This weekend we’ve got indie music on the Eastside, craft beer on the Westside and the eighties era update of a 1927 film classic in between. Whether you’re looking for music, dance or simply the opportunity to run wild in the streets without the possibility of getting hit by Hummer, this weekend has something for you. Enjoy, LA.
FRIDAYWhat: Culture Collide FestivalWhy: This four-day music festival begins Thursday evening and takes over the Eastside weekend with an all-star lineup including Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, YACHT, Gang Gang Dance, Classixx, Hands, The Rapture and CSS. The Echo Park-centric event is getting’ down at venues including The Echo/plex, Taix, 826LA and the Echo Park Methodist Church. It wraps up with a bang on Sunday with an afternoon block party.When: October 6 – 9, $20 wristband includes entrance to showsWhere: Venues and times vary. Visit culturecollide.com for more information.
What: Giorgio Moroder’s Metropolis Why: Remember the time you watched the Fritz Lang’s Metropolis in your college Comparative Literature class? The screening isn’t going to be like that. In 1981, Oscar-winning composer Giorgio Moroder turned the silent film classic on its (cyborg) head by scoring it to the biggest pop hits of the day, including jams by Pat Benetar, Adam Ant and Freddie Mercury. Moroder’s re-imagined version of Metropolis has been out of circulation for nearly 25 years, until now. Bonus: the Dublab’s DJ Ale will spin before the show. When: October 7, 7:45pm, $10, free for Cinefamily membersWhere: Cinefamily, 611 North Fairfax Avenue, at Clinton Street, (323-655-2510 or cinefamily.org)
SATURDAYWhat: ‘Gold Diggers & Snake Handlers’ LectureWhy: Ramp up the spook this Halloween season with this lecture and presentation featuring historic crime photos from the LA Herald Examiner. This free event at downtown’s gorgeous, (and slightly spooky), Central Library also includes a lecture on legendary LA 1930s and 40s era crime reporter Aggie Underwood. The talk by Esotouric guide Joan Renner will focus on two of Underwood’s especially grisly tales of murder and mayhem in the City of Angels. When: October 8, 2pm – 3pm, freeWhere: Los Angeles Central Library, 630 West 5th Street, at South Grand Avenue, (213-228-7000 or lapl.org)
What: I Am VegetableWhy: This Dream Circus-produced extravaganza is billed as an “interactive theatrical dance party,” that “merges theatre, story telling, music, performance art and dancing with interactive state sets that integrate the audience as if they are part of the actual performance.” Sounds like a slightly confusing and highly entertaining opportunity to test out your Halloween outfit and dance your butt off to some of the best electro/house/chillwave DJs in Los Angeles until the early hours of the morning. When: October 8, 9pm – 3:30am, $20-$40Where: Lot 613, 613 Imperial Street, at 6th Street, (facebook.com/event/iamevents)
SUNDAYWhat: CicLAviaWhy: In our wildest LA fantasies, the streets are cleared completely of cars and open for walking, biking, dancing and social merriment. Fantasy becomes reality on Sunday when CicLAvia takes over a route stretching from Boyle Heights to MacArthur Park and beyond for a day-long event that will allow pedestrians and bicyclists, to walk, bike and celebrate in the streets while learning more about their own city from a out-of-the-car perspective. When: October 9, 11am – 3pm, freeWhere: Boyle Heights to Downtown, MacArthur Park to East Hollywood, El Pueblo/Olvera Street, and South LA. For additional details visit ciclavia.org.
What: BAM Fest 2011Why: Less a celebration of collisions than a festival of beer (B) art (A) and music (M), this Santa Monica celebration will feature an afternoon’s worth of pleasure for the eyes, ears and mouth with bands including Upstart, The Dustbowl Revival and Venice’s JT Ross & Speedway. Art comes from Collaboration Labs, sculptor/painter David McDonald and ‘guerilla knitters” Yarn Bombin LA and unlimited (!) beer will be provided by craft breweries including Cismontane, Duvel, Ladyface, Ommegang, Smog City and more. When: October 9, 1pm – 6pm, $35 advance, $40 day ofWhere: 18th Street Arts Center, 1639 18th Street, at Olympic Boulevard, Santa Monica, (18thstreet.org)
What: Revenge of the LA Opera Costume ShopWhy: With Halloween weekend only weeks away, the quest for the perfect costume is on. Let the LA Opera help transform you into your holiday alter ego with their clearing out the closets costume sale. Accessories including masks, wigs, hats, belts and shoes that were once worn onstage at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion will all be available, as will complete costumes. This year, everyone goes as the Pirates of Penzance! Prices range from $20-$300. When: October 9, 11am – 4pm, freeWhere: 330 South Alameda Street, at East 4th Street, (losangelesopera.com)