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90068 | May 23-25 | hollywoodbowl.com

This is the first time the band has toured America since 2016 and they’ll be joined by The Twilight Sad.

May 24

Uptown Whittier Night Market

700 Greenleaf Ave., Whittier, CA 90602 | May 24 | instagram.com/p/CsEyspnPJTy

Shop from local vendors, eat some delicious food and listen to music at the Uptown Wittier Night Market from 5-9 p.m. this summer. 

‘The Duke: Ellington As America’s Ultimate Renaissance Man’

The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens | 1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino, CA 91108 | May 24 | muse-ique.com

The MUSE/IQUE orchestra honors Duke Ellington with performances of classics like “Sophisticated Lady” and “Take The ‘A’ Train”. The show also includes  a magical performance from Ellington’s “The Nutcracker Suite,” an arrangement of the original by Tchaikovsky, by Herman Cornejo, principal dancer American Ballet Theatre, and Skylar Brandt, principal dancer American Ballet Theatre.

Classic Cinema Nights

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel | 7000 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028 | May 24 | eventbrite.com

Hosted by film critic and wine maker José Ignacio Cuenca,the evening begins with a wine tasting followed by a screening of “The Sting.”

San Dimas Farmers Market

San Dimas | 245 E. Bonita Ave., San Dimas, CA 91773 | May 24 Wednesdays through Sept. 13 | sandimasfarmersmarket.com 

The San Dimas Farmers Market is opening up for the season. Pick up fresh produce or artisanal goods.

May 25

Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ Fan Event

El Capitan Theatre | 6838 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028 | May 25-26 | elcapitantheatre.com

Prior to the movie, stop by the Sea-Tastic Curtain Show and recreate the iconic boat scene from the movie at a photo op and see costumes from the movie. The fan event screenings on Thursday and Friday are $60 and shown in Dolby Vision 3D. Attendees at the Thursday Fan Event will receive one Ursula collectible figure, one Little Mermaid tote, popcorn, beverage and an event credential and lanyard with their ticket. Attendees at the Friday Fan Event will receive an Ariel collectible figure, collectible tub with popcorn, beverage and an event credential and lanyard with their ticket.

AAPI Latinx Heritage Series: Karen Tei Yamashita, Author Of ‘Tropic Of Orange’

Museum of Latin American Art | 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, CA, 90802 | May 25 | molaa.org

UCSC Professor Emerita of Critical Race and Ethnic studies, and author Karen Tei Yamashita discusses the cross-cultural ties between Asian and Latinx communities explored in “Tropic of Orange,” her novel set in Los Angeles and Mexico, in this virtual event also featuring a Q-and-A and reading. 

Montebello Night Market

Behind parking lot of Wells Fargo Bank | 777 W. Whittier Blvd,, Montebello, CA 90640 | May 25 | montebelloca.gov

Entertainment and vendors selling farmers market items, homemade goods, arts, crafts and food will gather from 6-9 p.m. 

Ongoing

Renaissance Pleasure Faire

Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area | 15501 Arrow Highway, Irwindale, CA 91706 | Through May 21 | renfair.com

Hear ye! Hear ye! The Renaissance Pleasure Faire returns to SoCal with entertaining shows ranging from falconry and magic to drinking songs and jousting. With delicious food, flowing drinks, a marketplace like nowhere else, and actors getting everyone into the spirit, you will undoubtedly have a good time. Huzzah!

‘A Little Night Music’

Pasadena Playhouse | 39 S. El Molino Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101 | Through May 21 | pasadenaplayhouse.org

Based on Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night,” and featuring a score primarily in waltz time, the production was one of Stephen Sondheim’s greatest commercial successes. Set in 1900 Sweden, “A Little Night Music” explores the tangled web of affairs centered around actress Desirée Armfeldt, and the men who love her: a lawyer by the name of Fredrik Egerman and the Count Carl-Magnus Malcom. When Desirée performs in Fredrik’s town, the estranged lovers’ passion rekindles. This strikes a flurry of jealousy and suspicion between Desirée; Fredrik; Fredrick’s wife, Anne; Desirée’s current lover, the Count; and the Count’s wife, Charlotte. Both men – as well as their jealous wives – agree to join Desirée and her family for a weekend in the country at Desirée’s mother’s estate. With everyone in one place, infinite possibilities of new romances and second chances bring endless surprises.

‘Chicago’

Segerstrom Hall | 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626 | Through May 21 | scfta.org

Start the car. I know a whoopee spot where the piano’s hot. Head back to the age of jazz with the critically acclaimed musical that has enraptured audiences all over the world. 

Pasadena Showcase House Of Design

Pasadena | Through May 21 | pasadenashowcase.org

Leading interior and exterior designers renovate an existing home top to bottom to raise funds for music programs and grants for nonprofits. This year’s home is a 1933 grand colonial designed by Marston & Maybury. This year, the Restaurant at Showcase will be catered by Roe Fusion and executive chef Phillip Ozaki.

‘Whittier Boulevard’

The Los Angeles Theatre Center | 514 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013 | Through May 28 | latinotheaterco.org

Years of fires, torrential rain, anarchy and bloodshed have led to a totalitarian city-state where the elderly disappear, their stories forgotten in 2042 Los Angeles. When authorities make a surprise visit to the home of faded Chicana starlet Veronica Del Rio on the eve of her 75th birthday, she enlists the help of her loudmouth nurse, a kindhearted policeman-fan, and a down-on-his-luck poet. Will Veronica disappear and be forgotten before she finds true love?

‘Evolution Of A Sonero’

The Los Angeles Theatre Center | 514 S. Spring St., Los Angeles CA 90013 | Through May 28 | latinotheaterco.org

Sonero [noun]: an improvising lead singer in salsa music. Hip-hop meets salsa when poet, actor and singer Flaco Navaja, backed by a live, five-piece salsa band, creates a love letter to his native Bronx, imbuing it with the charm, rhythm, soul and improvisational spirit of a true sonero.

LA County Fair

Fairplex |1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona, CA 91768 | Through May 29 | lacountyfair.com

The fair is back, this year with a theme all about spring. Get ready for rides, an eclectic music lineup, all kinds of fried foods, cars, baby animals at the farm, and exhibitions ranging from art forestry.

On This Side Of The World

David Henry Hwang Theater | 120 Judge John Aiso St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Through June 4 | eastwestplayers.org

A woman flies from the Philippines to America with a one-way ticket and a suitcase full of stories. Each story is collected from immigrants who came before her—tales of overseas workers, young lovers, and gossipy church ladies; snapshots of undocumented immigrants, millennial princesses and first-generation Americans. Suspended above the ocean, she replays these stories in her mind as she searches for the courage to embrace her future. This world premiere musical gives voices to Filipino immigrants navigating old lives and new beginnings, eight-thousand miles from home.

‘The Book Of Will’

A Noise Within | 3352 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107 | Through June 7 | anoisewithin.org

You don’t have to love Shakespeare to enjoy “The Book of Will,” playwright Lauren Gunderson’s re-imagining of the desperate search to find, preserve and print Shakespeare’s words that otherwise might have disappeared forever. Three years after the Bard’s death, John Heminges and Henry Condell, former friends and colleagues from Shakespeare’s acting troupe, the King’s Men, contend with egotistical actors, bootleg knockoffs and a ticking clock to ensure that the First Folio gets published, and that the works of William Shakespeare don’t end up on the trash heap of history. Backstage comedy meets detective adventure as this group of aging actors race against time to reassemble their repertoire — including “Lear,” “Macbeth” and “Hamlet” — some of which may only exist only in the lines they have memorized.

‘Six’

Pantages Theatre | 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028 | Through June 10 | broadwayinhollywood.com

Divorced. Beheaded. Survived. The six wives of Henry VII were so much more than the wives of a fickle king. The new musical turns their stories into ones of female empowerment. 

‘The Bottoming Process’

Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center Renberg Theatre | 1125 N. McCadden Place, Los Angeles, CA 90038 | Through June 12 | iamatheatre.com

Two writers meet at a shared co-working space and fall in love — or something like it. Milo is a fledgling writer who’s mostly funny on Twitter. John is a famed novelist. John is nearing middle age, while Milo is flailing through his twenties. John is white — and Milo is definitely not. As they mate, date and cohabitate, they grapple with issues of race, sex, power and the model minority myth, all to find out who’s really on top.

‘The Hilton Als Series: Njideka Akunyili Crosby’

The Huntington | 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108 | Through June 12 | huntington.org

The exhibit features a selection of works by Nigerian-born, Los Angeles–based artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby in the final exhibition curated by the Pulitzer Prize–winning author and New Yorker magazine critic Hilton Als, in collaboration with the Yale Center for British Art (YCBA) and Akynyili Crosby. The two selected five collage-based paintings from “The Beautyful Ones,” Crosby’s ongoing series of intimate portraits of Nigerian children, including members of her own family.

‘Symbiosis: Living Island’

Japan House | 6801 Hollywood Blvd., Level 2, Los Angeles, CA 90028 | Through July 5 | japanhousela.com

The Inujima “Art House Project” creates a unique symbiosis between art, architecture, community, and ecology that has been transforming the landscape of the Japanese island of Inujima, which now is home to just 25 homes with more than half of the inhabitants over 70 years of age. The exhibition celebrates and transports visitors to this “living art” island through the sights and sounds of everyday island life, captured through an experiential diorama of the island and its art pavilions.

Butterfly Pavilion

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County | 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007 | Through Aug. 13 | nhm.org

The Natural History Museum’s seasonal Butterfly Pavilion featuring hundreds of butterflies of various species, native plants and natural light is finally opening. 

‘Peter Krasnow: Breathing Joy And Light’ 

Skirball Cultural Center | 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049 | Through Sept. 3 | skirball.org

The “Peter Krasnow: Breathing Joy and Light” exhibition showcases 20 paintings and drawings from the Skirball’s collection of the artist’s work. The exhibition focuses on works made primarily during the decades after World War II and the Holocaust. To ease the despair brought on by that painful period, Krasnow created vibrant paintings teeming with exuberant, abstract forms, radiating optimism, and evoking a spiritual world of renewal. Krasnow emigrated from Ukraine to the United States at age 20 in 1907 and established himself in the Los Angeles art community in the 1920s, where he was inspired by the hope and possibility of Southern California. His paintings incorporate elements of his Jewish heritage and the organic forms and vivid hues found in the plant life of his Atwater Village home and studio.  

‘The Power Of Song: A Songwriters Hall Of Fame Exhibit’

The Grammy Museum | 800 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90015 | Through Sept. 4 | grammymuseum.org

The newly expanded exhibition celebrates iconic American songwriters. Through artifact displays, an original film, and interactive experiences, the exhibit examines the songwriter’s creative process, tells the stories of great songwriters – all of whom are Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees or special award recipients – and digs deep into the celebrated compositional works that make up the American music treasury.

‘Printed In 1085: The Chinese Buddhist Canon From The Song Dynasty’

The Huntington | 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108 | Through  Dec. 4 | huntington.org

The Huntington will exhibit for the first time the oldest printed book in its collection, “The Scripture of the Great Flower Ornament of the Buddha.”  The exhibit will show the connection between religion and China’s printmaking, which had been practiced centuries before the first use of movable metal type in Europe.

‘Journeys Continued: LA Communities Through The Eyes Of Artists’

Los Angeles Union Station | 800 N. Alameda St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Through Dec. 31 | art.metro.net

In “Journeys Continued: LA Communities Through the Eyes of Artists,” 12 featured pieces focus on a specific area, neighborhood or city Metro serves within greater Los Angeles and will be on view in the Passageway Art Gallery, between Union Station East and West.

Shakira, Shakira: The Grammy Museum Experience

The Grammy Museum | 800 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90015 | Through Winter 2024 | grammymuseum.org

If you’ve had “Las mujeres ya no lloran, las mujeres facturan” stuck in your head the last few weeks then you’ll want to stop by this exhibit honoring the multi-Grammy Award-winning and Latin Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, producer, dancer, philanthropist and international icon. The exhibit explores the artist’s musical evolution, from her origins as a Latin rock-loving singer-songwriter in Barranquilla, Colombia, to a global superstar whose catalog spans multiple genres, from bhangra and bachata to rock and reggaetón. The exhibit features interactives, artifacts from Shakira’s personal archive, three original films, handwritten lyrics, costumes, guitars and more.

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