Plan out your month with the city's best concerts, culture, cuisine and more.
THINGS TO DO
Aug 3
Lucha VaVOOM; Mayan
See a physical and twisted quinceañera celebration at this exuberant edition of the high-flying wrestling-meets-burlesque show.
Aug 4
Brew at the L.A. Zoo; Los Angeles Zoo
Knock back some craft brews as monkeys and exotic birds screech in the background during this beer-centric party.
Aug 5, 6
Avocado Festival; Angel City Brewery
Celebrate Southern California's green staple with avocado-flavored popsicles, beers and more.
July 29–Aug 6
U.S. Open of Surfing; Huntington Beach
Hit the beach to cheer on the country's biggest pro surfers at this annual competition.
Aug 8, 9
Tim & Eric 10 Year Anniversary Awesome Tour; The Theatre at Ace Hotel
See Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim celebrate a decade since the premiere of their former Adult Swim show.
Aug 11–13
Splash House; Palm Springs
Pamper yourself poolside at this hotel-hopping pool party and music fest in the desert.
Aug 12, 13
CatCon; Pasadena Convention Center
Meet Insta-famous kitties and peruse feline-friendly wares at the self-dubbed Comic-Con for cat people.
Aug 13
CicLAvia: San Pedro Meets Wilmington; Various locations
Pedal your way from San Pedro to Wilmington during the bike-friendly fest.
Through Aug 13
OC Fair; OC Fair & Event Center
Mix fried food, carnival attractions and the occasional rodeo or demolition derby, and you've got the OC Fair.
Aug 19
KCRW's 24-Hour Radio Race; Various locations
Write, record and edit a non-fiction radio story—all within 24 hours—during this global competition.
Find more things to do in our August 2017 events calendar.
FOOD & DRINK
Aug 5, 6
Four & Twenty Blackbird x Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams; Jeni's Venice
Pair ice cream with pie during this sweet, sweet collaboration.
Aug 6
Lobsterfest; Newport Beach
Seafood fans can treat themselves to heaping plates of Maine lobster, while listening to a live band play tunes all day long.
Aug 12–13
BrunchCon LA; The Reef
Bottomless mimosas, tangy Bloody Marys, 50 local vendors, and a ton of brunch-obsessed Angelenos come together for this all-inclusive food and drink fest.
Aug 16
Taste of Downtown Culver City: Centennial Summer Celebration; Culver City
Celebrate the neighborhood's 100th anniversary by tasting your way through Downtown Culver City's best foodie-approved haunts.
Aug 18–20
Long Beach BBQ Festival; Rainbow Lagoon Park
Stuff your face with BBQ at this Long Beach ‘cue fest, where ribs, pulled pork, brisket and all kinds of sauces are up for grabs.
Aug 19
San Pedro Craft Beer Festival; Battleship Iowa
Beer lovers can flock to the third annual craft beer fest for an evening filled tastings from local breweries and gourmet food trucks to benefit the Community Aid Project for Education.
Aug 24–27
Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival; Various locations
Indulge in food from some of L.A.’s best chefs at this extravagant event, where grand tastings and the popular Night Market return for its seventh year.
Aug 26
Day-Lee Foods World Gyoza Eating Championship; JACCC
Test your love of dumplings at this epic showdown, where competitive eaters devour as many gyoza as possible in 10 minutes.
Through September 22
Friday Night Wine Tastings; Barnsdall Art Park
Roll out a blanket and sip on pours of wine on the Hollyhock House's front lawn at this seasonal benefit.
ARTS & CULTURE
July 31–Jan 7
Chagall: Fantasies for the Stage; LACMA
Explore the whimsical modernist’s vibrant costumes and set designs from four ballets and operas, as well as a selection of paintings depicting musicians and lyrical scenes.
Aug 4–Nov 27
Anna Maria Maiolino; MOCA
Explore the first major retrospective of the Italian-Brazilian artist, with experimental prints and a large-scale installation of unfired, hand-rolled clay.
Aug 6-Dec 3
Playing with Fire: Paintings by Carlos Almaraz; LACMA
Browse the paintings of influential Chicano artist Carlos Almaraz, whose powerful cultural and political works paved the way for the Chicano art movement in the 1970s.
Through Aug 12
New Original Works Festival; REDCAT
See what’s cutting edge in the city’s vibrant performing arts scene at REDCAT’s yearly summer festival.
Aug 19-27
Nisei Week Japanese Festival; JACCC
Celebrate Japanese culture with displays of martial arts, tea ceremonies, flower arranging and more.
Aug 20-Nov 26
Sarah Charlesworth: Doubleworld; LACMA
Explore ten series of photos from the Pictures Generation artist, which offer commentary on the mass-media through precise, colorful collages.
Aug 20-Jan 7
Hollywood in Havana: Five Decades of Cuban Posters Promoting U.S. Films; Pasadena Museum of California Art
Cuban poster artists produced a half-century of bold graphics for films that snuck across the embargo, including Singin' in the Rain and The Silence of the Lambs.
Through Aug 31
Pageant of the Masters; Festival of Arts
Life imitates art, literally: Classic paintings, statues and murals take on a new dimension as real people dress and pose to recreate original masterpieces.
FILM
Aug 4, 5
Raiders of the Lost Ark in concert; Hollywood Bowl
The L.A. Phil brings composer John Williams' beloved score of Raiders of the Lost Ark to life while the film plays on an enormous screen.
Aug 10–13
Sundance NEXT Fest; The Theatre at Ace Hotel
See Sundance movie picks paired with live music and comedy, plus exclusive actor and director panels at this weekend-long film fest.
Aug 10–19
HollyShorts Film Festival; Chinese 6 Theatres
Partake in a week and a half of Q&As with filmmakers and screenings of short films from around the world.
Aug 12
Slumber Party! Movies All Night; Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Catch classic comedy films like The Big Lebowski, Half Baked and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas until the wee hour of 4am at this Cinespia tradition.
Through Aug 13
American Horror Story: The Style of Scare; Paley Center for Media
Get creeped out with a visually stunning assortment of costumes, set pieces and props from every season of the chilling anthology series.
Aug 24
Short+Sweet Film Festival; Egyptian Theatre
Film aficionados can flock to the Egyptian for a late-night screening of 10-minute shorts from filmmakers across the globe.
Aug 25
Eat|See|Hear presents Depeche Mode: 101; Rose Bowl
D.A. Pennebaker filmed Depeche Mode at the height of its career for a documentary culminating in a performance at the Rose Bowl, where the movie will now be screened.
Ongoing
Rooftop Cinema Club; Ricardo Montalbán Theatre
Make the most of the outdoor movie season at this top-notch Hollywood rooftop series.
MUSIC
Aug 5, 6
Hard Summer; Glen Helen Amphitheater & Regional Park
For two days, dance music and hip-hop acts like Migos and DJ Snake will traverse four outdoor stages for the raving pleasure of Southern California's danciest.
Aug 6
Belle & Sebastian + Spoon; Hollywood Bowl
The celebrated Scottish indie pop band and the minimalist Austin rock group share the bill at this Hollywood Bowl show.
Aug 6, 8–11
Kendrick Lamar; Staples Center and Honda Center
Hear the hip-hop legend command the stage at L.A.'s biggest music venues on his DAMN. tour, alongside Travis Scott and D.R.A.M.
Aug 8, 9
Lady Gaga; The Forum
Ms. Germanotta's Joanne may not deliver the sort of borrowed dance pop shock and awe upon which she's built a career, but her showmanship is still a spectacle.
Aug 9, 10
Alt-J; Shrine Auditorium & Expo Center
Alt-J traffics in a distinct sound, combining clever songwriting and colorful, jazzy instrumentation with world beats and skittering drops for a quirky brand of alt-pop.
Aug 11
Hans Zimmer; Shrine Auditorium
Catch the prolific film composer play through his silver screen hits like The Lion King backed by a sizable orchestra and featured soloists.
Through Aug 17
Twilight Concerts; Santa Monica Pier
Hear free tunes by the beach, with a closing night set from Warpaint.
Aug 17–20
Echo Park Rising; Various locations
Celebrate the Eastside's music scene with three days of free shows all over Echo Park.
Aug 18, 19
Tchaikovsky Spectacular with Fireworks; Hollywood Bowl
Bramwell Tovey conducts the beloved annual tradition, featuring the iconic 1812 Overture with the LA Phil, the USC Trojan Marching Band and the Bowl’s famous pyrotechnic display.
Aug 23
Herbie Hancock + Kamasi Washington; Hollywood Bowl
Hancock, who chairs the jazz program at the Bowl, shares the evening with Brainfeeder member, Kendrick Lamar contributor and wildly innovative saxophonist Kamasi Washington.
See more concerts in our August 2017 concert calendar.
THEATER
Aug 4-27
Spamalot; Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center and Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
See King Arthur and his motley crew sing and dance across the stage, with book and lyrics by Monty Python's Eric Idle.
Aug 11-Dec 30
Hamilton; Pantages Theatre
Don't throw away your shot to see the Tony Award-winning hip-hop musical during its four-month run.
Through Aug 18
Shakespeare by the Sea; Various locations
Enjoy one of the many free performances of The Taming of the Shrew or Macbeth, put on by Shakespeare by the Sea throughout summer.
Aug 25–Sept 10
Silent Sky; Long Beach Performing Arts Center
Explore Henrietta Swan Leavitt's life and struggle as an astronomer despite being barred from studying the sky in the early 19th century.
Through Sept 3
Free Shakespeare in Griffith Park; Old Zoo
Take in Shakespeare’s The Two Gentlemen of Verona, while enjoying the great outdoors.
Through Oct 1
Summer Season at Theatricum Botanicum; Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum
Grab a seat outdoors to see productions, such as A Midsummer Night's Dream and the stage adaptation of George Orwell's Animal Farm.
SHOPPING & STYLE
Aug 6–11
Kendrick Lamar DAMN. Pop-Up Shop; Downtown Los Angeles
Fans of the hip-hop artist can pick up some serious swag before heading to the DAMN. tour, which coincides with the pop-up dates.
Aug 18–Oct 20
Odd Nights at the Autry; Autry Museum of the American West
Head to the latest installment of this monthly market, nighttime dance party, happy hour and shopping extravaganza.
Aug 19, 20
Unique LA Market; Barker Hangar
Shop an incredible selection of vintage or work on a DIY craft at this afternoon shopping and mingling event.
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