The Brief

Listen to a day of live music at the Leimert Park Jazz Festival. Attend a silent film festival. Shop at RuPaul’s Drag Race Drag Sale pop-up.

Events

Friday, Aug. 25; 7 - 9 p.m.

Friday Movie Nights | Detective Pikachu
Japan House L.A.
Ovation Hollywood, Center Courtyard
6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood 
As part of Japan House Los Angeles’ fifth-anniversary celebration, they’re partnering with Ovation Hollywood to present a free movie night featuring snacks, prizes, and the hit film Detective Pikachu. The film was selected to complement the POKÉMON X KOGEI | Playful Encounters of Pokémon and Japanese Craft exhibition.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Saturday, Aug. 26; 12:30 - 9 p.m. 

4th Annual Leimert Park Jazz Festival
Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza
3650 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw
The festival has grown organically from a neighborhood block party to a grand celebration of music artists, visual artists, small businesses and nonprofits in South L.A. Performers include Poncho Sanchez, Keyon Harrold, Gerald Clayton and Carmen Lundy. Additional activities include the Visual Arts Pavilion, a Community Resource Zone, a Kids’ Zone, food trucks, and a wine and beer lounge.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Saturday, Aug. 26; 6 p.m.

Off the 405: Alabaster DePlume
Getty Center
1200 Getty Center Dr., Brentwood
The Getty’s free concert series "Off the 405" ends its season this weekend with a performance from British poet and saxophonist Alabaster DePlume. “His songs are built on sonorous circular melodies and luminous tones that transmit calmness and generosity in warm waves—unless they’re raging against complacency and the everyday inhumanity of end-times capitalism.”
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

HIP-HOP SOUNDS & STORIES: A 50 & Forever Celebration Through the Decades is a free, two-day multimedia experience.

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Courtesy of NTWRK

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Saturday, Aug. 26; 11 a.m.

Hip-Hop Sounds & Stories: A 50 & Forever Celebration Through the Decades
NTWRK LA
433 N. Fairfax Ave., Beverly Grove
This weekend, NTWRK, Amazon Music and Audible present a multimedia experience that celebrates the various formats and methods of listening to hip-hop over the last five decades. On Saturday morning, attend a panel discussion exploring hip-hop's history. Panelists include visual artist Glen Infante, Amazon Music Artist Relations Manager Josh Peas, hip-hop DJ and multiplatinum artist DJ Drama, and music journalist, author and narrator of The Motherlode Clover Hope. The event also features performances from special guests. The exhibition space will be open all day on Sunday as well.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Sierra Madre Playhouse presents 'The Camera Is Ours,' a silent film festival featuring films before and after the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment (1920).

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Courtesy of the Sierra Madre Playhouse

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Saturday, Aug. 26 - Sunday, Aug. 27

The Camera Is Ours Silent Film Festival
Sierra Madre Playhouse
87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre
The silent film festival features films released before and after the passage of the 19th Amendment (1920). The films, including The Perils of Pauline and Sparrows, will be accompanied on the piano by the noted accompanist and film historian Frederick Hodges. The festival also includes workshops and discussions.
COST: $25 - $75; MORE INFO

Saturday, Aug. 26 - Sunday, Aug. 27; 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.

7th Annual Festival Chapín Los Angeles 
Lafayette Park
625 S. Lafayette Park Pl., Westlake
The annual event is a celebration of Guatemalan culture and community through the country’s history, folklore, music, arts and crafts and “Chapín” gastronomy, which includes dishes such as garnachas (similar to a Mexican ‘sope’), shucos (Guatemalan-style hot dogs), chicken enchiladas and hilachas (stewed meat). Music artists include Marimba Orquesta Alegría Chapina, Raúl Acosta y Oro Solido and Los Miseria Cumbia Band.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Saturday, Aug. 26; noon

VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Finals Day
Kia Forum
3900 W. Manchester Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90305
Esports fans should head to the Forum to watch the last two teams battle it out for the VALORANT Global Champion title. The finals culminate a yearlong VCT esports global circuit for this tactical shooter game. The opening ceremony for the finals also includes musical performances from Grabbitz, bbno$, ericdoa, Emei and Jazz Alonso.
COST: Tickets start at $57; MORE INFO

Corey Helford Gallery opens 'Peering Through the Darkness,' featuring new works from Los Angeles art scene painter Luke Chueh.

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'Walking through the Valley,' Courtesy of the artist and Corey Helford Gallery

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Saturday, Aug. 26 - Saturday, Sept. 30

Luke Chueh: Peering Through the Darkness
Corey Helford Gallery
571 S. Anderson St., Boyle Heights
The gallery presents its next major solo show, featuring new works from contemporary artist Luke Chueh, whose style blends elements of pop art, minimalism and surrealism. Also opening at the gallery is a solo show from Pop-Surrealist painter, illustrator and comic artist Camilla d'Errico. Also present is the annual Buy Art Save Kittens fundraiser (presented in partnership with Kitty Bungalow Charm School for Wayward Cats). The opening reception takes place on Saturday, Aug. 26, from 7 to 11 p.m.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Saturday, Aug. 26; 12 - 4 p.m.

World of Wonder Pop-Up Store - RuPaul’s Drag Race Drag Sale
World of Wonder Gallery 
6650 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood 
Shop a one-day sale that features merchandise from famed drag queens Pandora Boxx, Scarlet Envy, Scarlett Bobo, Ongina and Mariah Paris Balenciaga, who will all be in attendance to meet attendees. Additional merchandise will be available for purchase from Gottmik and Honey Davenport. House of Love cocktails and mocktails will be available for purchase.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Sunday, Aug. 27; 7 p.m.

Feel Good Comedy
The Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
5970 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood
This all-ages comedy show features a bold and sassy lineup of up-and-coming comics including Terra Ace, Joy Wolfe, Eric Owusu, Genesis Sol, Sayaka Miyatani, Rachel Scanlon and Adrian Colon Jr.
COST: $20; MORE INFO

Sunday, Aug. 27; 1 p.m.

Happy Sundays
Various venues
Zaferia Neighborhood, Long Beach 
The music festival takes over various stages in the LBC. Check out over three dozen artists/bands, including Nectarines, L.A. Witch, Soft Palms, The Paranoyds, Julia Julia and others. The comedy stage returns this year to the Long Beach Playhouse with headliners Christopher Carmen and Shane Torres, plus more.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Sunday, Aug. 27; 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Prosperity Market
Hollywood Park (adjacent to SoFi Stadium)
1213 S. District Dr., Inglewood
Prosperity Market — a mobile farmers market that supports and highlights Black-owned businesses — hosts a pop-up event to celebrate Black Business Month and to conclude its third annual Black Business Scavenger Hunt. Vendors include The Farmer Ken, Sienna Naturals, Ghost Town Oats, Gloria's Shito, Runway Boutique, The Plant Chica, California Coffee Company, Happi Jam, Tranquilitea, The Lazy Rose Cafe, The Heart Dept, Sherman Produce, Compton Vegan, Chef Brandi Biggles and others. The parking lot entrance is located on 97th St. & Prairie Ave. and costs $5 for the first two hours. 
COST: FREE - $60; MORE INFO

Hike the old Los Angeles Zoo trail in Griffith Park.

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Rosalind Chang

/

via Unsplash

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Outdoor Pick

Hike the Old LA Zoo 
Though the animals are long gone, abandoned, enclosed structures remain at the old zoo in Griffith Park. The easy hike can be creepy to do alone (though it’s now a picnic area), so if you’d like to hike the 2.5 loop trail with people, the Outbound City Project’s L,A, Chapter is holding a group outing on Saturday, Aug. 26. Meet up at the Merry Go Round Lot in Griffith Park starting at 8 a.m. to traverse the Fern Canyon Trail and the Upper Old Zoo Trail. The hike is free regardless of whether you go solo or with the Outbound group (but register to let them know you’re coming).

Viewing Pick

NFMLA Monthly Film Festival - InFocus: International Animation
NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA)’s monthly film festival returns on Saturday, Aug. 26, from 2:30 - 10:15 p.m. at South Park Center in downtown L.A. The August line-up celebrates emerging filmmakers from around the world. The first program features a number of short films made in California; the second block focuses on films from the city of L.A. and the third program showcases international animation. The day also includes drinks and mixers, filmmaker Q&As and networking. Tickets: $10 - $30.

The sushi spot Santō recently opened in Silver Lake.

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Jakob N. Layman

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Courtesy of Santō

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Dine and Drink Deals

Here are a few dine and drink options to indulge in this week.

• The Victor in Santa Ynez holds an end-of-summer clambake al fresco on Saturday, Aug. 26 at 6 p.m. Tickets ($125) include a welcome glass of bubbly and a feast of crab claws, steamed clams, mussels, sausage, potatoes, and buttery corn, plus beer and wine. 
• Sayonara Summer is a fundraising block party in DTLA’s Art District benefiting the food security program at No Us Without You L.A. On Sunday, Aug. 27, from noon to 6 p.m. on Colyton Street (between 5th and Palmetto), guests can enjoy some of L.A.’s favorite foods, spirits and brews while listening to DJs and mariachis throughout the afternoon. Tickets: $20 - $100.
• Rossoblu in downtown L.A. holds an ”End of Summer/Ferragosto" celebration on Sunday, Aug. 27 at 5 p.m. Tickets ($125) include an Italian spritz, pasta demonstration, an eight-course dinner and live music.
• Grand Central Market in downtown L.A. holds a Night Market on Friday, Aug. 25 from 8 p.m. to midnight. Shop from the Bazaar, eat from diverse food vendors, sip on cocktails or get inked from the pop-up tattoo shop. Free admission; VIP package is $30.
• On Friday, Aug. 25, 7 to 11 p.m., the L.A. Zoo’s popular Brew at the Zoo event returns for its 11th installment. The night features more than 40 breweries and cideries, with pub-style food options, live music, a DJ dance party, and, of course, wild things. Standard, early admission, VIP tickets and designated driver tickets are available. Food is only included in the VIP option. Ages 21+. Admission: $50 - $175.  
• Kevin Hart’s plant-based Hart House celebrates its first anniversary. On Aug. 25, all Hart House locations launch the limited time-offer “House Party” shake — vanilla mint cream swirled with dairy-free whipped topping and chocolate drizzle (available through Sept. 12). Customers also get a free cookie with the purchase of any meal. The Hart House Hollywood (6800 Sunset Blvd.) and University Park South (3726 S. Figueroa) locations are also hosting parties from 6 to 8 p.m. with swag giveaways, games and a DJ.
• The sushi and hand roll bar Santō opened in Silver Lake on Sunset Blvd. last week. Much like its original location in Mexico City, the new location offers both sushi classics and signature items including a torched hamachi nigiri with Oaxacan chocolate and Colima salt; otoro sashimi seared with Binchōtan (a Japanese coal), and items featuring vegan tuna and salmon from Fysh (which is a tapioca based product) for a vegan spicy tuna hand roll and more. The dessert menu features flavors (ube, matcha, et al.) from Pazzo Gelato across the street.

Geffen Playhouse Artistic Director Tarell Alvin McCraney won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the movie Moonlight, but don't expect to see him at this year's Oscars ceremony.

"I tend to stay away from the awards show," McCraney said. " I think I might have PTSD."

McCraney is referring to the viral moment from the 2017 Oscars ceremony, where La La Land was mistakenly announced as the Best Picture winner instead of Moonlight.

McCraney isn't new to theater. In fact, you could consider it his original home before his play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue launched him into the Hollywood spotlight. But when the Geffen Playhouse asked him to be their artistic director two years ago, it called him back to the stage in a different way. Tapping a screenwriter for the position was a first for the theater, but McCraney said the roles actually overlap in more ways than one.

 "The job of the screenwriter most times is to make sure that everybody is understanding where the story is going and what the 'action' of the piece is," McCraney said. "So it's not that much different than being an artistic director.  My job here is to set the artistic goal for the organization. [To] point out its virtues and pitfalls, the dangers and the obstacles, and then move collectively as a single storyteller towards that goal."

McCraney said one of the great things about living in Los Angeles is its nuanced racial and ethnic communities, and he rides his bike around the city to better experience them.

"The landscape is constantly shifting and changing," McCraney said. "For example, Westwood has drastically changed over the past 15 years and will change irrevocably with the coming of the new train station down on Wilshire. It will change again with LA28 happening."

Just like Los Angeles, the Geffen Playhouse has had multiple transformations over its more than 30 year existence. Their world premier show, Silvia Silvia Silvia, is playing until March 8. Dragon Mama, starring Sarah Porkalob, begins March 4.

"Sarah is an incredible singer and writer and has created this incredible arc through a family that is both powerful and witty, but also deeply nuanced," McCraney said. "She's sharing that family with us, and family is our first community. They are the people we learn the most from. We learn unconditional love. We learn collective bargaining. Investigating family, investigating why we stay together and how we stay together through dire circumstances is a critical investigation for us right now."

When it comes to this year's Oscars ceremony, McCraney said he's rooting for all the nominees.

"It's been an incredible season," he said. "But Sinners is an incredible film that I've seen three or four times, so I'm really excited to see how it does."

The Long Beach Community College District has agreed to pay $18 million to more than 1,450 part-time professors to settle a class-action lawsuit that alleged they were forced to work unpaid hours outside the classroom, grading papers and tests, meeting with students, preparing lessons and other duties.

The settlement, which the district board quietly approved last month, still needs the judge overseeing the case to sign off. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for July 1 in Los Angeles County Superior Court. It’s likely that Judge Stuart Rice will approve the deal. Last year, he ruled that the part-timers, commonly called adjuncts, were entitled to the pay they sought, writing he found “a myriad of problems” with the district’s claims that its practices did not violate state law.

The case has made “a major impact throughout the state already,” as some districts have begun negotiating contract terms to give adjuncts what they’ve long sought — pay for time they spend prepping and grading, not just for class time, said the plaintiffs’ lawyer Eileen B. Goldsmith, in an interview. (EdSource published an investigative series in the issue, Gig By Gig At California’s Community Colleges, in 2022.)

The Long Beach district recently set aside $20 million for the settlement and associated costs, its spokesperson, Stacey Toda, told the Long Beach Post in an email. “Resolving this matter allows the District to avoid prolonged litigation and manage risk responsibly, consistent with standard practices across public higher education,” Toda wrote.

The settlement “is a big deal, it is tremendous,” said John Martin, chair of the California Part-Time Faculty Association, and a community college adjunct professor in Shasta and Butte counties.

Martin, a long-time advocate for better pay for adjuncts, is also the plaintiff in similar ongoing lawsuits, including one against the state Community College system.

In legal papers filed in the Superior Court, Goldsmith wrote that the proposed settlement, if approved, will result in 1,456 class members receiving more than “$11,000 — a very meaningful result for these class members, particularly given the novel issues in this litigation.”

The Long Beach Post contributed to this story.