Things to do in Los Angeles on Sunday

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.

Every Sunday you can find dozens of food vendors at this market at ROW DTLA, with a mix of much-loved pop-ups and future foodie stars. Look out for this year’s new vendors, including Basket Taco Co, Battambong Barbecue and Taste of the Pacific.

Oof. Honk. Spam. Ed Ruscha’s laconic canvases are familiar fixtures for L.A. museumgoers, and LACMA has brought them all together in this major, floor-filling retrospective. Ruscha’s background in commercial art is evident in the big, bold text that draws your attention in his earliest Pop art paintings. But so too is his fascination with urbanism and infrastructure: the vibrant colors and sharp angles of his Standard station paintings, the black-and-white shapes of his catalog of L.A. apartments, the mesmerizing aerial shots of some of L.A.’s largest parking lots and his meticulous photos of the Sunset Strip. The retrospective also presents the opportunity to see the fiery painting Los Angeles County Museum of Art on Fire on display at LACMA for the first time ever, as well as a reconstruction of his Chocolate Room (which, yes, is a distinct-smelling room made out sheets upon sheets of chocolate).

Bibliophiles flock to the USC campus for this L.A. Times-curated event, where you can roam stalls from booksellers and catch readings and panels from some of the most recognizable names in literature on April 20 and 21. In addition to the 300-plus exhibitors, this year’s event includes an always-impressive lineup of more than 500 speakers: Jose Andres, Ed Begley Jr., Sophia Bush, Jon Favreau, Max Greenfield, Tiffany Haddish, Tamron Hall, Mark Harmon, RuPaul, Kerry Washington, Henry Winkler and more, plus a cooking stage with Nancy Silverton, QCP and Tiffani Thiessen, among others. Admission to the festival and its seven outdoor stages are free, though admission to indoor talks come with a small ticketing fee. Reservations for those aren’t available until April 14 but if you want to secure a spot now, you can purchase a “friend of the festival” package, which lets you reserve up to 20 panel tickets (plus some other perks) for $85.

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, looking 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.

Once affectionately known as Localchella, now officially (and boringly) billed as “Goldenvoice Presents April,” this two-week series brings a bunch of Coachella acts to smaller stages considerably closer to home. For 2024, you can catch Blur, Jungle, Hatsune Miku and more at venues like the El Rey, Fonda and Fox Theater Pomona. (You’ll also find shows in the Bay Area and San Diego.)

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.

The term CicLAvia stems from a similar Spanish word for “bike way,” and in L.A. it’s become a shorthand for the temporary, festival-like closing of L.A.’s streets. The event (inspired by the first Ciclovías in Bogotá, Colombia) welcomes bikes, tricycles, skateboards, strollers and basically anything else without an engine to ride a rotating cast of car-free routes. You’ll inevitably always find a route each year around Downtown, but past events have taken it anywhere from the harbor to the San Gabriel Valley. Expect music, street performances and food trucks, as well as general whimsy and shenanigans along the way. Shop owners and restaurants along the CicLAvia route also tend to host specials. It goes without saying that you should bike or take the Metro to your desired spot along the route.

The hour stands before another springtime, and the Renaissance Pleasure Faire is nigh. Good mistresses and masters, prepareth thy schedules and costumes for the return of the oldest Ren Faire in the country, a spectacle that cov’reth 20 Irwindale acres with Elizabethan libations and amusement: fully armored joust tournaments and tea parties with the Queen along with beguiling stage acts, rides, games, delicious edibles and ales abound. The fesitivies will transpire each weekend at the Santa Fe Dam Recreational Area; procureth day or season passes in advance by visiting ye olde online box office. And no, we can’t stop talking like this. When is the Renaissance Pleasure Faire near Los Angeles? The event takes place Saturdays and Sundays (10am–7pm) from April 6 to May 19, 2024 at the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area in Irwindale. How much are tickets? Tickets cost $42 for adults, $37 for seniors (62+) and those with military IDs, $21 for kids ages 5 to 15 and free for kids 4 and under. A season pass costs $225. Parking is $12, with a VIP option available for $25.

This must-visit for classic film buffs showcases four days of beloved movies—from the iconic to forgotten gems—courtesy of Turner Classic Movies. See these time-honored favorites on the big screen at a handful of Hollywood theaters, the way they were meant to be seen. This year’s lineup includes An American in Paris, Chinatown, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Double Indemnity, Footloose, Jailhouse Rock, Lawrence of Arabia, Pulp Fiction, Se7en, Spaceballs and more.