Thursday, April 28, 2011

Royal Wedding - in LA? (Madame Tussauds All-Nighter Event)

weddingIf you've been waiting anxiously for every detail of the Royal Wedding, you'll know that the day is almost here!  And since obviously not all of us can fly to England (That's the real reason we can't make it, right?  The would-be invitation was obviously a given!) - Madame Tussauds Hollywood is offering the next best thing tonight! 

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Review: "Burn the Floor" at the Pantages

Burn the Floor - Joan Marcus | Broadway CompanyBurn the Floor is primarily a showcase of different dances, featuring "international style" ballroom dancing.  This style comprises of ten dances including Waltz, Foxtrot, Viennese, Tango, Charleston/Quickstep, Cha Cha, Samba, Rumba, Jive, and Paso Doble.  The show is home to an amazing number of dances and a cast of talented dancers, but given the variety of dances being showcased without a main narrative storyline, the show itself can also be seen as being a bit uneven in design with the second half shining the best. 

Stagecoach: California's Country Music Festival with Return of Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood at Stagecoach May 4, 2008
Go to the Coachella Valley desert this weekend, April 30 and May 1, for a fun day or two featuring the return of Carrie Underwood (pictured above from Stagecoach 2008 taken by me) to Stagecoach and a variety of other country music and bluegrass musical talents. With the setup still in place from the Coachella Music Festival out in Indio, California, Golden Voice is ready for Stagecoach: this weekend's premiere country festival that is considered the start of the summer music season.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

LA Plaza is a Los Angeles Experience

DSC04539As a life-long Angeleno, I am no stranger to the richness and diversity of Mexican-American culture that exists in Los Angeles.  Though a home of many cultures from around the world that have become infused with American influences, Los Angeles and Mexican-American culture is inherently tied together by land, language, and time.  So when I stepped into La Plaza de Cultura y Artes, Los Angeles' new Mexican-American cultural center, my immediate reaction was - "Why wasn't this here before?" 

Cultural Learning with Food Trucks

What a great way to learn about a culture than through food! And what better way to find different kinds of food than through food trucks! They specialize in one or two unique cultural flavor(s), they are portable and come to you, and the food tends to be very tasty!

While the food court at 7+Fig (soon to be Fig at 7th) is being renovated to add in a Target (yeah!), every Monday through Wednesday, gourmet food trucks have been gathering there instead. I was first introduced to food trucks through a Din-din A Go-go at the Alpine Village in Torrance, and now that they are so close to my work, I'm trying them at least twice (if not three times) a week!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Featured Video & Discount: "Burn This"

Our friends at Center Theatre Group sent along this awesome video of Burn This!

Experience the show that everyone is talking about! ExperienceLA members - for special $25 tickets to Burn This, check out the ExperienceLA event listing for details!

-ExperienceLA Staff

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Photo: L.A. Zoo Baby Koala

Georgie & Baby-Fergie 2-14-11_Tad Motoyama 8706

Did you know?  Newborn koalas incubate in the mother's pouch for six months after they are born, leaving the pouch for a good after a year.

This Koala joey made its media debut today at the L.A. Zoo.  Check out the L.A. Zoo at ExperienceLA.com.

-ExperienceLA Staff

Review: Beatles Tribute "RAIN" is a Musical Journey Worth the Trip

With the invention of digital music players and online media, it is very likely that I probably hear a Beatles song or a Beatles cover a day (I'm listening to some as I write this!). As a Beatles fan, I've enjoyed the richness and depth of their catalog, grown up seeing how their music and their performances are intrinsically tied to our global history, but I'll never be able to say I attended their concerts or that I know what it feels like to hear their sound come to life. Seeing something come to life - existing while you exist - is one of the greatest aspects of being an arts patron. But I never really put two and two together with the Beatles music because it's always been tied to an impossibility. That's what's so amazing about the RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles experience, it's the next best thing to having that.

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Celebrate the Grand Opening of LA Plaza

Los Angeles has always celebrated a rich history of Mexican American culture, but starting this month, a new cultural center will open to serve as its national center - and you can be there!  Opening on April 16th 2011, La Plaza de Cultura y Artes will open its doors from 10am to 4pm for a day-long family celebration.  This FREE event is being made possible by Target. 

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Experience L.A.'s Valley Performing Arts Center

I live in the valley. To many of my friends, it may as well be another universe. "How can you live in the valley?" "What's there to do in the valley?" "How do you entertain yourself?"

Well - to start - I have a house in the valley with lots of convenient services nearby like a grocery store. I guess that's how I can live here. I do all kinds of things in the valley, such as go for walks, take my dog to the park, and talk to my neighbors. As for entertainment, there's plenty: visiting the NoHo Arts District, going to the venerable jazz club Charlie O's, Universal Studios Hollywood, and shopping along Ventura Blvd. And now, I can chalk to this a state-of-the-art, beautiful 1,700 seat performing arts center!

Friday, April 01, 2011

The Beatles Are Back! Win Tickets!

Tiina: Now that the Beatles are on iTunes, they're having a reunion tour...
Charity: What?!!
Tiina: All four of them! 
Charity: Um...April Fools?
Tiina: No!  RAIN is back at the Pantages!



Yes, we're not fooling around!  Win tickets to Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles on ExperienceLA!  Giveaway closes April 6th!  Good luck!

-ExperienceLA Staff