You know, some weeks we’re all about music, others all into the art or cinema, this week we are just all over the place with a ton of great stuff ranging from world-renowned mural festivals, world-renowned shark labs and out-of-this-world documentaries. We got fashion shows, the Bard in the park and “Up” on the poop deck.
Most of it is free and the weather this weekend is going to be just wonderful (we checked). If ever there was a weekend with something for everyone and every budget, this is it. Go!
1. POW! WOW! LONG BEACH (Sunday)
We’re not sure what it is about this art festival. Maybe to us non-artists, being able to see a muralist work their magic is like being let in on a secret; to witness their perfected techniques, their exertion under the sun, sorta, kinda, gives us a little energy and inspiration to pursue our own dreams, whether that’s painting a wall ourselves or just trying a little harder to be creative in other aspects of our life.
Anyway, PWLB officially kicks off on Sunday with two (two!) art shows less than a block away from each other. At Bevel Group’s hidden event space, which you have to walk through Pharmacy Skate shop to access, there’ll be art displayed by nearly 50 PWLB artists, plus an installation by Crash One. Then, take a 3-minute walk to MADE by Millworks where the festival’s annual pop-up shop will have merch available to purchase all week, while the official grand opening of Long Beach artist Joon the Goon’s first solo show is a must-see.
Another great thing: This thing goes on all week.
Giving us a moment’s pause: This thing goes on all week.
Both events run 6 to 10 p.m. at MADE by Millworks;: 240 Pine Ave. and Bevel through Pharmacy Skate Shop at 327 Pine Ave. Make sure to check out our complete guide to all POW! WOW! Long Beach events here.
Your complete guide to POW! WOW! Long Beach events July 21 – 28
2. QUINCEANERA.COM EXPO AND FASHION SHOW (Sunday)
If you’re a parent with a young daughter, we don’t need to tell you that quinceaneras have become big business. In fact, the average family will spend an average of $5,000 to $25,000 to celebrate their special young women. If you’re going to spend that kind of dough, you might as well find a free event like this one that will help you put it to good use.
Quinceanera.com has been putting on this event—held at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center—since 2006 and has seen attendance jump an average of 10% annually. This year, they expect better than 2,000 parents, daughters and little brothers who suddenly have lost the will to stand, to check out better than 100 vendors offering everything from dresses, to venues, invitations, party favors, video and photography, transportation, travel packages as well as sample cake and catering services. Trends? Personalized decor, ice sculptures, floral walls, dessert tables…
Another great thing: If you’d like to watch the Quinceanera Fashion Show, featuring unique dresses by the industry’s top designers, get your seating passes by using the Snapchat filter to claim them at the Quinceanera.com lounge.
Giving us a moment’s pause: “Maaaawm, can we just go hoooooome?” says little brother.
The Expo is being held in Exhibit Hall B, located at 300 East Ocean Boulevard. For more information, click here.
3. SHARK LAB OPEN HOUSE (Saturday)
The annual open house of Cal State Long Beach’s Shark Lab takes place from 1 to 5 p.m., is free and features all the usual things, you know, you get to check out shark jaws and skin, get to see all the cool quasi-subs and drones being used to monitor and study sharks. You’ll also be able to watch and participate in panels featuring Shark Lab Honcho, and arguably world’s coolest dude, Chris Lowe. There will also be a premiere of a new Shark Lab video as well as the new Shark Lab comic book that aims to teach everyone how to identify marine animals they may encounter at the beach and how to safely share the ocean with them.
The comic book is printed in color—it’s really very beautiful, check out the sample page above—and is flooded with QR reader codes linked to websites that enrich the comic book experience.
Another great thing: The Shark Lab open house is part of a larger Science and Math Open House at CSULB. So, not only will you get to learn about the ocean’s greatest predator, but you’ll also get to meet the robotic “Obi-Wan Coyote,” experience augmented reality visualizations, explore atoms and elements and have a hands-on tour of the museum collections of mammals, birds, reptiles and bugs.
Giving us a moment’s pause: We’re cool with sharks, it’s stingrays that freak us out. Oh, there will be info about them also? Cool.
The Shark Lab is in the College of Natural Sciences and Math building at Cal State Long Beach, located at 1250 Bellflower Blvd. For more information, click here.
4. PLAYTIME WITH SHAKESPEARE IN THE PARK (Saturday)
Image courtesy of Jewel Box Children’s Theater/Facebook
The Jewel Box Children’s Theater Company has set out to prove that kids don’t have to wait until high school English for their introduction to the Bard. Their performance of “Poor Fancy’s Followers” is an adaptation of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” complete with choreography, live music, and opportunities to participate in the production. And if that’s not enough to entertain you, from 12:30 to 2 p.m. they’re hosting fairy school and crafting.
We asked Executive Director Anna Kate Mohler a few questions about the upcoming production.
How do you get kids initially interested in Shakespeare? More importantly, how do you keep them interested in the work?
We get kids interested in Shakespeare by making it fun and accessible. We also introduce Shakespeare’s stories to the students in our outreach program. Adding live music and dance as well as making the show interactive really engages young audiences and keeps them interested.
Why did you have this specific audience in mind?
Willmore City Heritage Association invited us to perform as part of their Season of Live Arts and Music. We teach outreach classes at schools in the area so it was a perfect fit.
Is the play written in the style of modern English?
Most of the play stays true to Shakespeare’s original text but we have woven in sections written in modern English. We did this to create more opportunities to communicate and interact directly with the audience.
Another great thing: Oh, in case we haven’t mentioned, the entire event is free!
Giving us a moment’s pause: Still parsing out if there’s a dress code for fairy school.
Playtime with Shakespeare in the Park takes place from 12:30 to 3 p.m. on July 20 and 21st at Chavez Park Amphitheater located at 401 Golden Avenue, Long Beach, CA, 90802
5. “UP”/MOVIES UNDER THE GUNS ON BATTLESHIP IOWA (Friday)
Bring a chair and cozy up with a blanket and a box of Kleenex to witness a rare flight underneath the Iowa’s nine armor-piercing 16 inch/50 caliber Mark 7 anti-aircraft guns, because “Up” is playing on its deck this Friday. The battleship, aka “The Big Stick” was launched on August 27th of 1942, patrolling the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans throughout World War II, the Korean War, and the Cold War. It’s hosted presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan, and George H.W. Bush, and you could be the next visitor to enjoy a night under the stars on the ship’s fantail (nautically known as the “poop deck.”)
Another great thing: If you can’t catch this one, there will be more movie nights on the deck of the battleship, with films such as “Captain Marvel” and “Frankenweenie” scheduled to play through October. The full schedule is posted at this link.
Giving us a moment’s pause: Though this event is free, the amenities aren’t. The first hour of parking is complimentary, but with “Up’s” 96-minute runtime, you’ll need at least $2 before the night is over.
Movies Under the Guns opens at 7:30 p.m. and the movie starts at 8 p.m. at 250 S. Harbor Boulevard, San Pedro, CA, 90731. Enter by the rear gangway next to the Security Booth. Flat closed-toe shoes recommended. For more information, click here.
6. “APOLLO 11” UA LONG BEACH 6 (Saturday)
On the 50th anniversary of men first stepping on the moon, UA Long Beach 6 will be screening this excellent documentary which was released earlier this year. Though the doc is new, it is not populated with contemporary folk looking back on the mission. Rather, it is a collection of awesome, never-before-seen large-format film and previously unreleased audio recordings made at the time, that somehow make the film not only seem compelling but immediate and somewhat suspenseful even though you know exactly how the whole thing comes out.
Another great thing: Not only are viewers taken on the voyage, but the film allows them to experience what the event meant back on earth where the unabashed wonder of the whole thing actually seemed to unite the planet, perhaps for the last time in a non-awful situation.
Giving us a moment’s pause: The dude behind us who keeps saying: “As if, you can totally see the wires.”
Regal UA Long Beach is located at 6601 Pacific Coast Hwy. For more information or tickets, click here.
7. FARM PARTY at FARM LOT 59 (Saturday)
The good folks at Farm Lot 59 do a lot of good things for good reasons. The agriculture-based non-profit looks to grow the best varieties, rare and heirloom that are best suited for this climate of coastal desert and to train the next generation of urban farmers. All good. But, you know, there’s nothing that says being good means you can’t be good at partying! That’s why from 5 to 9 p.m., you can enjoy lots of good music and lots of good food. For a $5 cash donation at the door to support our local musicians, you can bring your own chair or blanket to sit on and listen to the good sounds. (Please leave your pets at home.) For $20, you will have access to plates of farm fresh food, though you will have to bring your own drinks.
Another great thing: The party only happens once a year, so you’re in luck!
Giving us a moment’s pause: We’re good.
Farm Lot 59 is located at 2714 California Ave. For more information, click here.