Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Best Things To Do This Week In Los Angeles And SoCal: April 3 - 6
Melrose Rooftop Theatre's screening season has begun.
(
Courtesy of Melrose Rooftop Theatre
)
Watch movies on a rooftop with great views of the Hollywood Hills. Listen to The Moth storytellers tell tales that enlighten and entertain. Watch a live dub of the Japanese anime Garzey’s Wing. Join in a beginner’s mountain bike ride at night in Orange County.
Events
Ongoing
Rooftop Movies
Melrose Rooftop Theatre at E.P. & L.P.
603 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood
The rooftop movie season has begun and Melrose Rooftop Theatre (MRT) screens an eclectic mix of new Oscar-nominated releases and classic movies under the stars, complete with a view of the Hollywood Hills. This week, the schedule includes The Devil Wears Prada (Monday), Bridget Jones’s Diary (Tuesday), Joker (Wednesday) and Avatar 2 (Thursday). A number of dinner and date night packages are available.
COST: $25 - $199; MORE INFO
Support for LAist comes from
Tuesday, April 4; 7 p.m.
Emily St. John Mandel: Sea of Tranquility
Mark Taper Auditorium, Central Library
630 W. 5th St., downtown L.A.
The Library Foundation’s ALOUD series welcomes award-winning and bestselling author Emily St. John Mandel (The Glass House, Station Eleven) to discuss her genre-bending novel, Sea of Tranquility, with National Book Award Winner Charles Yu (Interior Chinatown).
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO
Tuesday, April 4 - Sunday, May 7
Ava: The Secret Conversations
Geffen Playhouse
10886 Le Conte Ave., Westwood
Elizabeth McGovern (Downton Abbey) stars in the U.S. premiere of a play she wrote based on the book The Secret Conversations by Peter Evans & Ava Gardner. Directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, the production offers a theatrical glimpse into the life of Hollywood’s OG femme fatale as Gardner and her ghostwriter delve into writing her tell-all biography.
COST: $30 - $139; MORE INFO
Support for LAist comes from
Tuesday, April 4; 7:30 p.m.
In the Heat of the Night
David Geffen Theater
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
6067 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire
The Academy’s Producers Branch screens this classic 1967 film with Sidney Poitier as Detective Virgil Tibbs, who teams up with a small-town sheriff (Rod Steiger in an Oscar-winning performance) to solve a murder in a Mississippi town. The film was directed by Norman Jewison and won the 1967 Best Picture Oscar for veteran producer Walter Mirisch.
COST: $5 - $10; MORE INFO
Storytellers return to The Moth Mainstage this week at The Theatre at Ace Hotel.
(
Courtesy of The Moth
)
Tuesday, April 4; 8 p.m.
The Moth Mainstage Los Angeles
The Theatre at Ace Hotel
929 S. Broadway, downtown L.A.
Listen to storytellers tell their tales in this curated event. They’ve honed and shaped their true and personal stories with Moth directors to provide compelling stories that will undoubtedly entertain and enlighten audience members.
COST: $25 - $60; MORE INFO
Through Tuesday, April 4
PaleyFest 2023
Dolby Theatre
6801 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood
The annual festival that celebrates buzzworthy TV shows wraps this week. Attend special screenings and Q&As with the cast and creatives of Showtime’s Yellowjackets (Monday) and Prime TV’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Tuesday).
COST: Tickets start at $35; MORE INFO
Support for LAist comes from
Wednesday, April 4; 7:30 p.m.
Garzey’s Wing + Comedy
Secret Movie Club Theater
1917 Bay St., 2nd Floor, downtown L.A.
The night begins at 7:30 p.m. with a comedy set from The Resistance. They’ll create a 45-minute comedy improv based on genre and story suggestions from the audience. Then at 8:45 p.m., they’ll live dub the crazy Japanese anime Garzey’s Wing.
COST: $15 - $18; MORE INFO
Wednesday, April 5; 9 p.m.
Vijay Iyer Solo Piano Performance
2220 Arts + Archives
2220 Beverly Blvd., Westlake
Pianist and composer Vijay Iyer performs a rare solo concert that promises to offer an eclectic repertoire, including his own compositions spanning 30 years, improvisational music and works by icons such as Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington and Andrew Hill. There may be a few guests dropping by as well.
COST: $33.99; MORE INFO
UCLA First Thursdays returns on April 6 to Westwood Village.
(
Courtesy UCLA
)
Support for LAist comes from
Thursday, April 6; 7 - 10 p.m.
UCLA First Thursdays
Broxton Ave., Westwood Village
UCLA hosts “Arts Avenue” for this month’s First Thursdays series. The evening includes an immersive art installation by artist Refik Anadol and pop art-making for all, music, live poetry, face painting, and other activities. Additionally, Veggie Bomb and Poutine Brothers food trucks offer eats for all food preferences. Earlier in the day (12 - 4 p.m.), at the weekly Westwood Farmers Market, UCLA offers upcycling and climate resilience advice at its Climate Action booth.
COST: FREE admission; MORE INFO
Take a slow-paced beginner mountain bike ride at night in Limestone Canyon, part of OC Parks’ Irvine Ranch Open Space.
(
Jaime Dantas on Unsplash
)
Thursday, April 6; 7 - 9:30 p.m.
Night Adult Beginner Mountain Bike Ride: Limestone Canyon to The Sinks
Irvine Ranch Augustine Staging Area
E. Santiago Canyon Road, Silverado
This is an adults-only, slow-paced beginner mountain bike ride at night in Limestone Canyon, part of OC Parks’ Irvine Ranch Open Space. The route takes riders to The Sinks, Orange County’s mini-Grand Canyon. Learn about the local habitat and native animals along the way. This ride is recommended for bikers with at least six months of trail experience and can ride 8-to-9 miles with 400 to 800 feet of elevation gain. Pre-registration is required; no walk-up registration is available. Please check trail conditions before signing up.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO
Thursday, April 7; 7:30 p.m.
Huxley Berg Studio Showcase
Frida Cinema
305 E. 4th St. #100, Santa Ana
Watch superhero scenes, movie trailers and even a feature film painstakingly recreated brick-by-LEGO-brick in stop-motion animation. The event showcases the work of animator Huxley Berg, who boasts 66 million total channel views on YouTube.
COST: $5; MORE INFO
Viewing Pick
Beef
The dark comedy series Beef, created and executive produced by showrunner Lee Sung Jin (Dave, Silicon Valley), follows the aftermath of a road rage incident between two strangers. Steven Yeun stars as Danny Cho, a failing contractor with a chip on his shoulder, who goes head-to-head with Amy Lau (played by Ali Wong), an entrepreneur with a nearly picture-perfect life. The increasing stakes of their feud begin to tear apart their lives and relationships. Beef drops on April 6 on Netflix.
Dine and Drink Deals
Paloma Venice launches breakfast on Wednesday, April 5, with dishes including shakshuka.
(
Cara Harman
)
Here are a few dine and drink options to indulge in this week.
- Alexander’s Steakhouse in Pasadena holds an Uncle Nearest Tasting & Dinner Event on April 6. (Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey is the first-ever spirit honoring an African American whiskey maker Nearest Green.) Chef Richard Archuleta’s four-course meal will be paired with Uncle Nearest cocktails and a whiskey flight featuring Uncle Nearest 1884, 1856, Rye and Single Barrel Black Label. Tickets are $150 per person.
- Sister restaurant concepts in Venice and Santa Monica — The Tasting Kitchen and Ghisallo — come together to create a pop-up dining experience starting Monday, April 3. The Tasting Kitchen (TTK) had a small fire on March 10 and is closed for repairs. Hence, TTK’s executive chef Travis Passerotti brings fav menu items to the Ghisallo kitchen as he joins forces with Ghisallo’s Stensland "Arnold" Smith to create a fine dining meets wood-fired pizza experience. TTK dishes, such as gnocco fritto & burrata, striped bass, cacio e pepe, will be available at Ghisallo’s kitchen for dinner Mondays to Thursdays from 5 to 9 p.m.
- The Rat Pack-inspired cocktail den, The Velvet Martini Lounge, recently opened above Vitello’s main dining room in Studio City. The lounge offers nightly live music, upscale food, and craft cocktails, including the Sammy’s Jazzerac, a toasted almond Sazerac; The Mora Tau Vacation, a Zombie-inspired rum Old Fashioned; Doris’ Dance, a take on a Clover Club; and the absinthe-based Death in the Evening.
- Paloma Venice launches breakfast on Wednesday, April 5, from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m., Tuesday through Sunday. The breakfast menu features a small selection of favorites, including shakshuka (pictured above) and various toasts to complement their coffee bar. And for the first month, Paloma donates half of all coffee sales during breakfast to the neighboring Venice Family Clinic.
- It’s National Burrito Day on Thursday, April 6, and all Miguel’s Jr. locations are celebrating with a $1.99 deal on the bean, rice and cheese burrito and the bean and cheese burrito. The deal is available for dine-in, take-out, online ordering and drive-thru from open to close.
- Also on Thursday, April 6, El Pollo Loco’s new and existing Loco Rewards members receive a BOGO burrito deal redeemable for all burritos on the El Pollo Loco menu. Guests who order via the app or El Pollo Loco website on National Burrito Day will get free delivery.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago. -
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
Best of LAist