Fun & Free Events for LA Kids this Weekend: Mars, Pixar, and Boobie-Palooza: August 4- 5

8/2/12 - By Toby B

This week, inspired by events happening a great distance away, Mommy Poppins is striving for excellence. We aspire to greatness, to be at the pinnacle of our field, to earn for ourselves a spot in the record books. What has gotten us so fired up? Simply this: at 10:31pm on Sunday evening, the Curiosity Rover lands on Mars, marking yet another giant leap for our esteemed space program. (We are lucky to have two places locally where we can gather to watch the landing, Planetfest and the Griffith Observatory).

And oh yes, the Olympics. There is that, too. Inspired by that little sporting affair across the pond, we want to give our kids every opportunity to shine. Whether you dream of seeing your child on that gold medal platform, or are just hoping to get him to dunk his head underwater, we can point you to the classes to achieve your goal. We’ve got roundups of the best swimming, fencing, gymnastics, ice skating (it’ll be winter before you know it!) and yoga classes around.  (Yoga’s not in the Olympics? Are you sure? How about dance? Not that either? Um… sewing?) No matter; whatever their sport, they’re all winners in our eyes.

The events this weekend are all winners too: keep reading for our favorite picks …

OUR LATEST VIDEOS

ALL WEEKEND
The Tempest (The Star Wars Edition) - Culver City
"We are such stuff as droids are made on…”  Doesn’t sound like the Shakespeare you learned in high school?  The Actors Gang delivers its Iambic pentameter with a liberal dose of the Force to create a show the whole family can enjoy.

Pixar in Concert - Hollywood
The Hollywood Bowl goes from infinity to beyond, as clips from Pixar’s most beloved films are shown with live accompaniment from their film scores.

PlanetFest 2012  - Pasadena
Thousands of space fans gather at the Pasadena Convention Center for a weekend festival celebrating space exploration and to watch the Curiosity Rover land on Mars.

Sea Life - Santa Ana
Got crabs?  How about a shiny sea star? Discovery Science Center continues its Wild Summer with a dip into our local waters to investigate Southern California sea creatures.

Family Amphitheater Performances - West Los Angeles
This weekend’s offerings at the Skirball include Kutturan Chamoru with music and dance from the Pacific Island Micronesian Region (Saturday) and live storytelling from Bawk & Roll - Dan Santat and Tami Sauer (Sunday).

Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival 2012 - Griffith Park
A Comedy of Errors joins the rotation in this free Shakespeare Festival. Pre-show activities this weekend include a free family workshop, a performance by Invertigo Dance Theatre, and a discussion on Shakespeare and the Science of Chaos.

Garden Concerts for Kids - West Los Angeles
Justin Roberts makes his only LA appearance this year for the opening weekend of the Getty Center’s Garden Concerts for kids.

Snow White and the Magnificent Seven - Northridge
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the rootin-tootin-est of all? Why, Snow White of course, who gets the Wild West treatment in this fun musical at the Little Theatre at Cal State Northridge.

International Surf Festival - Redondo Beach
Cowabunga, dudes!  Hang ten over to Redondo Beach to watch some totally rad surfing!

SATURDAY AUGUST 4

Big!World!Fun! Kilohana Performing Arts Company - Hollywood
Say aloha to fiery tales of the gods and the Hawaiian people, told through traditional chanting, ancient hula and modern hula. Pre-show activities include making an island Tiki lei using craft materials.

Fishing Frenzy - Thousand Oaks
Hundreds of magnetic fish have been released into the creek,  and it’s up to intrepid young anglers to catch them!  (With magnetic worms perhaps?)

Drum Downtown - Downtown
Drummers young and old are invited to make music at Music Center Plaza. This week the drum circle plays along to a sampling of Afro Beats.

Silk Road Story Time - Pasadena
The traveler’s tent at Pacific Asia Museum is the place to be to hear stories from the Silk Road; this week the tales come from Korea.

Velveteen Rabbit - Topanga
Creative Playground brings to life the timeless classic Velveteen Rabbit, exploring themes of friendship and what it means to be “really real.”

Foot2Pedal - Burbank
This free class won’t train kids for the Olympics, but it does teach them how to be safe when biking or walking to school.

Marina Del Rey Summer Concert Series: Pop Saturdays - Marina Del Rey
Can this really be free? Grammy-award winner Arturo Sandoval performs under the stars at Marina Del Rey's Burton Chace Park.

SUNDAY AUGUST 5

Boobie-Palooza 2012 - Los Angeles
New or expectant parents can find all the breastfeeding support they need at Boobie-Palooza, a breastfeeding awareness family festival at Ebell Los Angeles. We’re here, we’re breastfeeding, get used to it!

Summer Family Fun Series - Fairfax Farmers Market
Farmers Market continues its biweekly fun series with the Radio Disney Road Crew and performances by Gwendolyn & the Good Time Crew.

Target Feria de la Familia -  East Los Angeles
Families can enjoy free music, dance, art activities, and storytelling at Plaza de la Raza in Lincoln Heights.

Andell Family Sundays - Dragon Days - Mid-Wilshire
This month’s free family Sundays at LACMA look at differing depictions of dragons across cultures.

Target Sundays at CAAM: Summer Sizzle with Salsa and Soul - Downtown
It’s a summer fiesta at the California African American Museum, with hula hoops, skates, kites, and dancing… bring your dancing shoes!

American Indian Culture Day for Families - Griffith Park
The Autry's monthly American Indian Culture Day looks at Hopi arts, including Hopi belt weaving and contemporary Katsina carving.

LevittLA Summer Concert Series - Children's Concerts - Downtown
Kids love puppets! Bring a blanket or lawn chairs and a picnic lunch, then sit back and enjoy the Bob Baker Marionettes.

Manhattan Beach Summer Concerts in the Park - Manhattan Beach
It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing! Luckily the Swing Kings are bringing it to Manhattan Beach’s Polliwog Park Amphitheater.

NASA's Curiousity Lands on Mars  - Griffith Park
The Griffith Observatory presents NASA's live coverage of the Mars landing.

As always, there are many more activities listed on our daily events calendar. Whatever you choose to do, we hope you have a gold medal weekend!