Best Things To Do This Weekend in Los Angeles and Southern California: May 10 - 12

From concerts (T.I. and Pat Benatar are set to hit the stage this weekend) to a special Mother’s Day brunch (special ticket required), to all the typical county fair festivities like food contests, farm animal workshops and rides, there’s something for kids and adults of all ages at the annual L.A. County Fair. It runs every weekend (Thursdays to Sundays) this month. LAist's own Leslie Berenstein Rojas writes more about it here, too.

The annual Venice Art Walk + Auction is in its 45th year, raising funds for the Venice Family Clinic, a nonprofit community health center, and showcasing local artists to the community. Light and Space movement pioneer sculptor Fred Eversley is featured alongside dozens of other artists, including The Simpsons animator Matt Groening, architect Frank Gehry, and L.A. icon Ed Ruscha. The show is free to walk through daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Works are available to view and bid online through May 19.

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith will once again rock the intimate Malibu outpost of Aviator Nation’s store/restaurant/music venue with some surprise guests and rock 'n' roll friends. The small space is quickly making a name for itself in typically sleepy Malibu; it has recently played host to big names, including Smith, Josh Homme, Daniel Lanois, and more.

Jam with the jellyfish and party with the porpoises at the Aquarium of the Pacific as their after-hours series, "Night Dive," returns with food trucks, cash bars, DJs, art, a live band, and of course all your favorite fishies. Maybe you’ll even find your lobster.

The Vintage Synthesizer Museum hosts workshops and events around new ways to make music using all kinds of analog technology. If you’re an audiophile who’s fascinated by creating sound and want to learn how to maximize magnetic tape and build things like a cassette tape loop, or change the pitch on a Walkman (yes, Walkman), the Synths on Tape workshop is where you’ll want to head.

The 4th Annual Community & Unity People’s Kite Festival is this weekend and for the first time, it will host a kite competition for the best handmade kite, so get creative! The event features three Korean kites made by 2024 signature artist for the festival Stevie Choi. Choi’s creations will celebrate endangered animals in the L.A. area, like the North American cougar, the El Segundo butterfly, and the Least Bell’s vireo (that’s a bird, I had to Google it). There will also be food, crafts, and of course, beautiful kites filling the downtown sky.

Last year’s Cruel World fest came to an – ahem – cruel ending as lightning and bad weather forced the show to shut down early. Let’s hope the weather is more favorable this year as Duran Duran headlines the '80s-centric, Gen X nostalgia fest in Pasadena. Simple Minds, The Jesus and Mary Chain (whom I just saw perform in Dublin in March and they were great), Blondie and more round out the lineup. Wear your best black eyeliner and rock on.

Bring mom to one of L.A.’s most unique venues for Mother’s Day, the Theatricum Botanicum. For the 25th year, the outdoor theater is hosting MOMentum Place, which brings aerial and circus performers, dancers and musicians to the rustic amphitheater. Beforehand, have brunch (strawberry French toast, yum) in the garden!

The mystical 1987 art amusement park Luna Luna, with its Jean-Michel Basquiat Ferris wheel and Keith Haring carousel is closing at the end of the weekend, so grab a last-minute ticket and check it out before the circus leaves town.

Check out the incredible work of the next generation of animators and innovators as the graduates of USC’s Expanded Animation Research + Practice share their thesis projects. The 90-minute screening includes work in character, experimental, 2D, 3D, stop motion, motion capture, and VR.

The L.A. Birding Club is hosting an educational hike along the Glendale Narrows, an 11-mile stretch of the L.A. River that is home to both migratory and year-round bird species as well as cottonwood trees and reeds. Look out for Hooded Mersangers and White-faced Ibis. Binoculars for the hike are provided and proceeds will be donated to Friends of the L.A. River (FOLAR) and BlackAF In Stem - Black Birders Week.

Spritz season is in full swing, so head down to the beach for a special St. Germain pop-up at Shutters on the Beach, only Fridays to Sundays through the end of June. Enjoy cocktails like the Hugo Spritz with mint and sparkling wine and the Whisky Garden, all featuring the tasty elderflower liqueur.

Mother’s Day, July 4, summertime in general – all call out for lighter drinks and lazy outdoor brunches. Learn to mix up your favorite daytime cocktails like a spicy bloody mary or a tart paloma at this mixology class hosted at the Institute of Culinary Education.

Take a drive up the coast to Zuma Canyon Orchids and get both flowers and brunch in one go with mom at a special Mother’s Day bouquet-making event. Zuma Canyon is a regenerative farm and the day will feature discussions about harvesting flowers sustainably; brunch is a grazing table with local ingredients.