Weekend Planner: 20 Things To Do In Los Angeles

Here are 20 of our favorite events happening right here in L.A. this weekend. Think we missed something or you just want other options? Check out LAist’s June Guide, too.

FRIDAY, JUNE 3

THE INVITATION (Film)
VIDIOTS Cinema Selects screens The Invitation in the Vidiots Annex from Friday to Sunday. On Friday night, there’s an hors d’oeuvres dinner party and screening followed by Q&A with director Karyn Kusama and producer/co-writer Phil Hays. On Saturday at 7:30 pm, The Invitation is paired with Cheap Thrills for a double feature, and the film screens one last time on Sunday at 4 pm. Tickets: $10-15 for Friday night; $6-$8 for Saturday and Sunday.

DANCES WITH FILMS (Film fest)
Now in its 19th year, Dances with Films remains committed to indie filmmakers and filmmaking. (And btw, it's not a festival about dance—the name is a play on other “dance” fests like Slamdance, Sundance, etc.) Dances with Films takes over the TCL Chinese Theaters in Hollywood through June 12, screening more than 100 films (features, shorts, videos, documentaries and more) and holding a number of industry panels from May 29-June 8. Tickets: $13 and passes $325.

CONTACT in the DESERT (UFO Weekend)
Contact in the Desert is the largest UFO conference in the U.S., and it’s being held in Joshua Tree this weekend, from Friday to Monday at The Joshua Tree Retreat Center. Now in its fourth year, Contact in the Desert brings together experts in the field to discuss some of the “X-Files” recently released by the CIA (recently declassified docs from the 1940s-60s), the UFO work of the late American astronaut Edgar Mitchell and more. For more information on the conference and ticket prices and passes, please visit:

LUMMIS DAY FESTIVAL (Music + arts)
The 11th annual Lummis Day Festival—a Northeast LA community celebration—features various events taking place from Friday through Sunday at Occidental College, Southwest Museum, Sycamore Grove Park and York Park at Ave 50. A free shuttle bus will take guests to the venues and Metro stops. Expect to hear 19 bands, five dance troupes, five noted poets, two groups of puppeteers, robots, artists, pirates and dragons as well as a puppet parade. The festival takes its name from Charles Fletcher Lummis, a prolific writer and photographer, who became the L.A. Times' first city editor in 1884. He also founded Los Angeles’ first museum, the Southwest Museum of the American Indian. Admission to all events is free.

The Day That David Bowie Died - David J from Cargo Records UK on Vimeo.

DAVID J (Music)
David J, former Bauhaus and Love and Rockets bassist, debuts his newest single, "The Day That David Bowie Died," in an intimate live session at SPiN at the Standard in DTLA on Friday at 8 pm (Rooftop). He’s currently touring with his new band, The Gentlemen Thieves. Tickets: $10.

1,000 COMEDIANS (Comedy)
1000 Comics To See Before You Die is a comedy show created and hosted by Zack Bornstein at NerdMelt showroom. At each show, he invites some of the top 1,000 comedians in the world and assures us that he doesn’t put up a single one ranked 1,001 or higher. This week’s guests—Friday at 9 pm—are Eric Andre, Joe Mande, Alison Rich, Adam Conover, Emmy Blotnick and Dan St. Germain. Tickets are $8 in advance / $10 at the door.

DANCE DOWNTOWN (Bollywood)
The free Dance Downtown series returns on Friday night to the Music Center Plaza with a focus on Bollywood music and dance. There are beginner dance lessons and an open dance floor. 7-11 pm.

SUMMER NIGHTS (Market + music)
L.A.’s Grand Central Market begins a new tradition on Friday night with Summer Nights—staying open until 10 p.m. On various days of the week, visitors can partake in food and drinks, specials, happy hour, live music and even trivia nights, games and outdoor movies. Participating vendors include Ana Maria, Belcampo Meat Co., Bombo, Chiles Secos, China Cafe, Courage & Craft, Berlin Currywurst, DTLA Cheese and Kitchen, Golden Road, Horse Thief BBQ, Jose Chiquito, Knead & Co. Pasta Bar + Market, La Huerta, La Tostaderia, Las Morelianas, Madcapra, McConnell's Fine Ice Cream, Olio, The Oyster Gourmet, Ramen Hood, Road to Go, Sticky Rice, Sticky Rice II, Tacos Tumbras a Tomas and Valerie at GCM.

@OFFICIALSEANPENN (Art)
Junior High is a new community art space in Hollywood that features music, film, gallery shows, comedy and workshops. For its first opening on Friday at 7 pm, Junior High presents the works of Caroline Goldfarb known better by her Instagram handle @officalseanpenn in the show Smash that Like. They promise a “night of worshipping C-list celebrities through a rainbowy, glitter-filled collection of Caroline's best work.” Street parking only, so it’s not far from the Metro Redline to Hollywood/Western. There is a $5 suggested donation to support Junior High.

SATURDAY, JUNE 4

STUART TIMMONS CITY OF WEST HOLLYWOOD HISTORY TOUR (Performance + history)
In honor of Pride Month, there’s a free, 90-minute theatrical history tour of WeHo on Saturday. Stuart Timmons City of West Hollywood History Tour 2016, part of the city’s 30 Days of LGBTQ Arts in West Hollywood initiative, combines urban exploration with performance. From 11 am to 2 pm on Saturday, free shuttles pick up audience members from the West Hollywood Library every 15 minutes and take them on a colorful tour that features 20 performance artists who are stationed at each historical stop. Each of the artists, including singer/songwriter Jane Cantillon, renowned Broadway playwright Robert Patrick, drag artist extraordinaire Miss Barbie Q, and performance artist Kristina Wong, will provide the “sensational, sordid and surprising LGBTQ history of West Hollywood.” Think sex and scandals and a whole lot more. To learn about additional LGBTQ Arts activities, visit www.weho.org/pride.

RESEDA RISING (Arts + music)
The 11:11 Creative Collective presentsThe Reseda Rising Artwalk and Night Marketon Saturday from 5-10 pm. Taking place on Sherman Way between Reseda Boulevard and Lindley Avenue, the event features art, workshops interactive installations, DJs and live music, a 21+ beer garden featuring San Fernando Valley breweries like 818 Brewing, Hand Brewed, MacLeod Ale Brewing Co. and San Fernando Brewing.

LONG BEACH VEGAN FOOD & MUSIC FEST (Food)
Long Beach Vegan Food & Music Festival takes place on Saturday from 11 am to 7 pm at Rainbow Lagoon Park in the LBC. Admission is free to attend the all-vegan food fest—with items available to purchase from food trucks as well as food booths. There are family-friendly activities, live music and a cruelty free marketplace at the fest, too.

ICE AGE HAIR BALL (Fundraiser)
The Ice Age Hair Ball is a party on Saturday night to benefit the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum. The event mixes fashion and science, and attendees are asked to get uber-creative with their hairstyles and fashion for the ball (there will be a best hair contest). The main event begins at 8 pm with DJ Michelle Pesce spinning tunes, while there are torch-lit tours of the Tar Pits, and circulating hair models before the runway fashion show. Guests can enjoy Ice Age-themed cocktails, dessert and dancing before the runway show and through the night. Tickets: $75. If you want to do the VIP dinner at 6:30 pm, those tickets start at $1,000.

CAN I KICK IT? (Comedy + Hip Hop)
Can I Kick It? returns to NerdMelt on Saturday at 9 pm. The evening is a mashup of Mystery Science Theater and Biz Markie. Comedian Al Jackson, he’s joined by Joe DeRosa and special guests (this week: the Lucas Brothers) to review and do live commentary on some choice videos from from the ‘70s to ‘90s. DJ Josh Spoon spins before the show. Tickets: $8 in advance, $10 at the door.

SILLY SYMPHONIES (Film + music)
Composer Mark Watters leads the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra for a live performance of scores for Disney’s Silly Symphonies—animated shorts created by Walt Disney Studios between 1929-39. Featured Silly Symphonies are: "The Skeleton Dance" (1929); "Flowers and Trees" (1932); "Three Little Pigs" (1933); "The Country Cousin" (1936); "The Old Mill" (1937); "The Ugly Duckling" (1939) and "Music Land" (1935). The event begins at 7 pm at The Orpheum Theatre in DTLA. Individual tickets start at $38.

CRAYFISH BOIL (Food)
Tender Greens in Burbank teams up with Eagle Rock Brewery to host a crayfish (aka crawfish) boil on Saturday from noon to 2 pm. The crawfish and other dishes—new potatoes, sweet corn & chili butter; summer salad with grilled local peaches on a bed of Scarborough Farms’ greens topped with tarragon dressing; hush puppies with mustard greens and candied chile aioli, and sour cherry cobbler topped with crème anglaise—are served family style. Tickets: Adults are $25 per person (21+ includes an 8oz featured beer from Eagle Rock Brewery/under 21 can enjoy bottomless lemonade); Kids under 10 are $15 (purchase of an adult ticket required)

BREAD FESTIVAL (Carbo loading)
The Los Angeles Bread Festivalreturns to Grand Central Market on Saturday and Sunday this weekend. The free event celebrates bread—and the market vendors will offer special, one-time only bread menu items. There will also be a pop-up shop featuring food purveyors Grist & Toll, Superba Food + Bread, LodgeBread Co., Antigua Artisan Bread, Seed Bakery, The SpeakEasy Bakery, Los Angeles Bread Bakers, Indie Jams, Spread the Love and LemonBird.

SUNDAY, JUNE 5

LOS ANGELES MASTER CHORALE: SONIC MASTERWORKS (Music)
On Sunday at 7 pm at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC) ends its 2015-16 season with Sonic Masterworks, a music program that will give audiences an “aural tapestry of a cappella works from around the globe spanning six centuries.” The program includes a Tribute to Steven Stucky and works by Ligeti, Lotti, Abbie Betinis, Sydney Guillaume, Anders Hillborg, Moses Hogan, Javier Zentner, Sydney Guillaume and Depeche Mode (“Enjoy the Silence”)! Tickets: $29-$129SLIDELUCK (Food + fundraiser)
Slideluck L.A.—where multimedia art slideshows usually meet potluck dinners—returns to L.A. on Sunday from 6:30-11pm at Fred Segal’s MAURO Cafe in West Hollywood. This time, attendees don’t have to bring anything but an appetite. Enjoy a four-course family style dinner courtesy of Chef Perry Pollaci and an open wine bar for the $65 ticket price. Proceeds from the dinner will benefit the Slideluck Youth Initiative, a Harlem and East New York school program in that “fosters creative expression and empowers students through the use of photography and multimedia storytelling.”

TASTE OF THE NATION (Food + drinks)
Los Angeles’ Taste of the Nation returns to Media Park in Culver City to benefit the No Kid Hungry campaign. Attendees can eat and drink from 1-4 pm, sampling items from some of the city’s top chefs, sommeliers and mixologists. Chef Chair Bruce Kalman, Adam Perry Lang, Chris Oh, Valerie Gordon and Nick Roberts are participating in the event. Proceeds from the even No Kid Hungry’s work to end childhood hunger in America. Tickets start at $110 with VIP tickets (early entrance at 12:30 pm) available at $160.

Want the 411 on additional events and happenings in LA? Follow @LAist or me (@christineziemba) on Twitter.