The following list is a curated roundup of weekend events in Long Beach published every Wednesday on the Hi-lo and Long Beach Post. Have an event to share? Email [email protected] with “Things to Do” in the subject line.
If you’re feeling at all depressed that spooky season is now officially over, we’ve found a couple of events centered on the Mexican cultural celebration, Dia de los Muertos, to keep holiday momentum going.
On Friday, the Bixby Knolls business district is going all out with a block-party-style (minus the road closures) celebration that features live entertainment, dance performances, music, art and business activations. You also won’t want to miss the massive Dia de los Muertos parade in Downtown on Saturday.
We’ve also found a semi-niche storytelling event. Plus there are a few festivals going on celebrating plants, reggae music and homebrewing.
Get to scrollin’!
SPEAK. EASY. (Thursday)
If you’ve ever listened to an episode of NPR’s storytelling podcast “The Moth” and wished something like that existed in Long Beach, then it would behoove you to take a trip to DiPiazza’s this Thursday, Nov. 2.
Speak. Easy. is a storytelling event put on by Long Beach Community Theater every first Thursday of the month where everyday people are invited to share a five-minute story on a particular subject. Whether it’s a monologue, dance, song, poem or performance art—guests are free to tell their story in whatever form feels truest to them. Thursday’s topic is “Mending Fences,” stories of forgiveness, friendship, make-ups, do-overs or redemption.
There’s a lot of effort that goes into putting these shows on. Prior to performance night, each storyteller goes through two rehearsals with the Long Beach Community Theater group to help the speakers polish up their performance to present a memorable show for audiences. Speak. Easy. opens at 6:30 p.m. and is free to attend, though a donation of $5 or $10 is welcome. Click here for more information.
DiPiazza’s is at 5205 E. Pacific Coast Highway.
FIRST FRIDAYS (Friday)
Bixby Knolls will be celebrating Dia de los Muertos during their community event, First Fridays, on Friday, Nov. 3 with live music, heaps of art, pop-ups and business specials that make the monthly community event arguably the best in the city.
The event will feature its annual ofrenda, or Dia de los Muertos altar, sugar skull painting, and an Aztec dance performance in honor of the holiday. The “Artist’s Lot” inside the Expo Arts Center will be teeming with art demonstrations and installations, pop-ups and music, with businesses in the area also offering special entertainment, discounts and other festivities.
If you’d like a more comprehensive look at all there is to see, listen and enjoy, click here for information.
First Fridays at Bixby Knolls is from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The free event spans a sizable length of Atlantic Avenue, but a good starting point is at the Expo Arts Center at 4321 Atlantic Ave.
LONG BEACH PLANT FEST (Saturday)
Plant enthusiasts won’t want to miss the inaugural Long Beach Plant Fest at the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) on Saturday, Nov. 4, a celebration of all things green, where guests can shop for plants, explore planting techniques, and chow down on plant-based foods.
Presented by local plant shop Plantiitas and Hella Plants Market, a NorCal-based plant market, the Long Beach Plant Fest will feature a large marketplace of indoor plants and botanical merchandise, a variety of street food, vegan food vendors and workshops. These workshops are designed to help both newbies and more experienced plant owners learn techniques and care for their plants or more easily approach their next plant-related project.
Tickets to the event start at $10. A $15 allows early entry to the festival and a VIP $35 ticket includes early entry and a special plant-related goodie bag. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
The Museum of Latin American Art is at 628 Alamitos Ave.
REGGAE SUPERFEST (Saturday)
Chart-topping reggae band Big Mountain will be headling Reggae Superfest at Thunder Studios in Long Beach on Saturday, Nov. 4.
The daylong music festival features nine reggae acts hailing from around the world, including Jamaica’s Glen Washington, Trinidad and Tobago’s Marlon Asher and South America’s Alika.
The festival will also feature a marketplace, food and drink vendors and other activations including a kids’ corner with face painting, jumpers and games. Tickets to the festival range from $30 to $200 for VIP packages. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.
Thunder Studios is at 20434 S. Santa Fe.
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS GRAND PARADE AND FESTIVAL (Saturday)
Long Beach’s largest Dia de los Muertos event returns for its eighth consecutive year on Saturday, Nov. 4 with a massive parade and daylong festivities celebrating the memory of those who’ve passed.
The parade will begin at 11 a.m. on Pine Avenue and Third Street, making its way down East Shoreline Drive to Rainbow Lagoon where the Artes and Ofrendas Festival will take place at noon.
Last year’s event attracted over 20,000 people who enjoyed a stream of colorful floats, classic cars, ballet folklórico dancers, and Catrinas and Aztec dancers as they paraded down Pine Avenue.
Adult tickets are $10 and children 10 and under are $5. Tickets may be purchased online here.
Rainbow Lagoon Park is at 400 E. Shoreline Dr.
6TH ANNUAL LONG BEACH HOMEBREW FEST (Saturday)
This beer festival on Saturday, Nov. 4 invites guests to try special beer batches from some of the city’s local homebrewers, highlighting the talent and ingenuity of the people—homebrewers—who helped cultivate the craft beer scene as we know (and love) it today.
More than 20 backyard scientists have been selected to participate and will compete against each other. So, as you try the variety of beers you can also vote for your favorite. The event will also feature a beer garden with brews from Altar Society, Ambitious Ales, La Jara Brewing, Long Beach Beer Lab and Ten Mile Brewing Company, as well as food and live music.
Tickets to the Long Beach Homebrew Fest range from $45 to $60. You must be 21 years or older to participate. Click here for more info.
The 6th Annual Long Beach Homebrew Fest will be at 550 W. Devon Place.
SPONSORED BY CATPAWS
STEP OUT FOR THE KITTIES AT LE CHIC CHAT SOIREE (Saturday)
Put on your best silk cat’s pajamas and slink over to Helen Sanders CatPAWS gala event, which benefits the kitties who’ve metamorphosed from helpless foundlings into happy, purring Cinderellas and Cinderfellas.
This Saturday, Nov. 4, at 5 p.m., Le Chic Chat Soiree will transform the halls of the Navy Golf Course Seal Beach into an elegant ballroom. Clink cocktail glasses and munch hors d’oeuvres, a dinner buffet and dessert, and place your bids on some fabulous silent auction items, including round-trip airfare, hotel stays, spa packages and more. Actor/comedian Roger Lundblade will emcee the fur-stivities. Tickets are available online or at the door. CatPAWS’ spay/neuter mobile clinic will be onsite, purchased with funds raised at last year’s Soiree. Adorable adoptable kittens who have been rescued by CatPAWS will make a special guest appearance as well.
The Soiree is CatPAWS’ elegant way to fund programs like the DIY kitten-care kits distributed free to local public shelters and which save the lives of hundreds of newborn kittens; spay/neuter and medical care for our rescued cats; the Traveling Kitty Comfort and Therapy Show, which brightens the lives of people in assisted-living residences; and staff and supplies for the spay/neuter mobile. And of course, adopting cats and kittens to loving, forever families. For more info, click here.
The Navy Golf Course is located at 5660 Orangewood Ave. in Cypress.
SPONSORED BY CIRCUS VARGAS
“BONJOUR PARIS!” SHOW WITH CIRCUS VARGAS (beginning Friday, Nov. 3)
Circus Vargas presents another outstanding, mega-hit entertainment experience in Lakewood at Lakewood Center November 3 – 27.
Join them for a brand new big top adventure with performers from all over the globe! Featuring The “Last Ringmaster,” Johnathon Lee Iverson – classically trained opera singer-actor adds another dimension to their newest stellar production, “Bonjour, Paris!”
Circus Vargas channels the “City of Lights” in all-new high-energy, action-packed extravaganza! In this latest, greatest production Circus Vargas delivers the ultimate live family entertainment experience for 2023!
A must-see Parisian-style circus production featuring world-renowned performers, aerialists, acrobats and more! Audiences are immediately immersed in an ambience of glitz and glamor reminiscent of the famed Lido de Paris. A must see! This extravagantly flashy, fun-filled circus spectacular is guaranteed to excite and delight audiences of all ages! An amazing adventure, not to be missed! Join us for two unforgettable hours under the big top …where memories are made to last a lifetime! Circus Vargas’ “Bonjour, Paris!” C’est magnifique!
For Circus Vargas performance dates, times and to purchase tickets, visit www.circusvargas.com, call 877-GOTFUN-1 (877-468-3861) or visit the box office at each location. Follow Circus Vargas on Facebook and Instagram for updates, discounts and behind the scenes video.