Best things to do this weekend in Los Angeles and Southern California: February 6-8

Look, we don’t need the New York Times to tell us that L.A. has more to offer art-wise than any other city in the country right now, but you know we love to see it.

I think there’s a football game on Sunday — before and after the Bad Bunny concert. Don’t worry, there are some watch party options (and Super Bowl alternatives!) in today’s newsletter. If football isn’t your thing, there are plenty of other sports options available in the form of the Winter Olympics, which begin this weekend.

We’re all getting a free concert on Sunday, but Licorice Pizza has the rest of your music picks for the week, including hometown faves the Silversun Pickups album release party at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah at Barnsdall Gallery Theater, Aimee Mann at Pacific Electric and Mandy Patinkin singing Sondheim and more at the Carpenter Center on Saturday.

Elsewhere on LAist, you can learn about Death Valley’s stargazing festival, the Bob Baker marionettes stage their first new show in 40 years and we visit Mel’s Diner at the end of Route 66.

Events

Twin Lunarcies ft. Joe Wong

Sunday, February 8, 7 p.m. (Mandarin) and 9:15 p.m. (English)
Hollywood Improv
8162 Melrose Ave., Hollywood 
COST: $44.79; MORE INFO

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Michael S. Schwartz

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Comedian Joe Wong has done what few comics can — build an audience in two languages — and he’s bringing his show, Twin Lunarcies, to the Improv in both Mandarin and English. Wong hosted a TV show in his native China for a decade before exploring and finding success in the U.S., where he’s roasted Joe Biden at the Radio & TV Correspondents Dinner and appeared on many late-night talk shows. Catch him before his Netflix is a Joke show in May.

Drink the Sea (members of REM, Screaming Trees, Them Crooked Vultures)

Saturday, February 7, 8 p.m. 
Lodge Room
104 N. Ave. 56, 2nd floor, Highland Park 
COST: $45.50; MORE INFO

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Courtesy Lodge Room

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The dream of the ‘90s is alive and well at the Lodge Room as a supergroup with members of R.E.M., Screaming Trees (remember when all the bands had gerunds in their names?) and Them Crooked Vultures join forces for a new band, Drink the Sea.

Fuego Burlesque: A Bad Bunny Tribute

Saturday, February 7, 10 p.m. 
Harvelle's Long Beach
201 E. Broadway, Long Beach 
COST: $22; MORE INFO

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Courtesy Harvelle's Long Beach

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We’re getting a little racy at Best Things To Do this week, but this one is too good not to include, because just 15 minutes of Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl is not sufficient. Get the party started early with this burlesque tribute to the Puerto Rican superstar from Dirty Little Secrets Burlesque. Obviously, this event is 21+.

Super Bowl Watch Parties

Sunday, February 8, kickoff at 3:30 p.m.
Various locations 
COST: VARIES

Atmosphere during CMT After Midnight After Party and Super Bowl Sunday

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Rick Diamond

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Speaking of the Super Bowl, there is no shortage of places to catch the big game around town, no matter who you’re rooting for. Here are a few suggestions: Precinct DTLA is hosting a watching party with no cover and $4 beers; Copper Door in Santa Ana has $1 beer and $3 margarita specials; Volo Sports is teaming up with Benny Boy Brewing for a party that includes local food, drink specials and a cornhole competition. Angel City Brewery in the Arts District, 1212 in Santa Monica and Harriet’s Rooftop in West Hollywood are also all good choices. For something on the fancy side, Casaléna will have chef-driven food stations and an open bar with game-day cocktails at $120 per person.

Puppy Bowl Watch Party

Sunday, February 8, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. 
Wallis Annenberg PetSpace
12005 Bluff Creek Drive, Playa Vista 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

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Laura Roberts

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Watch the Puppy Bowl while surrounded by actual puppies?! I think this one speaks for itself. Ruff!

Israel Film Festival

Through Thursday, February 19 
Saban, Fine Arts and Regal North Hollywood 
COST: VARIES; MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Israel Film Festival

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The 37th annual Israel Film Festival kicks off this week and will host four U.S. premieres, plus a 40th anniversary screening of Rico­chets, the 1986 film about the First Lebanon War starring Alon Aboutboul. Many new Israeli films will screen at three area venues — the Saban and the Fine Arts theaters in Beverly Hills, and the Regal in North Hollywood. The festival has a wide range of films, from comedies to features to docs, and many of the screenings include Q&As with talent afterward.

Home and Away: Matisse Makes Another Heaven

Sunday, February 8, 3 p.m.
Hammer Museum 
10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Hammer Museum

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Aha! I found excellent art nerd Super Bowl alternative programming. Head to the Hammer and listen to independent art historian and former Getty Museum director John Walsh discuss Matisse’s painting of the female form between the wars. Walsh will explore the influence of Matisse’s time in Nice and emerging art eras like Cubism on his work. This is the third of four in a lecture series about Matisse with Walsh at the Hammer; the last one follows on Sunday, Feb. 22.

Wild Up: The Great Learning 

Saturday, February 7, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. 
The Broad 
221 S. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A.
COST: $25; MORE INFO

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Courtesy The Broad

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The Broad’s current exhibit, Robert Therrien’s This is a Story, plays with the idea that everyday objects and materials can become art and move between worlds. The Grammy-nominated orchestral collective Wild Up takes a similar approach to their music and will work with a group of 30 non-musicians when they take the stage at the Broad to perform The Great Learning, Paragraphs 2 and 7, written in the late 1960s by Cornelius Cardew. The public ensemble will learn the work “through repetitions and echoes, culminating in a performance where music becomes a shared space to embody collective creativity.”