Things to do in Los Angeles today

Netflix’s stand-up specials keep us cackling at home, but the streaming service’s ambitious comedy festival is nothing to laugh at. For its second iteration, Netflix is a Joke Fest is headed back here May 1 to 12, 2024 and upping the ante: We’ve counted over 500 shows slated for three dozen venues with sets from Ali Wong, Jerry Seinfeld, Jim Gaffigan, Chris Rock, Taylor Tomlinson and literally hundreds of others (we’ve highlighted 10 of the most unique offerings to help narrow things down). The event is a bit more of a marathon than a traditional festival: There’s not an all-encompassing festival pass, but you can buy individual tickets to shows throughout its run. The exception is Outside Joke, an outdoor event set up in a parking lot behind the Palladium. You’ll find a mix of music, drag and stand-up—hosted by the likes of Atsuko Okatsuka, Leslie Jones and Reggie Watts, among others—alongside a couple of carnival games plus food, drinks and merch. Unlike the 2022 version, which was free, you can access the area on a first-come, first-served basis if you have a ticket to any other Netflix is a Joke Fest show, or you can guarantee entry with a $25 day pass. Just a heads up that if you enter Outside Joke at the same time as doors open for a show at the Palladium, you may find yourself stuck in a security line that wraps around the block; otherwise the two venues have separate lines. Elsewhere, you’ll find shows staged at venues as big as the Hollywood Bowl and Greek Theatre (a

One of L.A.’s best free live music offerings, Jazz at LACMA has featured legit legends over its three-decade run at the museum. Seating for the program is available in the museum’s plaza on a first-come, first-served basis, though you’re welcome to picnic on the grass, too (you won’t really be able to see the show, but you’ll still hear it). You’ll find the series on Friday evenings in LACMA’s welcome plaza (just behind Urban Light) throughout the summer.

The masters of alfresco rooftop movie viewing have returned for another season of screenings to LEVEL in Downtown L.A. Known for excellent film choices and a steady supply of snacks and booze, Rooftop Cinema Club is your snazzy, comfortable and less stressful alternative to other outdoor movie screenings. You don’t even need to bring your own camping chair—Rooftop Cinema Club provides you with your very own comfy lawn chair (with optional blankets for purchase to up the coziness). And instead of listening to the movie over loudspeakers, you’ll get a set of wireless headphones so you never have to miss a word. This spring and summer, look out for a slate of wedding season picks and AAPI Heritage Month selections in May, as well as Pride and Black Music Month screenings in June. Also, select “wooftop” screenings will be dog-friendly starting in May. Find the full schedule on their site, or in our outdoor movie calendar.

For one summer in 1987, a carnival popped up in Germany with traditional rides adorned with artwork by Salvador Dalí, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, David Hockney, Sonia Delaunay and a couple dozen others. And then… it kind of just vanished, sent off into storage for decades. But now, thanks to a couple of art world partners and Drake, Luna Luna has been revived in L.A., restored and reassembled in a soundstage in Boyle Heights through May 12. Though you can’t climb aboard the rides here, the atmosphere is magical and—for contemporary art fans for sure—worth the relatively steep price of admission. On the other hand, as alluring as that reflective Dalídome is though, we’d say that splurging on a VIP pass (which comes with a couple of other perks) isn’t worth it just to snap a photo inside of it. You can read more here about our experience at Luna Luna.

L.A. has changed immeasurably since 1921, when this event was first staged as an agricultural fair. However, the perennially popular event still has farm-friendly appeal (livestock beauty contests, local produce) alongside the more modern acrobats, wine tastings, exhibitions and concerts. RECOMMENDED: A guide to the L.A. County Fair

It isn’t summer in L.A. until the first cemetery screening brings hoards of movie-lovers to Hollywood Forever, toting folding chairs, picnic blankets, snack spreads and lots of booze. Each year, Cinespia brings classic cult favorites to the hallowed resting place of such Hollywood greats as Rudolph Valentino and Bugsy Siegel. The series typically releases its slate one month at a time, with summertime screenings at the cemetery and a few off-site ones on either end (including at L.A. State Historic Park and, for the first time, at the Rose Bowl). For each evening at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, pack a picnic (yes, booze is allowed), pose in the photo booth and enjoy DJ sets, dance parties and all sorts of other magical mischief that’d otherwise be strictly forbidden behind the cemetery gates. The outdoor screenings are an L.A. rite of passage, a quintessential summer experience and one of the best film venues in the city. Just be sure to get your ticket early, arrive early, pee early… it’s a popular affair, to say the least.

Let the wild rumpus start at this celebration of beloved children’s author and illustrator Maurice Sendak. The Skirball Cultural Center is displaying more than 150 sketches, storyboards and paintings from the Where the Wild Things Are creator. “Wild Things Are Happening: The Art of Maurice Sendak” debuted at the Columbus Museum of Art in 2022 and has since sailed off (metaphorically speaking) to visit L.A. from April 18 through September 1. As you might expect, Where the Wild Things Are receives the biggest spotlight in the exhibition, with beautiful crosshatched artwork, translations of books, monster-themed merch and even costumes from the Spike Jonze film. In addition to his own books, In the Night Kitchen and Outside Over There among them, the exhibition also features art that Sendak created for a handful of other authors, most notably Else Holmelund Minarik’s Little Bear, as well designs for Mozart operas. The show also focuses on his personal and family life, with insight on his Jewish upbringing, some very early drawings (including one of Mickey Mouse he created when he was just six years old) and lots about how his beloved dogs inspired and integrated into his books. Admission costs $18 for adults, with discounts for students, seniors and children; it’s completely free to visit on Thursdays. Look out for the adorable living room setup near the entrance, too—it hosts story time Thursday through Sunday at 3pm.

Hollywood’s Japan House has tapped artist Sebastian Masuda to dive into the roots of all things cute and colorful with this exhibition on Japanese kawaii culture. The free show includes multiple pieces and installations from Masuda.

Cake on the eyeliner, cry it off and then dance away the tears at the return of this 1980s-to-aughts goth, new wave and punk fest with Duran Duran, Interpol, Blondie, Simple Minds, Placebo, Soft Cell, Adam Ant, Gary Numan and more. The one-day-only event features dozens of alt obsessions on the golf course next to the Rose Bowl, where it once again returns.

Nature lovers rejoice! Spend a day at the Natural History Museum’s Butterfly Pavilion, which will open from March 17 through August 25 with up to 30 butterfly and moth species and an assortment of California plants. The seasonal outdoor exhibit allows for adults and children alike to witness nature up close—we’re talking having bufferlies take flight and land on your arms or shoulders. Prime time for these unique butterfly flight experiences are between 10 and 11am each morning.