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The Brief

The most important stories for you to know today
  • Arts & Entertainment
    New Year's Events
    Rose Parade, fireworks, and New Year's food
    Laura Hertzfeld
    Laura Hertzfeld
    Published December 28, 2023 5:00 AM
    Trumpeteers wearing white and red uniforms march in formation on a track.
    (
    Bernadette Marciniak for Tournament of Roses
    )

    This New Year's week:

    Enjoy New Year’s jams, fireworks, and resets; a community Kwanzaa celebration, all your Rose Bowl-related experiences, and more.

    Our picks:

    • New Year’s Eve Fireworks, Fisherman's Village - Living on the West Coast has many benefits. But maybe the best is getting to ring in the New Year twice – once at 9 p.m. with our East Coast friends and once at midnight.
    • Bandfest, Pasadena City College - Can’t make it to the Rose Parade? You can still hear marching bands from around the area perform ahead of the big day as they strut their stuff at PCC.
    • Craft Beer and Cider Festival, Santa Anita Park - Watch the horses on opening weekend at the historic Santa Anita racetrack while enjoying beers and ciders from craft producers.

    Welcome to the last Best Things to Do column of 2023! By this time next week, we’ll be back to our routines, totally refreshed, and ready to take 2024 by storm. Right? Well, one can hope.

    We’re bringing you all the best New Year’s Eve parties and day-after plans to set you on the right track – or at the very least have fun trying. Whether your vibe is a DJ night or a fancy dinner, a quiet yoga practice or fireworks by the beach, we enter the new year lucky to live in a place that really does have it all.

    And if you’d rather stay in on New Year’s, LAist is a no-judgment zone. This week is also full of Kwanzaa celebrations, Rose Bowl festivities, inspiring talks, and of course, tamales.

    Visit LAist for more happenings, the 411 on how to spot those majestic orcas that have been popping up along the coast, a review of the new art amusement park Luna Luna, and tips on how to keep those New Year’s resolutions.

    EVENTS

    • A woman with short brown hair in a black and white dress poses next to a grey-haired man wearing a suit on a red carpet.
      Thu, Dec 28

      Holocaust Survivor Talk

      • Holocaust Museum LA
        100 The Grove Dr., Miracle Mile

      Artist and Holocaust survivor Gabriella Karin joins the Holocaust Museum in L.A. to share her story.
    • A stylized image reading 'Pearl & The Oysters' above a woman with dark, curly hair and a man wearing a hat with arms outstretched.
      Fri, Dec 29

      Pearl & the Oysters

      • Echoplex
        1822 Sunset Blvd., Echo Park

      This all-ages show from Pretty but Wicked and KCRW brings Paris-to-L.A. transplants Juliette Pearl Davis and Joachim Pollack to the Echoplex.
    • A stylized flyer with a yellow background and the words 'Kwanzaa Celebration' over an illustration of Mishumaa Saba and a border of leaf drawings.
      Sat, Dec 30

      Kwanzaa Celebration

      • Ovation Hollywood
        6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood

      Ovation Hollywood hosts their second annual outdoor Kwanzaa event, with dance performances, crafts, and even a drumming demo.
    • A dark-haired man in a plaid button up shirt with an orange background, with the words 'Sorry For Your Loss' over his head.
      Thu, Jan 4

      Sorry for Your Loss

      • Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre
        5919 Franklin Ave., Hollywood

      Late Show with Stephen Colbert writer Michael Cruz Kayne brings his personal experience with grief to the Upright Citizens Brigade

    ROSE PARADE AND ROSE BOWL

    In addition to the big game and the parade itself, there are many ways to experience the annual Tournament of Roses in Pasadena over New Year’s weekend. Here are a few of our picks:

    • A woman wearing a blue hoodie paints a float decorated with flowers.

      Decorating Places

      • Rosemont Pavilion
        700 Seco St., Pasadena

      Check out the floats before their big debut by coming out to watch the decorators put on their final flowery touches.
    • Girls wearing athletic clothes and sneakers run through a crosswalk with their arms up, smiling.
      Sun, Dec 31

      Lululemon Run With the Roses 5K

      • Lululemon Pasadena Store
        101 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena

      Skip the countdown and lace up your sneakers at midnight for a quick 5K through the Rose Bowl parade route.
    • Trumpeteers wearing white and red uniforms march in formation on a track.

      Bandfest

      • Pasadena City College
        1570 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena

      Hear marching bands from around the area perform ahead of the big day as they strut their stuff at Pasadena City College.

    FIREWORKS

    NEW YEAR’S EVE ENTERTAINMENT 

    There are a million things to do in L.A. on New Year’s Eve, but trying to stay in DTLA when your friend invites you to Venice or getting up the oomph to go to Highland Park if you live in Mid-City is tough on the biggest party night of the year. So here are a few picks – east, west, and in-between. The convincing of who’s going to travel or meet in the middle is on you, but make sure to plan your transport and imbibing accordingly!

    • A flyer with an image of an overflowing cocktail glass behind the words 'New Years Eve Party 2024."
      Sun, Dec 31

      Anthony Valadez DJ Set

      • Townhouse Venice
        52 Windward Ave, Venice

      Kick off 2024 with KCRW DJ Anthony Valdez at the original Venice speakeasy.
    • Patton Oswalt speaks into a microphone while performing on stage. He's wearing a blue denim shirt. Behind him, the wall has wood paneling and two metal letters in a partially visible sign are lit up.
      Sun, Dec 31

      Patton Oswalt

      • Hollywood Improv
        8162 Melrose Ave., Beverly Grove

      Emmy-winning comedian Patton Oswalt is doing two shows on New Year’s Eve on the Hollywood Improv main stage.
    • A black and white image of people dancing and gathering in a large, celebratory New Year's Eve prohibition party.
      Sun, Dec 31

      Prohibition Party

      • Union Station
        800 N. Alameda St., Downtown L.A.

      Put on your best flapper dress for the Prohibition Party at the aptly art deco Union Station building in DTLA.
    • Colorful singing bowls in red, green, yellow, and blue sit on a table with a decorated tablecloth.
      Sun, Dec 31

      New Year’s Eve Sound Bath

      • Philosophical Research Society
        3910 Los Feliz Blvd., Los Feliz

      Seven quartz “singing bowls” will soothe your mind and get you ready to face all the things that 2024 has to offer.

    OUTDOOR PICK

    • A woman with a black and yellow backpack faces an open, mountainous space for a trek. Her back is to the camera.
      Mon, Jan 1

      First Day Hike

      • Malibu Creek State Park
        1925 Las Virgenes Rd., Calabasas

      This Jan. 1 hike in Malibu will take visitors on a three-mile trek to the rock pool and visitor’s center.

    VIEWING PICK

    • A black-and-white image of a 1940 era, curly-haired woman with her ear to the phone, next to a man in a suit with his ear to another phone.
      Sat, Dec 30

      His Girl Friday

      • New Beverly Cinema
        7165 Beverly Blvd., Fairfax

      Bring the whole family to see the classic Cary Grant/Rosalind Russell film His Girl Friday at the New Beverly on Saturday afternoon.

    DINE AND DRINK DEALS

    News from the food world — and a few dining and drink deals to explore — over the holidays across SoCal.

    • Four fresh tamales with various sauces and cheeses layered on top.
      Sat, Dec 30

      Olmeca

      • Golden Poppy Market
        1209 Cypress Ave., Cypress Park

      Pick up some very special tamales this holiday season from Chef Yunia Funes Mata at the Olmeca pop-up at the Golden Poppy Market on Saturdays.
    • A flyer reading 'Santa Anita Park: Craft Beer & Cider Festival,' with four people smiling and holding up cups of beer.
      Sat, Dec 30

      Craft Beer and Cider Festival

      Watch horses at the historic Santa Anita racetrack while enjoying beers and ciders from craft producers.
    • A fresh lobster dish with lemon from Here's Looking At You.
      Sun, Dec 31

      New Year’s Eve Menu

      • Here’s Looking at You
        3901 W. 6th St., Koreatown

      If you’re going to go all out on New Year’s, might we suggest doing it at Here’s Looking at You?