COMEDY “Groundlings Swimsuit Edition” is the comedy troupe’s latest offering, with plenty of sketch and improv. Keep your fingers crossed that we won’t see them in Speedos. (But then again, Speedos are funny…) 8 pm // Groundling Theatre // 7307 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles // $21.50. FILM Crenshaw Boulevard comes to life in the hands of director Dan Wozniak and producer Christopher Molony. The documentary features 12 vignettes of people along the street’s 24......

Will it be pouring buckets tonight? If you aren't already planning on holing up with some popcorn and Netflix picks, you may want to get out and get your art & culture on. Let us help! ART ART LA 2008 is billed as "the only art fair in Los Angeles exclusively dedicated to contemporary art" and runs through tomorrow at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. This year's event "features 64 prominent international and Los Angeles-based......

FILM ”Cinema Legacy” – a series in its 7th year by the American Film Institute and the Skirball Cultural Center – brings in filmmakers, actors, writers to discuss the origins of their own artwork. Tonight, director Jason Reitman introduces 1999’s Election – starring Reese Witherspoon-Matthew Broderick – as the film that inspired him to become a director. 7:30 pm // Skirball Cultural Center – Magnin Auditorium // 2701 Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles // $6-$10. ART......

We've already told you where the Patriots and Chargers fans will be taking in tomorrow's conference championship games, now we'll let you know where the Cheeseheads and Big Blue will gather to watch their teams fight for a trip to Super Bowl XLII. LA-based Packers fans have had a safe haven in Pickwicks Pub, Woodland Hills (21010 Ventura Blvd.) since 2005 when the bar re-opened after a fire burned down the original bar. Transplant Giants......

FILM A Bloody Aria, a film from Korea about a professor, his pretty student and a possible murder, opens tonight for a one-week engagement in Little Tokyo. It’s been compared to Deliverance, but with a dark sense of humor. (We wonder if there’s any pig squealing in this one?) Times vary // ImaginAsian Center // 251 S. Main St., Los Angeles // $7-$10. MUSIC / SPOKEN WORD Tonight the CalArts Creative Music Festival features......

MUSIC Tonight at the Jazz Bakery is the The Alternative String Group, an ensemble of students from Robert Anderson and Jacob Szekely's music school in West Hollywood, The String Project | Los Angeles. Both studio musicians who have worked with the likes of the Dakah Hip-Hop Orchestra and SuperNova, the two have put together a conservatory that is pretty high tech with their interactive music lessons, recording and filming them for student's personal analysis.........

We leaf through various calendars so you don't have to. HOLIDAY FUN: The folks at the Troubadour Theater Company who brought us It's a Stevie Wonderful Christmas and Fleetwood MacBeth are back with A Charlie James Brown Christmas. The show features Charlie Brown singing "It's a Man's Man's World" or maybe James Brown singing "Christmas Time is Here." Or maybe it's both? 8 pm // Falcon Theatre // 4252 Riverside Drive, Los Angeles // $20-$37.50.......

MUSIC: CalTech isn’t just about nerdy rocket scientists. They have glee clubs, too! All kidding aside, tonight's concert will feature traditional holiday favorites as well as the Women's Club taking on Porpora’s Magnificat, written in the 1730s. 8 pm // Dabney Lounge at California Institute of Technology // 1200 East California Blvd., Pasadena // Free. DANCE: From CalTech, we’ll head over to CalArts in Valencia. The Sharon Disney Lund School of Dance is holding its......

There's an eclectic mix of comedy, drama and spoken word in this week's theatre picks. Shut Up and Eat Your Groundlings The Groundlings’ latest sketch show hits the stage this weekend. Groundlings Theater. 7307 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles. (323) 934-4747 ext. 37. Tickets are $21.50. Opens Friday at 8 pm. Runs Fridays at 8 pm and Saturdays at 8 and 10 pm until Nov. 24. L.A. Voz L.A. Voz (Los Angeles Voice) is a series......

CityWatch is reporting that today is quite a busy day at 200 N. Main St. Here are some highlights for the mayor and city council: "The Mayor and the Governor open the action with the announcement at a 9:30 media conference that LA will receive $150 million to pay for synchronizing every traffic light in the city. The funding is LA’s share of the $250 billion transportation bond passed by voters in 2006." "With time......

We know lots of people are heading out of town for a jumpstart on the Labor Day holiday. But if you’re sticking around -- maybe check out one of LAist’s theatre picks this week: 365 Days/365 Plays: Week 42 The staging of Suzan-Lori Parks’s massive experiment of writing a play a day continues this week in the hands of the Angry Bubble Productions. Audience members will be taken in 20 at a time for......

That's right! You do not have to run a 5K Nike race or deal with Ticketmaster to see Joan Jett and the Blackhearts tonight. All you have to do is get to Alhambra for Hot Summer Nights: Alhambra Summer Jubilee. 6 to 10 p.m. Second Street between Main St. & Commonwealth Alhambra, CA Photo from the official Joan Jett MySpace Page......

There are other ways of supporting your actor friends around town – besides leaving a good tip at restaurants. LA is home to a great number of renowned theater groups and local community productions. Some of the shows are much better than Cats and way cheaper than anything on Broadway. So here are five plays opening this weekend whose descriptions are piquing LAist’s interest: A Nice Family Gathering Written by Phil Olson and directed......

When exactly The Edison started their soft opening, we don't know - what we do know is that we've haven't seen a bar like this in Los Angeles, well, ever. In major East Coast cities this is a trend we've seen before - taking over an old space be it a bank vault or power plant and making it a lounge, but this is the first we've seen in Los Angeles and it's guaranteed......

When you write and sing songs as good as Whisper Town 2000, you can make any list you want. Here are Morgan Nagler's Best CDs of 2006 1. The Beatles The White Album 2. The Rolling Stones Exile On Main St. 3. Neva Dinova The Hate Yourself Change 4. Elliot Smith Elliot Smith 5. Notorious BIG Ready To Die 6. The Jackson 5 Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5 7. Tom Petty Wildflowers 8.......

LAist was fortunate enough to sit down with a member of the South Central Farmers Support Coalition yesterday, one who was at the controversial farm the morning that it was raided last week by law enforcement, who forcibly evicted protesters and activists. The City Council will hear from members of the South Central Farm today at 9:30am at City Hall (John Ferraro Council Chamber, 3rd floor, 200 N. Main St) during the public comments portion......

Who knew you could find out so much information just by typing in the date into your browser window? April10.org has the details on all the local events today for the National Day of Action For Immigrant Justice. It's an evening affair so whether you are participating, objecting or avoiding, adjust your schedules accordingly: Time: 5:00PM Location: La Placita - 535 N Main St., Los Angeles, CA Event Details: "Today we Act, Tomorrow we......

The holidays are right around the corner, well down the next block really. It seems like every commercial district in Los Angeles is having a sale. Each week, LAist will try to identify upcoming markets where you can find unique gifts. Let us know if you hear of any as well. So far, we's spotted signs for the following: Friday, 12/3 and Saturday, 12/4 - 5:00PM to 10:00PM ARTmart / mercadoARTE Join La Mano......

Lots to do in SoCal in the coming week: We're hoping to take the Metrolink to Pitzer college on Wednesday, December 1st at 6 PM for a free screening of "Afro Punk," a 66-minute documentary, which explores race identity within the punk scene. The director, James Spooner, will be in attendance. Venue: Pitzer College—Avery Auditorium 1050 N. Mills Avenue 909 - 607 - 3633 Time: 6pm The 2nd West Coast Conference of the New......

Today is the last day that you can vote early at one of 17 Southern California locations. LAvote.net lists (in PDF format) the locations where you can vote early with Touchscreen Voting devices. Here's a brief list of locations in LAist's immediate area: Central Library 630 W 5th St, Meeting Rm A 10 AM - 5 PM East LA Library 4837 East Third St, New Building 10 AM - 5 PM Braille Institute 741......