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.
The Long Beach Public Library kicks off its Pride Month celebration with a special author storytime. Also, if you’re into electric vehicles or in the mood to taste some wine, there are events specifically for you this weekend. In addition, one can learn about various Pacific Islander cultures around the world, and have a wild time with the family at an animal-themed carnival.
Meet the Author (Saturday, June 1)
In celebration of Pride Month, Long Beach Public Library welcomes children’s picture book author Daniel Haack to the Billie Jean King Main Library from 1 to 2 p.m.
Haack, who is the author of “Prince and Night,” “Maiden and Princess” and “Tale of Shadow King,” will read one of his best sellers and have a Q&A session afterward. Registration is not required.
The Billie Jean King Main Library is at 200 W. Broadway.
Electrify Expo (Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2)
The Long Beach Convention Center hosts Electrify Expo Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Electrify Expo is North America’s largest electric vehicle festival filled with more than 1 million square feet of the world’s top electric brands. Experience and drive electric cars and trucks, ride E-bikes, E-motorcycles, E-scooters, E-skateboards and E-watercraft. Enjoy great food, music, a huge kids zone, and learn about all things electric.
The Long Beach Convention Center is at 300 E. Ocean Blvd. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit electrifyexpo.com. General admission is $20.
Pacific Islander Festival (Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2)
Join the Aquarium of the Pacific as it celebrates Pacific Islander cultures, including Hawaiian, Tahitian, Samoan, Chamorro, Marshallese, Maori and Fijian during its 21st Annual Pacific Islander Festival from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
The festival will feature cultural displays, artisanal craft demonstrations, and live music and dance performances. Guests are also invited to explore the Aquarium’s Tropical Pacific Gallery to get up close with marine life found off the coast of Pacific islands. The event will also include its annual Heritage Award ceremony.
The Aquarium of the Pacific is at 100 Aquarium Way. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit aquariumofpacific.org.
Carnival of Animals (Sunday, June 2)
The RuMBa Foundation presents “Family Concerts: Carnival of Animals” at the Long Beach Terrace Theater from 1 to 5 p.m.
This festival-style event will be filled with activities, live music, interactive booths, and kid-friendly food. Children will enjoy playing with symphonic musical instruments at the “instrument petting zoo,” crafting their own batons for “conducting 101” with assistant conductors. The Long Beach Public Library will also provide arts and crafts. Children are encouraged to come dressed in their favorite animal costumes.
The Long Beach Terrace Theater is at 300 E. Ocean Blvd. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit https://shorturl.at/TkQG7.
SPONSORED BY LAWineFest
LAWineFest (Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2)
The 19th annual LAWineFest is returning to Harry Bridges Memorial Park at the Long Beach Harbor on June 1st and 2nd. Seen as Los Angeles County’s premier wine tasting event, wine producers from around the globe converge for two days of wine exploration and fun, bringing everyone from the wine aficionados to the wine newbies together to sip what they like, and like what they sip. There will also be a live band, food trucks and an array of lifestyle exhibitors offering everything from wine accessories, chocolates, jewelry, clothing, candles and more.
New for 2024, LAWineFest’s VIP Garden has undergone a revamp with co-hosts Fuego at Hotel Maya and Jackson Family Wines. Not only do VIP ticket holders get to experience exclusive boutique wineries – wineries that produce less than 2,500 cases per year – but now the VIP area is an Elevated Sip and Pour experience, with Jackson Family Wines pouring tastes of several of the brand’s premium labels alongside Fuego’s Chef Victor Juarez, who has curated a menu of delicious small bites. VIP tickets are limited to just 400 per day.
LAWineFest hours are 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are on sale now at www.lawinefest.com. General admission is $80 for each day, VIP tickets are $110 and admission for one designated driver is $25. What’s more, use discount code LB24 for 15% off!
SPONSORED BY Aquarium of the Pacific
Frogs: Leaping through Time and the Future of Biodiversity (Wednesday, June 5)
Join guest speakers and conservation biology experts Dr. Robert Fisher, US Geological Survey and Erin Lundy, Aquarium of the Pacific for a hopping talk on local frogs. Discover how habitat loss, climate change, disease, and wildlife trafficking have contributed to drastic frog population declines in recent years globally and locally. Mountain Yellow-Legged Frogs, amphibians that are native to California and were once abundant in the local mountain regions, have nearly disappeared from their historic range. Learn about the Aquarium’s conservation efforts to aid in the recovery of these critically endangered animals and why it matters.
Following the talk, guests will have the opportunity to visit our new opening exhibit: FROGS “Our Neighbors” Gallery and find live frogs, newts, salamanders, axolotls and more. Guests will also experience our Paint-a-Frog and Paint-a-Fish interactives and enjoy music, crafts, and a cash-bar in our Art Gallery.
DATE: Wednesday, June 5, 2024
TIME: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
COST: $5.00 per ticket for advance online reservations or $10.00 per tickets on the day of the event at the door.
Parking is $6.00 for the first 2.5 hours in the structure located directly across from the Aquarium. Cash bar.
Call: 562-590-3100 or reserve online.
SPONSORED BY Long Beach Symphony
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 (Saturday, June 1)
Long Beach Symphony’s final concert of the season begins with Anton Bruckner’s rousing “Romantic” Symphony, so named by Bruckner himself and inspired by his vision of a day in the life of a medieval village from dawn to dusk. The audience will hear the morning horn call welcoming the day ahead, the thundering hooves of mounted knights departing the castle, the frenzy of a hunt, and the revelry of a village meal and festival to end the long and eventful day.
Then, the Symphony closes this concert and its 2023-2024 season with the help of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, who gave the world perhaps the second-most well-known four-note opening salvo in the classical music canon with the opening notes of his Piano Concerto No.1, among the most popular and most performed piano concertos. Virtuoso pianist Awadagin Pratt – famed for his formidable technique as well as his love for pranking and colorful concert attire – joins the Symphony for a fiery finish. Tickets for the scintillating season finale are available here.