October 2019 events calendar for Los Angeles
Plan your month with our October 2019 events calendar of the best activities, including free things to do, Halloween festivals and our favorite fall concerts
While fall foliage is sparse in L.A., the there’s no shortage of Halloween spirit. It’s October, so there are precious few weeks left to hit up costume stores and stockpile some of the best Halloween candy. If Halloween isn’t really your holiday, then celebrate the end of summertime crowds and enjoy one of the best hikes in L.A. Regardless, you’ll find something to do among the street fairs, Halloween parties and other fun festivals in L.A. in our October events calendar.
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Hot Tub with Kurt and Kristen
Kristen Schaal and Kurt Braunohler host their variety show, Hot Tub, every Monday night at the Virgil. Expect a fresh, oddball lineup each week of stand-up comics, sketch performances and new music.
The Who
The Who—that is, Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, some other musicians and two very prominent ghosts—come to town on their “Moving On!” tour. Despite the name, though, this isn’t a farewell scenario; instead, the band is pegging this as a new chapter, with their first new album in over a decade due out as well. See them during a pair of orchestra-backed shows at the Hollywood Bowl.
Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend aren’t phoneys. Firstly, they chose their name before the whole prepubescent Twilight craze kicked off. What’s more, they all studied musicology, making them that rare thing on today’s rock scene: a band who know their shit. Their music, a hybrid of pop, rock and South African influences which they’ve dubbed ‘Upper West Side Soweto’, certainly reveals a careful craft and intelligence. See them play the Bowl in support of their latest record, Father of the Bride.
Thom Yorke
Don’t expect many Radiohead songs in singer Thom Yorke’s solo shows. The iconic frontman instead focuses almost solely on his solo material—with tracks from The Eraser and Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes—with an Atoms for Peace track or two thrown into the mix. This fall, he’ll be performing with Nigel Godrich and Tarik Barri under their Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes moniker.
Street Food Cinema
For dinner and a movie, all in one, just follow the food trucks. During the summer and fall, Street Food Cinema throws together a series of mostly outdoor parties that include screenings of some of our favorite movies, paired with an assortment of gourmet food trucks and even a live music performance from a cool local band. The screenings are held in venues across L.A., and alternate from week to week, so make sure to check the schedule. Some of the outdoor venues are dog-friendly, allowing you to bring your four-legged cinema lover along.
Free
Smorgasburg LA
Indulge your inner foodie and shopaholic at this weekly food-focused market. The Brooklyn export has landed in the Arts District and become a hotbed of fantastic food and retail vendors, with some that are testing out their dishes before launching a full-blown brick-and-mortar in the city. Bonus: there is plentiful (and free, for two hours!) parking in the nearby parking garage.
Artists & Fleas Venice
The newest flea market on the block, the Venice outpost of this artisan/craft-focused flea market mini-empire is bringing records, vintage and vintage-inspired clothing, cosmetics, jewelry and more to the Westminster Avenue Elementary School. A handful of small batch confectioners provide sweet treats to snack on or take home, while food trucks and nearby restaurants provide heartier bites. Though relatively small in size, owing perhaps to its prime location bookending the neighborhood’s famed Abbot Kinney stretch, vendors hawk a diverse range of hand-made and expertly curated wares that seems to simultaneously fit in and stand out in one of the nation’s most unusual neighborhoods.
Asssscat
Every Saturday and Sunday, the UCB franchise’s longest-running, most beloved showcase starts when a base cast of the theater’s current top-brass—including founding UCB members Matt Walsh, Matt Besser and Ian Roberts—takes the stage. Then they introduce the surprise celebrity alumnae and friends who will be joining them (think Horatio Sanz, Ben Schwartz, Adam Pally). And finally, another special guest takes the stage, a non-improviser (think Flea, Cat Power, Rebel Wilson, Lena Dunham) who opens the show with a personal story, that’s deftly mined for laughs by the players. But you have to go to find out who’s there—that’s part of the fun. Looking for a cheap night out? Sunday shows are free, but seating is first-come, first-served, so be sure to arrive early.
So Cal Corgi Beach Day
Is it the stumpy legs? The size-too-big ears? The woolly rump? Whatever the cause, we love corgis, and so do the devoted dog owners at So Cal Corgi Nation. This semiannual meetup often invades the Huntington Dog Beach (100 Goldenwest St), just north of the southern entrance by Tower 22, but make sure to check the event's Facebook page for the latest location. RECOMMENDED: The cutest corgis at Corg-A-Palooza
Second Home Serpentine Pavilion by SelgasCano
Each summer, a different world-renowned architect constructs a short-lived immersive pavilion in London’s Kensington Gardens. Now, for the first time, one of those fleeting structures is headed stateside: SelgasCano’s crisscross of airy rainbow tunnels will welcome visitors who are looking for colorful photo ops and free performances, hosted by coworking space Second Home and the Natural History Museum. Second Home Serpentine Pavilion by SelgasCano This iridescent rainbow pavilion has landed at the La Brea Tar Pits—and you can visit for free. http://bit.ly/2LnXCT6 Posted by Time Out Los Angeles on Thursday, June 27, 2019 We’re sure the pavilion’s Insta-worthiness will be the biggest attraction for most visitors, but take a moment to admire some of the whimsical architectural details: the colorful latticework of shadows on the floor, the calm canopy of streamers overhead, the iridescent shimmer of the plastic walls, the winding hallway that hugs the pavilion’s exterior. It should provide a stunning backdrop, too, for the pavilion’s planned live talks, which already include the likes of Universal Music, Netflix, World Wildlife Fund, David Lynch, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Frieze LA, LACMA and the mayor’s office. You can swing by daily from 11am to 7pm (and until 9pm on Fridays), though timed express entry tickets will also be released. While you definitely want to visit when there’s ample sunlight to make the irridescent exterior and its colorful shadows more vibrant, do
Concerts
The Who
The Who—that is, Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, some other musicians and two very prominent ghosts—come to town on their “Moving On!” tour. Despite the name, though, this isn’t a farewell scenario; instead, the band is pegging this as a new chapter, with their first new album in over a decade due out as well. See them during a pair of orchestra-backed shows at the Hollywood Bowl.
Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend aren’t phoneys. Firstly, they chose their name before the whole prepubescent Twilight craze kicked off. What’s more, they all studied musicology, making them that rare thing on today’s rock scene: a band who know their shit. Their music, a hybrid of pop, rock and South African influences which they’ve dubbed ‘Upper West Side Soweto’, certainly reveals a careful craft and intelligence. See them play the Bowl in support of their latest record, Father of the Bride.
Thom Yorke
Don’t expect many Radiohead songs in singer Thom Yorke’s solo shows. The iconic frontman instead focuses almost solely on his solo material—with tracks from The Eraser and Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes—with an Atoms for Peace track or two thrown into the mix. This fall, he’ll be performing with Nigel Godrich and Tarik Barri under their Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes moniker.
Van Morrison
The great bard of Irish R&B turns up for a show at the Hollywood Bowl. You never know what you’re going to get from a Van gig—or what mood the famously prickly singer-songsmith will turn up in—but he remains one of the least contrived performers of his generation. While Morrison’s vocals might have diminished over the years, his penchant for thrilling improvisational risk remains very much intact.
Morrissey + Interpol
Oh, this charming man! British national treasure Morrissey brings his Smiths and solo hits to OC, with support from moody aughts post-punk band Interpol.