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Last month’s 40-day rundown seems like it was a big hit with our readers. So let’s run it back.
In this spring-centric edition of the freebie bonanza, you’ll find events like the L.A. Times Festival of Books, a Very Special Arts Festival Community Day, the KCRW Good Food Pie Contest, CicLAvia in Mid City, 626 Golden Streets, the Community & Unity People’s Kite Festival, and MANY more.
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If any of the above don’t sound too interesting, then believe me there are plenty of other free ideas to choose from. Just… you know… don’t at me about the parking.
Free Things To Do
April 6 – UCLA First Thursdays bring daytime and nighttime activations to Westwood Village.
April 7 – Chinatown First Fridays offers food specials, DJ-spun tunes, and extended hours at galleries adjacent to Chung King Plaza.
April 7 – First Fridays in Bixby Knolls feature “Long Beach County Fair” edition of the monthly art walk for April.
April 8 – Egg Bowl brings a free community egg hunt to the Rose Bowl on the Saturday before Easter.
April 8 – La Canada Flintridge hosts their 26th annual Easter in the Park celebration featuring egg hunts, kids entertainment, a petting zoo, raffle, and more.
April 8 – The City of San Gabriel and the San Gabriel Kiwanis Club are hosting its 78th Annual Egg”straordinary Pancake Breakfast & Egg Hunt.
April 8 – Yoga and meditation instructor Constance Hartwell leads a 60-minute self-care yoga session at CAAM
April 8 – Common Space Brewery celebrates their 5th Anniversary with live music, tarot readings, merch, and new beer releases.
April 8 – AfterHours Night Market brings 100+ vendors and creatives to DTLA’s Art District including tattoo artists, nail techs, piercers, live artists, and more.
April 9 – Center for Hope’s 2nd Annual Easter Festival & Celebration in Inglewood features kids crafts and activities, special vendors, and food trucks.
April 9 – The April Sunday Funday at The Wallis features a kid-friendly performance by Parker Bent followed by a Salsa dance lesson from the Debbie Allen Dance Academy.
April 11 – The Los Angeles County Museum of Art offers free admission to all visitors every second Tuesday of the Month (REMINDER: L.A. County residents can get free admission on weekdays after 3 p.m., and gets can get admission with a free NexGenLA membership)
April 11 – The Autry Museum offers free admission to all visitors every second Tuesday of the Month.
April 14 – Downtown Santa Monica hosts a free Silent Disco on Third Street Promenade on the second Friday of the month, from March to May.
April 14 – Culver City’s Ivy Station hosts a Spring Fling Night Market at Ivy Station featuring over 25 local vendors.
April 15 – The twice-yearly It’s Alive! A Plant Based Horror Marketplace returns to Common Space Brewery in Hawthorne with 30+ vendors featuring food, spooky-themed goods, jewelry, collectibles, and more.
April 15 – The California African American Museum welcomes Sol & Sound for a 432Hz healing sound bath amidst the film installation of Helen Cammock’s I Will Keep My Soul (2023) at Art + Practice.
April 15 – Grand Park Easy Mornings spotlight visual and musical arts with an array of performances, activities and workshops.
April 15 – Symbiosis: Living Island opens at Japan House Los Angeles. The exhibition remains on view through July 5.
April 15-16 – The 48th Annual Bunka Sai Festival comes to Torrance with a weekend of cultural performances, demos, calligraphy lessons, and more.
April 15-16 – Giant Robot’s Art Combini 6 brings a two-day art pop-up market to the Sawtelle neighborhood featuring a curated selection of prints, art, ceramics, and stickers.
April 16 – L.A.’s biggest open streets initiative, CicLAvia, comes to Mid City and Pico Union.
April 16 – Carl Craig: Party/After-Party opens at The Geffen Contemporary MOCA
April 16 – USC Pacific Asia Museum hosts a Teen Takeover featuring crafting activities, live music, and free boba milk tea for the first 100 guests. Plus, free admission for all to the museum.
April 16 – The Hammer Museum’s Family Flicks screening series continues with a showing of The Sandlot.
April 20 – American Cinematheque offers a free advance screening of the first two episodes of Dead Ringers, a new Amazon Video series based on David Cronenberg’s 1988 film of the same name. The event includes a Q&A with executive producer and director Sean Durkin and actor Poppy Liu.
April 20 – Goth Nite at Angel City Brewery brings dark wave vibes to the Arts District.
April 21-22 – Venice Oceanarium’s annual gRUNion party is back this time for two nights to double the chances of seeing Grunion spawn in mass near the Venice Breakwater.
April 21 – The April edition of PCH Movies & Moonlight features a showing of Disney’s Strange World.
April 22 – The Music Center’s Very Special Arts Festival Community Day offers a Saturday of free performances and is family-friendly art making activities.
April 22 – Grand Park Easy Mornings spotlight visual and musical arts with an array of performances, activities and workshops.
April 22 – Corey Helford Gallery hosts an opening reception for Ephemeral Existence, a new solo show from Japanese oil painter Mayuka Yamamoto.
April 22 – The YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles hosts their annual Healthy Kids Day: A Day of Play for LA at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
April 22 – LA Plaza Cocina hosts a free cooking demonstration with Chef Beatriz Magaña focusing on Spicy Calabaza Stew.
April 22 – El Segundo Museum of Art hosts a preview night for their latest exhibition, BELONGING, which will run from April 27 to September 16.
April 22 – Garden School Educators hosts a Family Garden Workshop at Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles focused on Spring Succulents.
April 22 – Plaza West Covina’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival offers an afternoon of unique Japanese culture, vendors, performances, and food.
April 22-23 – The 28th Los Angeles Times Festival of Books returns to the campus of USC this April featuring over 300 book and merchandise exhibitors, a number of outdoor stages and activity areas, expert panels, performances, demos, and more.
April 23 – 626 Golden Streets returns with a route focused on the Foothills, allowing bicyclists and pedestrians to navigate the roads car-free over a five-mile course through San Dimas, La Verne, Pomona and Claremont.
April 23 – There’s a free children’s workshop for Earth Day at the Museum of Latina American Art.
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April 23 – Cabrillo Marine Aquarium’s Salt Marsh Open House gives you an up-close chance to observe native flora and fauna in a wetlands habitat.
April 25 – Zócalo Public Square’s April discussion panel tackles the question: How is Art a Weapon in War?
April 28 – Catch a live jazz performance at LACMA’s Smidt Welcome Plaza by the Los Angeles Jazz Orchestra.
April 29 – Open Stage at The Elysian Theater is an open invite for performers looking to workshop their comedic ensemble (meaning two or more people) material to a live audience. Also, free pizza!
April 29 – Griffith Observatory hosts a public star party with volunteers from the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Los Angeles Sidewalk Astronomers, and The Planetary Society
April 29 – The 13th Eclectic Music Festival and Arts Crawl brings live music, open galleries, a beer and wine garden, and family-friendly to-dos to South Pasadena.
April 29 – On the last Saturday of the month, the Santa Monica Mountains Fund hosts a morning of outdoor yoga and live acoustic music at the King Gillette Ranch in the heart of the Santa Monica Mountains.
April 29 – Grand Performances and Pakistan Arts Council, LA present a performance by singer and composer Ali Pervez Mehdi.
April 29-30 – Jackalope Art Fair returns to Central Park in Old Pasadena with 200 local vendors selling indie goods, clothing, jewelry, home decor, housewares, art, photography, and food.
April 29-30 – The twice-annual Brewery Artwalk features dozens of participating artists showing off their works and studios.
April 30 – The 9th annual Bob Baker Day brings a festive carnival atmosphere to Los Angeles State Historic Park, including music, games, and puppets from the Bob Baker Marionette Theater.
April 30 – KCRW’s Good Food PieFest & Contest features hundreds of pies, baking demos, a marketplace, beer garden, kids activities, and more.
April 30 – Celebrate Cinco de Mayo a few days early with a Family Day at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes.
May 4 – Scum & Villainy Cantina hosts a May The 4th Be With You celebration.
May 4 – The Huntington offers free admission every first Thursday of the month. Reservations open one week in advance.
May 5 – Catch a live jazz performance at LACMA’s Smidt Welcome Plaza by Emmy and Grammy-nominated guitarist and composerGrant Geissman.
May 6 – Elevate Burbank hosts a Multicultural Arts Festival featuring performers, artists, musicians, local food trucks, and more.
May 6-7 – LitFest Pasadena returns for an afternoon of dynamic literary talks, workshops, readings and panel discussions and interactive literary experiences.
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May 7 – The Pasadena City College Flea Market is free and open to the public every first Sunday of the month.
May 9 – The Los Angeles County Museum of Art offers free admission to all visitors every second Tuesday of the Month (REMINDER: L.A. County residents can get free admission on weekdays after 3 p.m., and gets can get admission with a free NexGenLA membership)
May 9 – The Autry Museum offers free admission to all visitors every second Tuesday of the Month.
May 12 – Downtown Santa Monica hosts a free Silent Disco on Third Street Promenade on the second Friday of the month, from March to May.
May 12 – Catch a live jazz performance at LACMA’s Smidt Welcome Plaza by by saxophonist, composer, and bandleader Daniel Rotem.
May 13 – Head to Los Angeles State Historic Park for the 3rd Annual Community & Unity People’s Kite Festival.
May 13 – Forest Lawn Museum hosts an opening reception for their newest exhibit, Grand Views: The Immersive World of Panoramas.
May 14 – The May Sunday Funday at The Wallis features a kid-friendly performance by Mostly Kosher followed by a Vogue dance lesson from the Debbie Allen Dance Academy.
Don’t Forget The Cheatsheet
Do you read our monthly free museum day cheatsheets? If not, this is another great avenue to discover some free ideas to check out in and around Los Angeles. I especially recommend it for folks that are new to the city and just need to get a handle on how much culture there is to experience (it will surprise you).
And of course, if you need more ideas flooded to you inbox, make sure you sign up for our twice-weekly email newsletter (see form below). I promise you won’t regret it!
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