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.
The Best IRL And Virtual Events Happening In SoCal This Week: July 5 - 8

Check out a cardboard community art gallery. Shop at a marketplace for the odd and occult. Listen as Patti LaBelle revisits her bestselling cookbook. Attend a dance performance on an outdoor cityscape. See Black Widow early at a fan screening. Enjoy an evening of performances inspired by Andy Warhol.
Monday, July 5 - Friday, Sept. 3
Festival of Arts Fine Art Show & Pageant of the Masters
650 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach
The outdoor fine art show opens on Monday, July 5, welcoming guests back after last summer’s hiatus. The renowned Pageant of the Masters — the presentation of tableaux vivants ("living pictures”) that feature real people recreating famous works of art — opens on Wednesday, July 7 at the outdoor amphitheater. This year’s show, Made in America: Trailblazing Artists and Their Stories, focuses on American art.
COST: Pageant tickets start at $25, art show tickets run from $5 - $15; FREE; MORE INFO

Tuesday, July 6; 6 p.m. PT
Patti LaBelle with Tamar Braxton
Live Talks L.A. welcomes the "godmother of soul" Patti LaBelle, who revisits her bestselling cookbook, LaBelle Cuisine, published more than 20 years ago. The updated anniversary edition includes a few more family recipes. LaBelle chats with Tamar Braxton for this virtual event. On Thursday, Live Talks also hosts musician Richard Marx who discusses his memoir with Patton Oswalt.
COST: FREE - $40; MORE INFO

Wednesday, July 7; 6:30 p.m. PT
Live Pasta Cooking Class
Chef Andy Chavez of Osteria la Buca makes a fresh summer pasta dish with proceeds benefitting the L.A. Mission. Just watch or cook along. Pick-up pasta kits will be available starting at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, July 6. A wine pairing option is also available for $35 more.
COST: $40 for Zoom only, $120 (pasta kit); MORE INFO
Wednesday, July 7 - Sunday, July 11; 7 - 10 p.m. PT
Bazaar Bizarre: A Pop-up Retail Experience
ZJU Theatre Group
4850 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood
Visit Zombie’s Joe’s mysterious hidden marketplace of the odd and occult, along with peculiar services provided by colorful characters roaming around. The rummage sale and an immersive performance experience, directed by Brandon Slezak and produced by Zombie Joe, are recommended for those ages 15+. Walk-up admission only.
COST: FREE rummage sale, $10 for performance; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8 - Saturday, July 10
Sugar Houses
Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater (REDCAT)
631 W. 2nd St., downtown L.A.
Six singer-dancer-actors perform a deconstructed version of "Hansel and Gretel" in this world premiere at REDCAT. L.A.-based choreographer Rosanna Gamson presents the narrative through the structure of the horror genre. The live-streamed version of the show will be available on July 11.
COST: $15 - $25; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8; 6 p.m.
Everything Now: Lessons from the City-State of Los Angeles
Sometimes, it seems like the East Coast's #1 export is fumbling essays attempting to explain Los Angeles to the rest of the world. Bonus points if the writer has only lived in L.A. for two hot seconds. If this sort of thing is your jam, author and essayist Rosecrans Baldwin talks with fellow author Steph Cha about his new book, Everything Now, which "approaches the metropolis from unexpected angles" and "allows us, finally, to grasp a place... whose idiosyncrasies both magnify those of America, and are so fully its own." Do the laws of space and time even function here (in Los Angeles!) as they do in the rest of the known universe? Watch the conversation online via Book Soup. Or don't.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8 - Friday, July 9
Honest Purpose
The Culver Steps
9300 Culver Blvd., Culver City
The L.A.-based Heidi Duckler Dance company presents a series of site-specific performances at the Culver Steps, accompanied by a live four-piece band led by Dwight Trible. The work explores private and public space and celebrates the city’s reemergence.
COST: $20 - $40; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8 - Sunday, Aug. 29
Cardboard City
1231 Third St. Promenade, Santa Monica
The 10,000-square-foot pop-up art center features museum-style exhibitions of cardboard sculptures and architectural models, created by artists-in-residence. The community center also features family art activities such as cardboard crafting techniques and a Cardboard City Shop selling tools and materials so families can make cardboard art at home. The public gallery is free. There are also fee-based activities.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8
Rooftop Cinema DTLA
Level
4th Floor, 888 South Olive St., downtown L.A.
Outdoor, rooftop movies return to DTLA this week, screening LA LA Land at 8:30 p.m. and Nightmare on Elm Street at 11:30 p.m. for its opening night on Thursday.
COST: Tickets start at $16.55; MORE INFO

Thursday, July 8; 8 p.m.
Marc Maron
Dynasty Typewriter
2511 Wilshire Blvd., Westlake
The comedian, actor and podcaster performs at the Dynasty. If you can’t score tickets to this show, others are scheduled for July 15 and 22. Ages 18+.
COST: $30 - $35; MORE INFO
Thursday, July 8; 8 - 11 p.m. P.T.
Photo Factory After Hours
NeueHouse Hollywood
6121 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood
Enjoy an evening of Andy Warhol-inspired performances as well as DJ sets by Josh Madden and The Midwest Boyz. Hosted by More, the duo also performs their style of modern rock and electric pop against the backdrop of rare Warhol photographs.
COST: $30, free entry for NeueHouse members; MORE INFO
Thursday, July 8; 7 p.m.
Black Widow Opening Night Fan Event
El Capitan Theatre
6838 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood
Marvel fans can watch the Scarlett Johansson-led film before its opening on Friday. Enjoy photo ops and costumes from the film. The fan event includes reserved seating, an exclusive poster, a box of popcorn, a 44-ounce collector cup with a beverage, and a souvenir credential with a lanyard.
COST: $40 per ticket; MORE INFO
Ongoing
Central Perk Café and the Friends Boutique
Warner Bros. Studio Tour
3400 Warner Blvd., Burbank
The popular studio tour recently reopened with big updates for Friends fans. At Stage 48: Script to Screen, guests can indulge in a New York deli-inspired menu (including corned beef melts, pizza wedges, hot dogs, fries and salads) and a blend of Central Perk coffee. Dessert includes a meat-free version of Rachel’s Thanksgiving trifle, New York style cheesecake and Central Perk cupcakes. Guests can dine in recreated sets inspired by the show including Central Perk and Monica’s or Joey and Chandler’s apartments. The cafe and store are only accessible with the purchase of a Studio Tour ticket. The tour operates on weekends only but will expand to Thursday through Monday on July 15.
COST: Tour tickets: $57 - $69; MORE INFO
TV/Streaming Pick
Gossip Girl
HBO Max reboots the CW drama, which ran from 2007 to 2012, with a new generation of New York prep school kids. While the old series’ blog went offline during the series finale, the new class has a greater force: social media. The 10 episodes were created by Joshua Safran, one of the original show's writers. The first cast doesn’t appear in the show but Kristen Bell returns to narrate. The series streams on July 8 on HBO Max.

Dine and Drink Deals
Here's the 411 from restaurants and bars in Los Angeles and SoCal:
- Rooster's Chicken House, with locations (inside Holy Cow BBQ in El Segundo/Inglewood, Culver City, Santa Monica and West LA), celebrates National Fried Chicken Day on Tuesday, July 6, with The Two Buck Cluck promotion. The mini-meal includes one chicken tender, slaw and a biscuit for $2.
- If you’re looking for last-minute brunch options on July 5, The Rose in Venice, which is normally closed on Mondays, is open for the holiday weekend. They’re serving up the full brunch menu that includes biscuits, breakfast burrito, steak and eggs, and smoked radiatore carbonara.
- After more than a year of being closed to indoor dining, Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen reopens all three Hilltop locations (View Park/Windsor Hills, Inglewood and Glassell Park/Eagle Rock) on Tuesday, July 5.
- Field Roast collaborates with chef Roy Choi to launch “The Home Run,” a plant-based Kogi dog. It's the first vegan hot dog to be sold alongside traditional beef dogs on the Kogi Truck.
- Nomoo, the plant-based burger joint on Melrose, launched its new BBQ "facon" burger last week. Made with barbecued seitan, housemade "bacon," secret sauce, fried onion strings, an Impossible Patty and American "cheeze" sauce, it costs $12.
- On Thursday, July 8 from 7 to 10 p.m., head to an in-person Spirited Supper that features Indian whisky and a Mediterranean supper at Momed in Atwater Village. Momed’s Mark Stone creates and chef Will Kelly makes a Mediterranean feast. $89/person.
- Tiny Encino restaurant Pasta|Bar has introduced a Kitchen Table (in addition to chef’s counter seating) for parties of four to six guests. Enjoy the restaurant’s traditional tasting menu with dishes such as cavatelli with grilled lobster and peas or family-style, off-menu creations including whole fried loup de mer with chimichurri. $165/person. Reservations required.
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.

-
Isolated showers can still hit the L.A. area until Friday as remnants from the tropical storm move out.
-
First aspiring spectators must register online, then later in 2026 there will be a series of drawings.
-
It's thanks to Tropical Storm Mario, so also be ready for heat and humidity, and possibly thunder and lightning.
-
This measure on the Nov. 4, 2025, California ballot is part of a larger battle for control of the U.S. House of Representatives next year.
-
L.A. County investigators have launched a probe into allegations about Va Lecia Adams Kellum and people she hired at the L.A. Homeless Services Authority.
-
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass suspended a state law allowing duplexes, calling more housing unsafe. But in Altadena, L.A. County leaders say these projects could be key for rebuilding.