It’s a little quiet on the event front this post-holiday week, but we did find 18 cool things to do in L.A. to ease you into 2016.
MONDAY, JAN. 4
ELVIS PRESLEY TRIBUTE SHOW (Music)
This tribute to The King takes place at the Echoplex on Monday at 8:30 pm. The lineup includes: Abigails, Joel Jerome, Paul Bergmann, Rob and Lauren, He's My Brother She's My Sister, Blank Tapes, Summer Twins, Isaac Rother & the Phantoms, Rachel Goodrich, Bloody Death Skull, Cutty Flam and Bombón. Admission: $5 with RSVP to karaokefever@gmail.com, $10 without RSVP.
CHARLIE KAUFMAN RETROSPECTIVE (Film)
Paramount Pictures and Landmark Theatres present a Charlie Kaufman Retrospective from Jan. 4-7, which screens five of the writer/filmmaker's most critically acclaimed films: Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Synecdoche, New York and his latest stop-motion animated feature Anomalisa. On Monday, the 7:30 pm showing of Anomalisa at the Landmark Theatre will feature a Q&A with Kaufman, co-director Duke Johnson and producer Rosa Tran. Tickets: $10.50.
GOLDEN GLOBE FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM SERIES (Film)
The Golden Globe Foreign-Language Film Series 2016 takes place at Jan. 4-9 at the Aero and Egyptian theatres. The nominated films—The Brand New Testament (Belgium/France/Luxembourg); The Club (Chile); The Fencer (Finland/Germany/Estonia); Mustang (France); Son of Saul (Hungary)—are screened with the filmmakers in person. On Saturday, Jan. 9, the day before the Golden Globes ceremony, there’s a free panel discussion with the film’s directors at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood at 1 pm. The symposium is free. RSVP for priority admission.
MAGIC BRONSON RESIDENCY (Music)
The duo Magic Bronson has a free residency every Monday in January at the Satellite, beginning this week with guests Booty, Holy Cow and Rywolf. Doors: 8:30 pm, show at 9 pm. The event is 21+. Free.
CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT (FILM)
Orson Welles's long-unavailable film Chimes at Midnight screens exclusively at Cinefamily through Jan. 7. It’s a gem in the actor/writer/director’s late career, with Cinefamily calling it one of the “great excavations of an unsung Shakespeare foil, the bumbling knight Sir John Falstaff (a side character who appears in Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor.)” Tickets: $12/free for members.
TUESDAY, JAN. 5
HISTORICAL ROAST OF HELEN KELLER (Comedy)
This could be very funny or … very awkward. Comics put Helen Keller in the historical hot seat and roast her.Guests this week are Allen Strickland Williams, Lindsay Adams, Ever Mainard, Alex Hooper, Robin Higgins, Jeremy Scippio and others. Tickets are $8 online, $10 at the door.
YO, IS THIS RACIST (Podcast + comedy)
Earwolf presents Yo, Is This Racist? on Tuesday at 8:30 pm at UCB Sunset. Hosted by Andrew Ti, creator of the popular blog of the same name, Ti and his guests answer questions during this podcast taping from fan submitted voicemails and emails to judge whether the materials are racist or not. This week’s special guest Baron Vaughn. Tickets: $5.
BULLETS OVER BROADWAY (Theater)
The L.A. Premiere of the new musical comedy Bullets Over Broadway opens on Tuesday at 8 pm at the Pantages for a three-week run through Jan. 24. Written by Woody Allen and based on the 1994 screenplay by Allen and Douglas McGrath, the show focuses on “a young playwright who, in desperate need of financial backing for his next show, accepts an offer he can’t refuse from a mobster looking to please his showgirl girlfriend.” Recommended for children ages 13 and up. Ticket prices start at $25.
SPIRITUAL LANGUAGE (Art)
TAG Gallery in Bergamot Station and the gang intervention organization Homeboy Industries team up for the group art show Spiritual Language on view from Jan. 5-23. The exhibition features more than 40 artists, including Fabian Debora (special guest curator) and artists Alex Kizu and Juan Carlos Munoz Hernandez of Homeboy Industries. The works in Spiritual Language try to unify all walks of life by provoking “honest conversation evoking empathy, understanding, and emotional connectivity.”
THE MOTH (Storytelling)
The Moth's Westside edition is at Zanzibar in Santa Monica on Tuesday with storytellers spinning tales on the theme of "dedication." Anyone can toss their hat into the ring for a chance to be selected. Prep a 5-minute story about parties, small and large or quiet life celebrations. Doors and storytelling signups at 7 pm and tales begin at 7:30 pm. Tickets: $10. Hosted by Greg Walloch. The venue is 21+.
GANDHI SHOW (Comedy)
Westside Comedy Theater presents the latest installment of The Gandhi Show, hosted by Christian Duguay, David Foster, on Tuesday at 8 pm. Performing standup this week are: Jesse Popp, Allen Strickland Williams, Tony Sam and Virginia Jones. Doors 7:45 pm, show at 8 pm. Tickets: $5.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 6
THE CONTENDERS (Film)
Each year, the Museum of Modern Art’s Film Department selects a handful of films to include its screening series, The Contenders. These films, made in the last 12 months, are ones MoMA believes will stand the test of time and include both studio and independent releases. Each of the screenings includes a conversation with the filmmaker. The series comes to the Hammer, beginning on Jan 6 at 7:30 pm with Beasts of No Nation with director Cary Fukunaga. Other films in the series are: The Hateful Eight, Room, 99 Homes, Carol, Taxi, Tangerine, The Martian, Spotlight and The Look of Silence. Tickets: $15.
PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS (Awards)
The 2016 People's Choice Awards is at the Microsoft Theater at L.A. Live, and the public is invited to attend (for a fee). Hosted by Jane Lynch with performances by Shawn Mendes and Jason Derulo, the People’s Choice is the only major awards show voted on entirely by the public for their favorites in movies, music, television and digital media. Ticket prices: $50-$175. VIP packages available. Doors at 4:30 pm and show at 6 pm.
LOST & FOUND FILM CLUB: (Film)
The Lost & Found Film Club is at Cinefamily on Wednesday night at 10:30 pm. The club presents Doc-U-Mania, screening oddball documentary films on 16mm. The lineup includes little known gems like **P (1999) by director Yuri A, which is a 6-minute history of shit and Les Blank’s God Respects Us When We Work, But Loves Us When We Dance (1968), which is the first ever “Love-In,” LA’s Elysian Park, Easter Sunday 1967. Tickets: $10, free for Cinefamily members.
CUSTOMIZING LANGUAGE (Art)
The exhibition Customizing Language, curated by Idurre Alonso and Selene Preciado, opens at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) on Wednesday with a reception from 7-10 pm. Customizing Language critically examines how language reflects geopolitical realities with artists Alexander Apóstol (Venezuela, b. 1969. Resides in Madrid), Mely Barragán ( Tijuana, b. 1975. Resides in Tijuana and Beijing), Beatriz Cortez, Marcos Ramírez ERRE, Regina José Galindo, Luis G. Hernández, Camilo Ontiveros, Rubén Ortiz-Torres, Gala Porras-Kim and Clarissa Tossin. The exhibition runs through Feb. 14.
THURSDAY, JAN. 7
THE CERNY BROTHERS, BOROUGHS (Music)
The Satellite presents Satellite Nights with Boroughs and The Cerny Brothers on Thursday night. Doors at 8:30 pm, show at 9 pm. This event is 21 and older. Free.
BANNED IN TUCSON (Comedy)
Ernie Bustamante’s sketch comedy show Banned in Tucson takes place on Thursday at the Comedy Central Stage at 8 pm. The show takes its title from the banning of ethnic studies in Arizona and features sketches about race, ethnicity, politics—all subjects effectively banned in Tucson. Free, with RSVP (call 323-960-5519 for reservations).
SARAH SILVERMAN (Conversation)
Film Independent at LACMA and the NYT Film Club presents An Evening with Sarah Silverman on Thursday at 7:30 pm at the Bing Theater at LACMA. Her 20-year career includes stand-up, her one-woman show Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic and the 2010 memoir The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption and Pee. In recent years, she’s turned to acting—in Sarah Polley’s 2011 film Take This Waltz to 2012’s Wreck-It Ralph to 2015’s I Smile Back. The evening will feature clips of her work and clips of art that inspired her, and the night will include a surely entertaining conversation with Silverman. Tickets: $15 (for LACMA Film Club members), $20 (LACMA members) and $25 for the general public.
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