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Our Picks
- Events
- Viewing Pick
- Outdoor Pick
Hopefully the long weekend gave you an opportunity to relax and recharge because summer is just getting going and the events calendar is filling up – and Hollywood Bowl season hasn’t even really started yet!
We are so lucky to have amazing art happening in L.A. this summer and the Mickalene Thomas show at The Broad caps off a week of big openings that will keep art lovers occupied (and air-conditioned) as the summer heats up. Plus, Australian ingenue Imogen Clark plays the Hotel Cafe, two chocolate experts share their love of cacao at the Natural History Museum, the L.A. library conversations about AI continue, and Lucha VaVoom is back at the Mayan.
For more to explore, visit LAist.com, where you can dig into an exhibit about film star Anna May Wong, remember Porto’s patriarch Raul Porto, and learn more about the parks of Irvine, which ranked number four in the country for access and equity.
Events
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Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 7:00 PM
Imogen Clark attends the 2023 APRA Music Awards in Sydney, Australia.
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Lisa Maree Williams
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Getty Images
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Australian indie singer-songwriter Imogen Clark comes to The Hotel Café in support of her latest album, The Art of Getting Through. A soulful set of songs about "shouldering the weight of life’s baggage and powering forward," her single, "The Noise" was named a best pick by Rolling Stone Australia.
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Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 6:00 PM
Chocolate Talk + Tasting
- Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
900 W. Exposition Blvd., Exposition Park
Cost: $20 ; More Info
Chocolate!
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Tamas Pap/Unsplash
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You had us at chocolate. The Natural History Museum is hosting a chocolate tasting and history lesson from the expert chocolatiers at Sad Girl Creamery and Albert’s Petite Sweets. Featured in the digital series ChocoLAte: From Beans to Bliss, SueEllen Mancini and Albert Daniel will talk about their love of the cacao bean and its meaning to their careers and lives in Los Angeles with Milena Acosta, Associate Director of Community Engagement at NHM.
- Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
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May 25, 2024 through September 29, 2024
Mickalene Thomas at The Broad
See Also10 of the best Summer Festivals in and around Los Angeles - TravelMagWaterfront fun is gearing up for the summer in San Pedro, WilmingtonMusic festivals coming to Southern California in 2024University of Houston Study Shows Electric Vehicles Can Have Positive Impact on Air Quality and Public Health in Some Cities, Not All- The Broad Museum
221 S. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A.
Cost: $22, free on Thursdays with RSVP ; More Info
Mickalene Thomas attends as The Broad and Dior Celebrate 'Mickalene Thomas: All About Love Exhibition' opening at The Broad in 2024.
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Charley Gallay
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Getty Images for the Broad
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The much-anticipated Mickalene Thomas show All About Love opens at The Broad this week. You have all summer to get downtown and explore the celebrated artist’s unique take on Black femininity and power in 80 pieces of her work created over the past 20 years. Thomas uses collage and a big-scale approach in her art (well-suited to The Broad’s massive space) in pieces like the twelve-foot-wide I’m Feelin Good (2014).
- The Broad Museum
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May 9, 2024 through June 8, 2024
'Topsy Turvy'
- The Actor’s Gang Theater
9070 Venice Blvd., Culver City
Cost: Pay-what-you-can Thursdays or $35 ; More Info
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Courtesy of The Actor's Gang Theater
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The Actor’s Gang takes on the Greek chorus in the new show, Topsy Turvy. Tim Robbins wrote, composed and directed what he calls a “musical Greek Vaudeville” that takes a stab at our pandemic and post-pandemic lives by following a Greek chorus disrupted by a mystery illness and their path back to harmony. Not to be confused with the 1999 Mike Leigh movie Topsy-Turvy about Gilbert and Sullivan (no? Just us? Worth streaming it!). Robbins hosts a Q&A following Friday performances; Thursdays are pay-what-you-can.
- The Actor’s Gang Theater
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Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 7:00 PM
'ALOUD on Ideas | Decoding Bias: AI's Role in Public Service'
- Los Angeles Central Library
630 W. 5th St., Downtown L.A.
Cost: Free ; More Info
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D Koi
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The third talk in a series about our relationship with AI at the Central Library geared toward teens and adults, this evening is focused on how AI and bias in AI affect law enforcement, healthcare, government, and education. Dr. Avriel Epps brings together scholars in the space including health informatics researcher Charles Senteio and NYU professor Meredith Broussard.
- Los Angeles Central Library
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May 29, 2024 through May 30, 2024
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Courtesy of Lucha VaVoom de La Liz
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Lucha VaVoom’s latest show, Welcome to Tijuana, has more wrestling, more burlesque, more aerialists, and more, well, va va voom in store. The popular lucha libre-slash-comedy show returns for two nights at The Mayan. Featuring Mexican wrestling stars Rey Horus, Magno “The Man Mountain” Rudo, Extreme Tiger, Vegas’ Black Swan, and more as well as burlesque stars like Emma Vauxdevil and Ruby Champagne, the night is hosted by comedian Drew Carey and the show’s long-time comedian host Blaine Capatch.
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Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 7:00 PM
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Courtesy of Book Soup
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Could there be a more appropriate book title for certain stereotypical L.A. denizens than Harvard Law professor Cass Sunstein’s latest, How to Become Famous: Lost Einsteins, Forgotten Superstars, and How the Beatles Came to Be? Sunstein looks at why some people “make it” and some don’t based on data analysis and the role of serendipity (spoiler alert: viral TikTok videos have little to do with it). He speaks with actress Sonya Walger (Lost) at Book Soup.
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Viewing Pick
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May 29, 2024 through June 2, 2024
LA Latino International Film Festival 2024
- TCL Chinese 6 (at Ovation Hollywood)
6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood - Regal L.A. Live & 4DX
1000 W. Olympic Blvd., downtown L.A.
Cost: Single screenings start at $15 ; More Info
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Courtesy of LA LIFF 2024
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From shorts to features, animations to dramas, the L.A. Latino International Film Festival is showing dozens of films highlighting the work of Latino creatives in Hollywood. The fest opens with In the Summers, directed by Alessandra Lacorazza, which won the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize at Sundance.
- TCL Chinese 6 (at Ovation Hollywood)
Outdoor Pick
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Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 6:00 PM
Wags & Wonder
Cost: Free, but a refundable $15 RSVP is required ; More Info
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Courtesy of Wondery Outdoors
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Join Wondery’s May hike crew for a special evening summer hike with adoptable dogs from Pup Culture Rescue. The hike will take you near (of course not up to!) the Hollywood sign for great views and a good workout for you and the dogs. There will also be free drinks from Leisure Hydration.
To discourage no-shows, there's a $15 RSVP fee that will be refunded after the event.
Dine & Drink Deals
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Tuesday, May 28, 2024 at 5:00 PM
Taste of South Pasadena
- The heart of South Pasadena
Fair Oaks Ave. and Mission St., South Pasadena
Cost: $20 - $90 ; More Info
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Rotary Club of South Pasadena
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Wine and food samples from dozens of local restaurants and eateries will be featured at this fun annual outdoor South Pasadena community event. Pets and kids welcome!
- The heart of South Pasadena
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May 28, 2024 through May 30, 2024
New Menu At Strong Water Anaheim
- Strong Water Anaheim
270 S. Clementine Blvd., Anaheim
Cost: Varies ; More Info
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James Tran and Vee for Strong Water Anaheim
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Orange County 2024 James Beard Award Finalist and tropical tiki bar Strong Water Anaheim has a new menu. Head south to check out drinks like the Corn & Oil or the Black Sesame Colada and fusion dishes like the Brie Cheese Katsu.
- Strong Water Anaheim
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Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 5:00 PM
Connie And Ted's x Bridgetown Roti
- Connie and Ted's
8171 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood
Cost: $125 ; More Info
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Courtesy of Connie & Ted's
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Chef Rashida Holmes of popular pop-up Bridgetown Roti is opening her own brick-and-mortar spot in L.A. soon, but in the meantime, join the James Beard Award semifinalist at Connie and Ted’s in WeHo for a special menu featuring items like plantain panzanella and soft shell crab with aloo curry.
- Connie and Ted's
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