Friday
Start your weekend in Pasadena for the opening of Drawing, Dreaming and Desire: Works on Paper by Sam Francis. The California artist is mostly known for his abstract color-stained canvases, but the Norton Simon Museum is instead presenting works on paper, from erotic line drawings to watercolor nudes.
Afterward, head into Hollywood for Reunited! at the Improv. Hosts Josh Androsky and Bryan Cook are bringing together the cast of a beloved sitcom to reminisce about classic episodes... except the show never existed; Baron Vaughn, Hampton Yount and James Urbaniak guest on tonight's faux reunion round table.
Make it a late night—and we really do mean late; it's a two-and-a-half-hour movie—at the Nuart Theatre for a 35mm screening of Inherent Vice. Catch Paul Thomas Anderson's hazy, hallucinogenic film adaptation of the Thomas Pynchon detective story.
Saturday
Up for a bit of a drive? Start your day at Huntington Beach for the So Cal Corgi Beach Day, a meet-up of the stumpiest, most adorable pups in Orange County.
Alternatively, let your wanderlust lead you away from the coast with a drive out to Pappy & Harriet's for Desert Generator, a throwback to gasoline generator-fueled parties curated by Brant Bjork, co-founder of seminal stoner rock band Kyuss.
Back in LA, stock up on decorative designs and support local artisans at Eastside Handmade. As the name might suggest, this indie, Highland Park pop-up market features fashion, jewelry and trinkets from exclusively Eastside designers.
Afterwards, raise a bottomless glass to the return of LA Beer Fest. A ticket to one of the two sessions will grant you access to over 200 types of brews—plus a dueling piano bar—at LA Center Studios.
Sunday
Get your food and shopping fix on Sunday at the Reef during Artisanal LA. Peruse a mix of handmade kitchen wares and edible treats at this spring installation of the biannual event.
Feed your bookworm tendencies during the second day of the LA Times Festival of Books. You'll find free lectures, signings and performances scattered across the USC campus from the likes of Henry Winkler and X frontman John Doe, plus a ticketed conversation with Carrie Brownstein.
Make your way to LACMA for the opening of Reigning Men: Fashion in Menswear, 1715–2015. The museum has assembled about 200 tailored works to examine how fashion doesn't always equate to femininity; men, too, have cinched and padded their bodies throughout the ages.
Prepareth thy schedules and costumes for the return of the Renaissance Pleasure Faire. Wrap up your weekend at the oldest Ren Faire in the country, filled with Elizabethan libations and amusements at the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area.
Find more things to do this weekend by clicking each day or by heading over to our weekend calendar.