Coronavirus is wreaking havoc on schools, stores, businesses and events. With in-person concerts, talks, comedy shows, food festivals and other gatherings cancelled, we have turned our events column into a "nonevents" column. It will remain this way as long as social distancing and stay-at-home orders are in effect.
During this difficult time, please consider contributing to your local arts organizations or to individual artists and performers.
Watch The Mads riff on an Ed Wood movie. Listen to Broadway performers play original material. Learn how racism is a public health issue. Skip the lines this year for Comic-Con@Home. And go Dodgers!
Carmen Argote's Last Light
Clockshop and the Hammer Museum host the livestream premiere of Argote's first film, followed by a discussion with the artist and Hammer associate curator Erin Christovale. The 12-minute film, which was shot during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, is a meditation on walking and memory in L.A. It combines video with still images of an evacuated city.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO
The Mads: Live Movie Riffing
Trace Beaulieu and Frank Conniff ("The Mads") from Mystery Science Theater 3000 present a special livestream screening of Ed Wood's Glen or Glenda. The two comedians comment and riff during the 1953 B-movie. The show will broadcast on YouTube via a private link that will be sent to ticket holders an hour before showtime. A percentage of the proceeds from the event will benefit NAACP Empowerment Programs.
COST: $10; MORE INFO
Flashback & Chill Improv Diary Show 2
Westside Comedy Theater presents a virtual edition of one of its regular improv shows on Twitch. Here's the premise: An adult bravely reads from his/her real teen diary, then improvisers create scenes inspired by the readings. This month's reader is former WCT performer Sarah Walton joining from Melbourne, Australia, with a cast that features Maya Crosman, Carissa Diest, Atul Singh and Jon Thompson. If you still have your teenage diary and want to be considered for a future show, email for details on submission: improvdiaryshow@gmail.com.
COST: $6 donation; MORE INFO
Vintage Basement With Max & Nicky: Live Stream Edition
Twin brothers Max and Nicky Weinbach host a neo-retro night of standup comedy and music. This week's show features performances by Fred Armisen (SNL, Portlandia), Aparna Narncherla (Space Force, BoJack Horseman), Reggie Watts (Late Late Show w/ James Corden, Comedy Bang! Bang!) and surprise guests. 10% of ticket sales will be donated to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. You'll receive the livestream link in an Eventbrite confirmation.
COST: $5 - $10; MORE INFO
Celebrating Music With Pride
The Grammy Museum hosts a pre-taped panel discussion in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first pride march. To commemorate the occasion, and to create a safe space for artists who identify as LGBTQ+, the museum invited Perfume Genius, Lynn Gunn (PVRIS), Zebra Katz, Donna Missal, Shamir and Shawnee to reflect on Pride. Proceeds from any donations collected during the Facebook Live release of the panel will benefit the Grammy Museum and The Ally Coalition.
COST: FREE, but donations accepted; MORE INFO
Virtual Broadway Buskers Concert Series
Since Broadway shows are on hold for now, the Times Square Alliance presents a music series with singer-songwriters performing original tunes on Tuesday nights. Performers for the first four double-billed concerts include: Rachel Potter (The Addams Family; Evita; Wicked); Heath Saunders (The Great Comet; Alice By Heart; Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert); Ben Wexler (The Orchestra; Washington Square); Kit Yan and Melissa Li (Interstate; Miss Step); Lauren Elder (Hair; Side Show; Mary and Max -- A New Musical); James Harkness (Ain't Too Proud; Beautiful; The Color Purple); Joey Contreras (Forget Me Not; Ring Around; Love Me, Love Me Not); and Tamika Lawrence (Come From Away; If/Then; Caroline, or Change). The concerts will raise funds for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS' COVID-19 Emergency Assistance Fund and the Broadway Advocacy Coalition.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Racism is a Public Health Issue
This virtual panel discussion, presented by For Freedom, GYOPO, LACMA and StopDiscriminAsian, examines how racism and discrimination create chronic physical and emotional health conditions. The panelists will discuss the impact of police brutality in Black communities during the pandemic. Panelists include Dr. Eraka P. Bath, Associate Professor at UCLA; Ava DuVernay, filmmaker and founder of Array; Darnell Hunt, dean of Social Sciences, UCLA; and artist Rashid Johnson. This event takes place via Zoom.
COST: FREE, but RSVP required; MORE INFO
Comic-Con@Home
No more lines for Hall H this year. Watch more than 350 panels online, with topics that appeal to various fandoms. The lineup includes Conspiracy Theories and Propaganda Throughout Pop Culture; Charlize Theron: Evolution of a Badass -- An Action Hero Career Retrospective; Reclaiming Indigenous History and Culture Through Comics; Bill & Ted Face the Music and The Simpsons @ Home.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Contested Space: Communist and Confederate Monuments
The Wende Museum's latest Cold War Spaces lunchtime webinar (via Zoom) features a discussion about historical but problematic monuments. Guest speakers are Benjamin Forest and Juliet Johnson, both of McGill University in Montreal, and Joes Segal of the Wende Museum.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO
Dodgers Opening Day
It's time for Dodgers baseball! Our L.A. Dodgers take on the San Francisco Giants at Chavez Ravine. You can't go to the ballpark but you can watch on ESPN or listen via radio: AM 570 LA Sports, KTNQ 1020.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Skylight Live!
The Skylight Theatre Company brings together writers, directors and actors for weekly presentations of uplifting works, written specifically for the online experience. This week watch Dear Auntie D, written by Michele Willens, directed by Risa Brainin and performed by Ann Gee Byrd and Karole Foreman. This show, available on Facebook or YouTube, focuses on a conversation between a 95-year-old woman and her beloved niece who can't see her in person.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO
Level 8 Drive-In
The Americana at Brand - Rooftop Parking Structure
889 Americana Way, Glendale
The Americana and Street Food Cinema have extended its movie series on the parking lot rooftop. Guests can enjoy classic movie snacks (including free popcorn, Icelandic Glacial water and boxed candy) from their cars. Additional foods will be available for advance purchase. Movies screening this weekend are Mean Girls (Thursday), My Big Fat Greek Wedding with actor Nia Vardalos introducing the screening (Friday) and The Avengers (Saturday).
COST: $30 per vehicle plus $8 per person; MORE INFO
Who doesn't miss going out to eat or stopping by a bar for a drink? Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.
