The 41 best things to do in L.A. this weekend (2024)

The summertime screening series returns for the season, first with screenings at L.A. State Historic Park (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towerson May 17)and the Rose Bowl(Almost Famouson May 25),and then back at Hollywood Forever Cemetery toward the end of the month.

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Irish playwright-director Conor McPherson spins a tale of strife in the Great Depression—set to songs by Bob Dylan—in Girl From the North Country, which we gave four stars during its New York run.

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One of L.A.’s best free live music offerings, Jazz at LACMA has featured legit legends over its three-decade 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.

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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 acrobats, wine tastings, exhibitions and concerts.

RECOMMENDED: A guide to the L.A. County Fair

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No, the Academy Museum isn’t staying open past midnight—but itis celebrating films that have typically screened then. To complement the museum’s John Waters exhibition andPink Flamingos’ place as a late-night mainstay, it’ll be screening some cult favorites this April and May,includingEraserhead,Up in Smoke,Donnie Darko andThe Rocky Horror Picture Show.

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Nature lovers rejoice! Spend a day at the Natural History Museum’s Butterfly Pavilion, which will openfrom March 17 throughAugust 25 withup to 30 butterfly and moth species and an assortment of California plants. The seasonal outdoor exhibit allows for adults and children alike to witness nature up close—we’re talking having bufferlies take flight and land on your arms or shoulders. Prime time for these unique butterfly flight experiences are between 10 and 11am each morning.

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Walk through a pavilion of fluttering butterflies and peep a chamber with pupae and caterpillars at South Coast Botanic Garden’sseasonal exhibition.For an extra $6, you can pick up a flower vial or ring filled with nectar to attract and feed butterflies.

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The masters of alfresco rooftop movie viewing have returned for another season of screenings in Downtown L.A., with nearly-nightly showings this spring.

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Watch a slate of classics from the past couple of decades on one of the prettiest rooftops—now called Anita’s Oasis—in Hollywood at this outdoor screenings series.All movies are piped in over sets of provided wireless headphones. Before showtime, make sure to hit up the bar or the on-site kitchen.

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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, includingBasket Taco Co, Battambong Barbecue and Taste of the Pacific.

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Let the wild rumpus start at this celebration of beloved children’s author and illustrator Maurice Sendak. The Skirball Cultural Center will be displaying more than 150 sketches, storyboards and paintings from theWhere the Wild Things Are creator.

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This major Ed Ruscha retrospective includes his meticulous photos of L.A. streets and a reconstruction of his Chocolate Room (which, yes, is a room made out sheets upon sheets of chocolate).

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Did this past year’s Basquiat exhibition in DTLAleave you wanting more? Head to Beverly Hills where Gagosian will be displaying 50 rarely loaned Jean-Michel Basquiat pieces that were created in L.A. during the iconic artist’s time spent at his Venice studio between 1982 and 1984.

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It’s more than just the low clearance: This exhibition at the Petersen explores the custom paint, engraving, upholstery and, of course, thegravity-defying suspension of the lowrider scene. In addition to iconic cars, the exhibit spotlights influentialartists inthe Chicano lowrider art scene.

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Judy Baca’shalf-mile–long TheGreat Wall of Los Angeles, a collaborative mural painted in the ’70s along the Tujunga Wash, has received all sorts of museum love in the past few years. But LACMAhas a particularly unique show to boast about: The local Chicana muralist and SPARC artists will paint two new sections ofThe Great Wall during museum hours. The exhibit also debuts a new section of the wall, in honor of activists known as the Freedom Riders, dubbedGeneration on Fire.

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See how theHairspray andPink Flamingos writer and director’s delightfully filthy style has redefined the possibilities of independent cinema—as well as what exactly goes into making an indie movie—during this career-spanning exhibition at the Academy Museum.

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Former HiFi space Gabba Gallery ushers in its new DTLA home with this retrospective of counterculture illustrator EMEK, famous for his posters for the likes ofFoo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Nine Inch Nails and Neil Young,as well as the annual Coachella poster.

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See works from seven contemporary artists (Eliseo Art Silva, Allison Hueman, Anthony Francisco, Maryrose Cobarrubias Mendoza, Christine Morla, Maria Villote and Junn Roca) who address issues related to Filipino culture and the Filipino-American experience during this exhibition at the Forest Lawn Museum.

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What does living in L.A. look like? It’s a wildly different picture depending on each Angeleno’s point of view, and so to celebrate that diversity of perspectives, Hollywood gallery Jeffrey Deitch will display pieces from a dozen local artists that delve into underground economies, landscapes, surveillance, backyard hangouts and public transit, among other topics.

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Hollywood’s Japan House has tapped artistSebastian Masuda to dive into the roots of all things cute and colorful with this exhibition on Japanese kawaii culture. The free show includes multiple pieces and installations from Masuda.

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See 1930s-to-50s concept carsplus artworkfrom Ed Ruscha, Andy Warhol and David Hockney at this Petersen exhibition.

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The GRAMMY Museum celebrates hip-hop’s 50th anniversary with interactive DJing, rapping and sampling stations and instantly recognizable artifacts like LL Cool J’s red Kangol bucket hat and the Notorious B.I.G.’s red leather pea coat.

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No Andy Serkis, no problems for Wes Ball’s thoughtful ape adventure.

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Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt share a ton of goofy chemistry in this nitrous pull of an action-comedy.

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Alex Garland’s brutal, dystopian vision of America at war with itself is visceral but vague.

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Eschewing gimmicky callbacks, this horror prequel is thoughtful and engaging—but still unsettling.

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Dev Patel conceives, directs, produces, punches, stabs and brawls his way through this brash and frequently brilliant action flick.

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