Descanso Gardens

Everyone’s favorite NPR member station has a hand in a slew of summer concert slates at public plazas and beloved museums, and this summer’s schedule is reliably packed. Familiar KCRW DJs and local buzz bands will be providing free, open-air tunes on select nights from June through September at Union Station, CAAM, Descanso Gardens, Bowers Museum, Wende Museum, the Autry, Benny Boy Brewing, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, California Plaza and—our favorite—the party-till-midnight bashes at Chinatown Central Plaza. The details slightly differ at each spot, but you can typically expect a bunch of food trucks, beer gardens and after-hours museum admission. This year, there’s even a kid-oriented installment at the Kidspace Children’s Museum, where DJ Lance Rock of Yo Gabba Gabba is the special guest. Regardless of the location, you really can’t go wrong with any evening spent at Summer Nights. (Note: The kickoff June 7 event at Benny Boy Brewing and Aug. 29’s Descanso Gardens event are only for KCRW members).

Take a leisurely walk through Descanso Gardens as the day starts to cool, then stick around for live cultural dance and music before closing time at these Thursday-night shows on the Main Lawn. The diverse lineup includes Ukrainian folk dance by Chervona Kalyna Ukrainian Dance Ensemble (June 12), Brazilian dance by Viver Brasil (July 10) and Mexican folklórico dancing by Pacifico Dance Company (Aug 14). The performances are included with admission.