File photo.
What a week! …Now what? The Post is here to keep you busy with a social calendar full of Long Beach events.
Today’s 5-4 Supreme Court decision in favor of gay marriage has solidified the date of the planned marriage equality rally for tonight at 5:30PM at the Long Beach Civic Center Plaza outside City Hall. The rally comes after a scheduled noon flag raising, hosted by Mayor Robert Garcia in the same location today. At the rally, local leaders will kick things off with their thoughts on the impact of the ruling on the LGBTQ population nationwide, along with lawyers presenting legal analyses of the ruling’s impact. Experience the colors of the rainbow and express your pride.
Speaking of Friday night activities, the Long Beach Museum of Art will host its famed summer LBMA After Dark event on Friday, June 26 from 7:00PM to 10:00PM, to celebrate the opening of Vitality and Verve: Transforming the Urban Landscape, the local art institution’s most ambitious exhibition to date. Guests will have the opportunity to check out the exhibition’s over 60 pieces, including 19 murals painted exclusively inside and on the walls of the Hartman Pavilion, in addition to snacking on food and soaking up refreshments by the Museum’s restaurant, Claire’s at the Museum. Admission is $10. Grab the cash and get going.
Another Friday night event pairs sadness, sanity, and demented looks at life through art at 4th Street Vine. A group exhibition curated by artist and critic Sarah Elise Abramson explores contradictions will be explored through the eyes and work of seven contemporary artists, Mr. Basic, Elizabeth McGrath, Robert Deutsch, Ryan Schude, Ryan McIntosh, Brianna Miller and Beth Elliott in the show entitled Plagues & Pleasures on Retro Row. The opening reception will take place this Friday from 7:00PM to 11:00PM at 4th Street Vine, while the exhibition can be seen through Friday, August 28. The opening event is free and will feature the funk and soul of DJs Eusebio Akasa and Dust Digg.
On Saturday morning, hundreds of people are expected to participate in the 2015 ZERO Prostate Cancer Run/Walk in Long Beach this June, marking the fourth year the event has been held in the Los Angeles region. The event will include a 5K run/walk, a Kids Superhero Dash for Dad—where kids ages 9 and younger participate in a short dash in superhero costumes—and a Snooze for Dudes virtual program where registrants can purchase a T-shirt to sleep in if they do not want to participate in the race. The event will fund all types of services and programs connected to prostate cancer. Run, Long Beach residents, run!
On Saturday evening, the Tijuana Panthers will headline 720° Pine, the kick-off event to the Downtown Long Beach Associates’ (DLBA) famed Summer and Music Festival (SAM), of which the official lineup was announced earlier this month. SAM’s seventh season will begin with an entirely new concept saluting skateboarding and rock’n’roll on Saturday, June 27 from 5:00PM to 10:00PM on Pine Avenue between Sixth and Seventh Streets.