May 2026 events calendar for Los Angeles

One of L.A.’s best free live-music offerings, Jazz at LACMA has featured legit legends over its 35-year 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. We’re betting it’ll be even more popular than usual this year, with the new David Geffen Galleries in the background.

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 wine tastings, exhibitions, art installations, concerts (this year’s headliners include War, Brad Paisley, Ramon Ayala and a comedy show by Jeff Dunham), roller-skating rink and carnival rides. This year’s theme, “Play Your Way,” celebrates recreation, imagination and letting loose, transforming its grounds into the county’s biggest playground.

See the eccentric British bandleader belt out her now-iconic tunes like a true superstar at two shows at the Kia Forum, with support from Mannequin Pussy. The songstress is finishing up the U.S. leg of her Everybody Scream Tour here in L.A., following the Halloween release of her sixth album, the witchy Everybody Scream.

Each year, Cinespia brings classic cult favorites to Hollywood Forever Cemetery, the hallowed resting place of such Hollywood greats as Rudolph Valentino and Bugsy Siegel. These outdoor screenings are an L.A. rite of passage, a quintessential summer experience and one of the best film venues in the city. 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 first screenings for 2025 have been announced; so far they include a trio of picks at Hollywood Forever: E.T. (May 23), Moulin Rouge! (May 24) and Mulholland Drive (May 30).

One of the coolest ways to spend this Memorial Day weekend? Inside seven concert halls and bars at this eclectic new music festival taking over Highland Park. Find a certified-cool lineup of a “frenetic and fuzzy array of rock & roll artists,” including Fear, Adolescents, Flamin’ Groovies and Reggie Watts, plus L.A. rockers Strawberry Fuzz, Levitation Room, the Warlocks and Death Valley Girls and many more. All the shows are all ages—and some are even free. With a day pass, you can venue-hop between the Lodge Room, Oblivion, Highland Park Ebell, Cheerio Collective, De La Playa Records, Blind Barber and North Figueroa Books.

The birthplace of Los Angeles will now be home to the Queer Mercado, a first-of-its-kind queer Latino cultural celebration that will bring drag, DJs, live music, cocktails, taquitos and more to Olvera Street on the third Saturday of each month. The community-run marketplace will host cultural activations including live art, a fashion showcase and 40 curated vendors, from local painters to queer designers to ceramicists.

Ever since watching What Not to Wear on TLC in the early aughts, having my hair done by Nick Arrojo has been on my bucket list. The British, N.Y.-based hairstylist has always been a master at divining what haircut and color would look best on any client. And now, he’s finally bringing his pioneering razor-cutting technique to the West Coast for the first time. On May 18 and 19, he’ll be popping up with the team from his eponymous ARROJO Salon at the Loft at Planet Salon at Melrose. Prices for a cut and style start at a reasonable $115—though if you want to book the mane maestro himself, it’s $325. Call the salon to book an appointment.

Everybody likes a good theme party, and this Memorial Day weekend, Main Street in Santa Monica is giving the people what they want. In an effort not only to entertain Westsiders but to support the area’s community programming, much of Main Street will transform into essentially an interactive Monopoly board game, allotting attendees “MAINopoly dollars” to be exchanged for food tastings from some of the finest establishments on and around the street. Trade a few fake bucks for dishes from spots like Ashland Hill, Triple Beam Pizza, Michael’s Santa Monica, Jameson’s Pub, HomeState and Junior Cookies. Be sure to grab drinks from the “Go to Jail” Beer Garden—for the first time this year, you can sip while you stroll from stop to stop. Dressing up is encouraged, so polish up that Monopoly monocle.

Listen to classical and jazz in a dome more than a mile above L.A. during this mountaintop concert series curated by artistic director Cécilia Tsan. The Mount Wilson Observatory is once again hosting monthly concerts this summer inside the dome of its 100-inch Hooker telescope—which was the largest telescope in the world for much of the first half of the 20th century. Tickets cost $65 (that also includes access to the exhibit at the observatory), and it’s highly recommended that you buy them in advance since seating is limited. Note: You’ll need to be able to climb 53 steps to reach the dome, and children under 12 aren’t permitted.