December 2024 events calendar for Los Angeles

Each year, the botanical garden’s nighttime experience masterfully mixes hands-on art installations with atmospheric, luminescent forests, all against a background of uplit trees and shimmery sound effects. This year’s event, which runs through January 5, adds in garden’s new model railroad, which will be all lit up for the season.

Even the grumpiest of list-makers at yuletide has to include a production of Dickens’s most beloved tale of becoming a better person. Geoff Elliott and Julia Rodriguez-Elliott direct this merry and music-filled production, starring Elliott and his fellow resident artists of A Noise Within theater company—all ranking among L.A.’s best classical actors—staged in ANW’s spacious house with perfect sight lines from every seat, even for the kids.

The annual L.A. Kings ice skating rink once again returns to L.A. Live. Skate around the dazzling Christmas tree that stands in the middle of the outdoor rink, and take in an LED holiday light show on the huge screens around the plaza. Choose from four nightly skating sessions. Note: Tickets, which include skate rental, are only sold on-site, and can’t be purchased online.

RECOMMENDED: The best places to go ice skating in Los Angeles

Located just blocks from the ocean, Ice in downtown Santa Monica brings a bit of winter to the comfortable coastal city. The 8,000-square-foot outdoor rink runs daily from November to mid-January on the corner of Fifth Street and Arizona Avenue (less than a 10-minute walk from the E Line). Tickets for an hour-long slot ($22) include skate rentals, and you can book private parties and cabanas if you’re looking for something a bit more premium. Look out for treats for sale, plus special themed nights.

Forget Dorothy and her ruby slippers—head to Oz for the story of Elphaba and Glinda. Follow the Wicked cast down a different yellow brick road for a beautiful tale of friendship, love and courage. The ever “Popular” show returns to the Pantages—just weeks after the feature film’s release—to expose the backstory of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. You don’t even have to paint your skin green, just belt out “Defying Gravity” and “Something Bad” to fit in here. Wicked and its “Wonderful” set will inevitably win over your heart, and change your perspective on Emerald City “For Good.”

L.A. doesn’t typically seem like much of a winter wonderland, until, that is, you create an ice skating rink right in the midst of Downtown skyscrapers. Come glide around and pretend there’s snow on the ground at Pershing Square’s outdoor holiday skating rink. Skate rentals are included in admission, though lockers and skating aids costs a few dollars extra.

Street Food Cinema has put together a series of outdoor holiday screenings in the closest thing to a Dickensian town square in L.A.: Heritage Square. In between Victorian home tours, piano sing-alongs, strolls through a light tunnel and sips on hot chocolate and mulled wine, you can catch screenings—many of them double features—of flicks like Elf, Home Alone, A Christmas Story, The Muppet Christmas Carol and more. Just make sure to bundle up in your best Christmas sweater.

Amy Sherman-Palladino of Gilmore Girls fame is behind this new adaptation of Once Upon a Mattress, a musical take on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale The Princess and the Pea. The star-studded cast features Broadway star Sutton Foster (the Tony winner whose alleged affair with Hugh Jackman has been recent tabloid fodder), Michael Urie (Ugly Betty) and Ana Gasteyer (Saturday Night Live). Make a night of it with a special “dinner and a show” package and start the night at Italian restaurant Rossoblu.

Relive your childhood theatergoing experiences this Christmas with Uncle Drosselmeyer, Clara and her beloved Nutcracker at the L.A. Ballet. The timeless show—which gets a SoCal twist here—will travel all over L.A. for the holiday season, bringing classic pirouettes and Mouse King battles to Pasadena and Westwood, as well as 10 performances in Hollywood, where the show will be backed by an orchestra (a rarity among Nutcracker performances).

Right down the hill from Universal Studios Hollywood, at the Hilton hotel, you’ll find this ice skating rink with views of the Hollywood Hills. For the kids, there’s Santa’s Workshop and face painting. Grown-ups can opt for the “date & skate” package, which includes two tickets and two themed cocktails from Jingle Bell Tavern, a holiday pop-up bar. Theme nights include “Wicked Wednesdays,” when the rink is lit up in green and tracks from the musical provide the soundtrack starting December 4 (timed perfectly not only for the film version of Wicked but also the musical’s return to the Pantages). On opening night, November 30, skating will be free from 6–8pm after performances by a Wicked cast member and the Los Angeles Ice Theater.

Oh, this (not quite so) charming man! British national treasure Morrissey brings his Smiths and solo hits to L.A. for three nights (include a New Year’s Eve show at the Palladium) of tongue-in-cheeky crooning. Shoplifters of the world, unite!

Holiday light shows are popping up all over the city, but a new, free light installation is a more-than-welcome addition. Grand Illuminations, which consists of a custom 25-foot-tall LED light tree and Electric Dandelions—kicks off December 4 with a lighting ceremony, live music and refreshments from 5–8pm. The 10 dandelions, 28-foot-tall kinetic sculptures that look like fireworks in action, were designed by L.A.-based art collective Liquid PXL and debuted at Burning Man in 2016, popping up in the U.K., East Coast and various festivals before arriving at the Yard at Cal Plaza. The lights will stay on all holiday season, through January 8, till 10pm nightly.

This national Christmas pop-up in the heart of Hollywood (6555 Hollywood Blvd) promises a 21+ immersive night of holiday cheer, complete with twinkling lights, snowflakes and other festive decor. Think giant ornaments, seasonal craft cocktails, theme nights and live entertainment. Expect plenty of Instagram-worthy backdrops and photo opportunities. Pay $10 admission to the space to order beverages a la carte, or buy drink tickets and event swag up front to save a few bucks.

The beloved Bob Baker Marionette Theater’s year-end production, Holiday on Strings, is back onstage at the puppet troupe’s new-ish Highland Park location. The hour-long show, which follows the Wizard of Fantasy and his sidekick, Demetrius Nova Twinklestar III, on a tour of the holiday galaxies, covers every festive angle: It’ll transport audiences to Santa’s workshop, the world of Charles Dickens and a Hanukkah celebration. For a sensory-friendly version, book tickets to the 10:30am show on Saturday, December 14.

If you’ll follow wherever Gilmore Girls leads, then you’re going to need to embark on the Warner Bros. Studio Tour this holiday season. For the final couple weeks of the year, the Burbank backlot is supplementing its regular tour with the Holidays Made Here addition, which decks out the Stars Hollow section in festive decor, including the gazebo and Luke’s Diner, where you can sip on coffee from “Luke” actor Scott Patterson own brand. Holidays Made Here runs as part of all studio tours (the cheapest one is a three-hour tour) from December 18, 2024, to January 5, 2025.

This international Christmas cocktail bar pop-up is landing in three L.A. County locations: Denae’s Diner (Downtown L.A.), Patrick Molloy’s (Hermosa Beach) and the Ordinarie (Long Beach) with over-the-top decor and a themed cocktail menu in novelty mugs like Rudolph’s Replacement and Jingle Balls Nog. Miracle in Long Beach and Hermosa will run through New Year’s Eve, while the Downtown edition will stay open until January 5. Online reservations for all three locations—Downtown, Hermosa and Long Beach—are not technically required, but they’re highly recommended.

Sip on eggnog, mulled wine, hot toddies and other seasonal drinks at Blitzen’s, a monthlong drink pop-up inside Westfield Century City. The collection of pop-up shops and bar is taking over the shopping mall’s atrium space, where you can also expect scheduled “snowfall” and live performances. Blitzen’s will also offer bar snacks, plus hot chocolate with marshmellows for the kids (or anyone else who doesn’t wish to imbibe). 

If you’re shopping in Orange County and dreaming of a white Christmas, the open-air Irvine Spectrum Center is your answer. Located in Giant Wheel Court by Nordstrom, this rink offers an opportune time out from a busy shopping day. Following each 90-minute skating session, the rink is closed for resurfacing, so you’ll never have to skate on slush. Head to the adjacent Ferris wheel during the half-hour the rink is closed for nonstop fun. Tickets—$25 with skate rental, $22 if you bring your own—are available at the rink, but if you want “jump the line” tickets, you can buy them online ahead of time for $45.

RECOMMENDED: The best places to go ice skating in Los Angeles

Not to be confused with A Noise Within’s A Christmas Carol—though the talents involved are equally stellar—here we have the chance to see the story up close. Now in its 20th year, the show finds David Melville displays his classically trained, beautifully polished craft to bring the famous writer to life as he tells his classic tale of Christmastime redemption; Melville also performs the tale’s many iconic characters, all in the intimacy of Independent Shakespeare Co.’s indoor theater space.

The American Contemporary Ballet returns to the holiday stage with its fantastical take on the tale from author E.T.A. Hoffmann. Experience the seasonal classic on a snow-shrouded stage set within an immersive space in DTLA’s Bank of America Plaza. The 75-minute production includes an ensemble of 11 live musicians performing Tchaikovsky’s iconic score, as well as an artist reception following the show.

Explore the Autry into the evening at the Griffith Park museum’s Thursday-night series that spotlights the city’s emerging and established artists, musicians, poets, writers. Programming ranges from a sound bath to alfresco music to a meet-and-greet with the world’s first Indigenous droid.

Stroll across the grounds of King Gillette Ranch as the Santa Monica Mountains hideaway is illuminated during Holiday Road, which returns with a nearly mile-long walking trail. The event, which comes from the same team as Nights of the Jack, includes thousands of lights, festive decor like a small Christmas village, larger-than-life holiday displays and lit-up archways. Look out for Santa and Mrs. Claus, and fill up with food trucks and a holiday bar while you’re there. Prices start at $25 before fees and go up depending on the day and time you visit.

While Santa may still be working with his elves to load up his sleigh, you can relax and enjoy a Christmas Eve celebration at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Gather up your friends and family and go hear L.A.’s biggest holiday show, now in its 65th year, which includes more than 20 choirs, music ensembles and dance troupes from all over the city. New this time around are a circus act and a puppet performance by Bob Baker Marionette Theater. The three-hour show celebrates L.A.’s multicultural observation of the holidays and runs from 3 to 6pm. This year, advance reservations and (free) tickets are required; parking at the Dorothy Chandler is also free.

It’s always Christmas at this charmingly kitsch amusement park outside of Lake Arrowhead. But it’s extra Christmassy toward the end of the year at Santa’s Village—especially if we’re lucky enough to have had some fresh mountain snowfall. Swing by from November 14 to January 5 for lighting displays, a train ride, a magical nighttime walk through the forest, seasonal snacks, breakfast with Santa and tea with Mrs. Claus (those require a separate ticket) and ice skating.

This Christmas-themed Costa Mesa event is celebrating 10 years of turning Orange County into a winter wonderland. Expect a North Pole walk-through, snow play, ice tubing and photo ops, plus an all-new holiday light show twinkling with more than 2 million lights. Upgrade your experience with an expanded carnival, ice skating, VIP arctic cabanas, “polar putt putt” golf and fireside igloos. Hot cocoa and seasonal treats will help keep things cozy. 

When is the Christmas-themed Costa Mesa event open?

Winter Fest OC runs from November 22, 2024, to January 5, 2025. It’s closed some weekdays early on in the run. The hours are 4–10pm both weekdays and weekends, with the exception of New Year’s Eve, when it stays open till 12:30am. The fest’s extensive hours make it one of the rare holiday events you can enjoy on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day themselves.

The Los Angeles Christmas Market at ROW DTLA promises to transport you to a European Christmas market (though reports from early visitors suggest it doesn’t quite live up to that promise). The somewhat steeply priced ticketed experience offers shopping, festive food and drink (think soft pretzels, currywurst, schnitzel, apple cider and eggnog), photo ops and holiday activities like alfresco film screenings.

This first-floor exhibition at the Broad features hundreds of German artist Joseph Beuys’s “multiples,” editioned objects (with a focus here on environmentalism) that stretched the meaning of sculpture. But the most notable aspect of this show extends beyond the gallery walls: Inspired by Beuys’s 7000 Eichen (7000 Oaks), the concurrent Social Forest: Oaks of Tovaangar will plant 100 native trees (primarily coast live oaks) in Elysian Park and at Kuruvungna Village Springs.

Tanaka Farms opens up its Irvine fields for this after-dark wagon ride and walk-through. Hikari—which means “light” or “shine” in Japanese—has set up a long trail of lanterns, plus some festive theming that’s overtaken the farm’s scarecrows, tractors and trees. You’ll be able to explore the lantern field by both tractor and foot, and afterwards you can peruse a petting zoo, games, crafts and photo ops. While you’re there, you’ll also find the farm’s produce stand, a holiday market and a Christmas tree lot. You’ll need to purchase a parking pass on weekends, as well as tickets for each person any day of the week; the prices fluctuate depending on the date, so opt for a weekday for the lowest price.

RECOMMENDED: Here’s where else you can see Christmas lights in L.A.

You can’t seem to get more a stone’s throw away from a huge festive light display in Los Angeles come holiday season. Well, except for this new entry to the scene, which is making its L.A. debut all the way at Raging Waters. If you feel like making the trek out to San Dimas, though, Lektrik looks like quite the impressive display, boasting over 1,000,000 LED lights and larger-than-life lanterns through miles of illuminated trails. Adding to the experience are acrobatic performers, artisan vendors, food trucks and even some stone-carving.

This exhibition of 21 soundstage-sized installations has floated its way into L.A. Don’t expect mere bundles of birthday balloons: Instead, these pieces range from room-filling ball pits to reflective LED tunnels to giant grabbable bubbles, all inspired by air in some way. The “museum” part of the name might be a little bit of a stretch (though each photogenic piece is actually credited to a named artist), but the “Let’s Fly” edition of this touring show is a more fun experience than your run-of-the-mill made-for-Instagram attraction: Whether you’re bonking the bouncy “Ginjos,” pushing a charcoal-tipped sphere or getting swept up in a staticky whirlwind of balloons, there are some undeniably entertaining—and yes, very photogenic—hands-on scenes here.

Ring in the New Year at Downtown’s timeless Clifton’s Republic, where you can welcome the future inside a timeless space. Don your futuristic finest (look to the 1927 German sci-fi classic Metropolis for inspiration) and head to the multistory space to party throughout four stories of themed “lands”: the Forest Glen, Monarch Lounge, Gothic Lounge and Pacific Seas tiki bar. There will be live music and performances that promise to “transport you from the world of yesterday to the world of tomorrow.” If you feel like splashing out, choose the champagne package, which will get you half a bottle of bubbly and expedited VIP admission.

Most New Year’s Eve parties in L.A. celebrate the stroke of midnight on the West Coast, and a bunch mark the ball drop on the East Coast, as well. But Big Bar celebrates the occasion with 10 countdowns. That’s nine themed cocktails (for purchase) and one complimentary champagne toast at midnight. This year’s Lord of the Rings theme takes you to Middle Earth and back again, starting at the Shire (with free Bilbo’s birthday cake shots for those who arrive before 3pm) and ending at Mount Doom, where they’ll literally ring in the new year by dropping the ring into a volcano.

Party like it’s 1999 at Angel City Brewery’s Y2K Edition of its annual New Year’s bash, where the soundtrack will range from Britney to Blink-182. Bust out your old butterfly clips and velour tracksuits, snap some shots at Myspace-worthy retro photo ops, then ring in the new year with a “midnight meltdown” countdown. Grab dinner from ACB’s House Made food truck to pair with some of the city’s best beer. As the name implies, there’s no cover to attend—just make sure to secure a spot early.

What kid doesn’t love to go to Disneyland? And on New Year’s Eve, the theme park stays open late (to 2am) and has even more magical happenings. We all know Disneyland does fireworks nearly nightly, but on New Year’s Eve they have a special showing in honor of the new year. Many of the restaurants inside the park also have special events or menus for the holiday, so do your research and get a reservation. You’ll have two chances to watch the fireworks: at 9pm and midnight. Just make sure to book your park reservation ASAP.

Knott’s Berry Farm goes all out during the holiday season, turning the theme park into the annual Knott’s Merry Farm with holiday decorations, music and snow. For New Year’s Eve, they take it a step further with extended hours (9am on Dec 31 to 1am on Jan 1) and a countdown to midnight capped off with fireworks. Look out for live music throughout the evening, plus swing-dancing lessons and family-friendly comedy.

Ring in the New Year with confetti, pyro and 30,000 of your closest friends at Countdown. Marshmello, Zedd, Diplo, Alesso, Galantis, Chris Lake and about 40 other dance acts will invade San Bernardino’s NOS Events Center for this year-end fest.

Because just one New Year’s Eve music fest apparently wasn’t enough, Insomniac is staging another year-end concert, Forever Midnight. On December 31, Chris Lake, Diplo, Duke Dumont, Lilly Palmer, Tiësto, Odd Mob and about two dozen others will all play the L.A. Convention Center.

Riverside’s stunningly beautiful Mission Inn is bathed in 4.5 million twinkly lights during the annual Festival of Lights. The free seven-week-long holiday tradition runs from mid-November to early January and typically features more than 400 animated figures.

This December, Downtown’s Pattern Bar will transform into an elf-themed winter wonderland complete with hundreds of elf figurines, an upside-down Christmas tree and plenty of holiday lights. Each $16 general admission ticket gets you 90 minutes of access to the decorated space, which offers a themed cocktail menu for purchase, photo-ops and games.

Go on rides during the day and stick around for DJ sets and a midnight fireworks display at Universal Studios Hollywood’s New Year’s Eve celebration. You’ll typically find multiple genre-themed party areas around the park (Universal Plaza, Springfield and near Jurassic World: The Ride) with desserts, beer, wine and champagne available for purchase at each.

We never thought we’d be in the same club as Michelle Obama and Rihanna until Club Quarantine came along. Alright, technically it was a virtual club streamed on Instagram, but that’s no matter: DJ D-Nice’s hours-long sets from his Downtown L.A. home became life-affirming in a real tough year. Now, he’s bringing those positive vibes IRL for this New Year’s Eve show at the Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Getting out for New Year’s Eve can become one of the priciest dates of the year, but thankfully DTLA’s Grand Park continues to offer an affordable and family-friendly option for the holiday. Flanked by the Music Center and City Hall, every inch of this three-block greenspace and three other surrounding blocks will be covered in culture, including City Hall, which will be used as a 22-story canvas for countdown projection. Crowds will rock steady to a soundtrack of DJ-driven tunes and live bands across a pair of stages while hitting up a selection of food trucks (but do note: there’s no alcohol permitted or sold here). If you dare attempt to drive, you’ll find $10 parking at the Music Center, but taking Metro is a much better bet—especially since fares tend to be free for NYE.

RECOMMENDED: New Year’s Eve parties in Los Angeles

Ring in 2025 aboard the Queen Mary. The 21-and-over, Gatsby-esque party has something for everyone on New Year’s Eve—whether you want a more mellow evening with food, drink and live musical performances or to dance the night away in a club-like atmosphere, they’ve got you covered. When the clock strikes midnight, share a New Year’s kiss under a dazzling fireworks display over the Pacific Ocean—cheesy, we know, but still romantic.

General admission tickets include all on-board entertainment and party favors (a champagne toast is included, otherwise food and additional drinks are extra). VIP pricing throws in an dinner buffet, plus an exclusive firework viewing area.

Step back into the 1920s—when this swanky DTLA hotel was built—for the Biltmore’s New Year’s Eve celebration. The party in the lavish Crystal Ballroom includes live big bands, jazz, dancers, photo ops and themed cocktails—and, this year, some elaborate artistry from the folks at the Labyrinth Masquerade Ball. The Radio Lounge hosts a private VIP bar and retro-style live radio plays. With a general admission ticket, you’ll have to pay out of pocket for drinks, but Bootlegger or VIP tickets get you access to a hosted bar from 8–10pm. Elsewhere in the hotel, acclaimed close-up magician David Minkin will perform intimate shows at 4pm, 7pm and 10pm. 

Ring in 2025 with a dose of Old Hollywood glamour during this celebration at the classic Hollywood Roosevelt. Maxim and Teatro LA are taking over the historic hotel, transforming it into a glitzy winter wonderland for the night. Don your best semi-formal or cocktail attire and walk the red carpet before enjoying live entertainment, music, photo ops and festive party favors to take home.

Let the Mondrian’s Skybar handle your plans this New Year’s Eve at its swanky soiree. Each ticket includes access to a four-hour open bar, plus a midnight champagne toast. Take in the city lights as you overlook the L.A. skyline at the rooftop bar that started it all. The pool will be covered and transformed into a light-up dance floor, so you can groove to live DJ sets into the new year. Note: Cocktail attire is required.

The Freehand hotel will bring the house down New Year’s Eve at its rooftop oasis, Broken Shaker. Organizers Made to Move’s resident DJs, Akumen, Andy Oro and No Pressure, will be spinning bouncy, infectious house music all night long. Grab a tropical cocktail and dance with the DTLA skyline as your backdrop. Entry is free, and there will be a complimentary champagne toast at midnight.

L.A.’s star-studded lecture series returns—both virtually and in person—with a lineup of writers, artists, performers, scientists and business leaders who will graciously blow your mind. For both online and IRL events, you’ll often have the option of purchasing a signed copy of the speaker’s book, as well.

Everyone’s favorite murder mystery parody of true crime podcasts makes the jump from TV to IRL with this Only Murders in the Building escape room. Part of the Westfield Century City will flip into a faux movie set, where you’ll be tasked with tracking down a missing film reel.

This spectacular exhibition from the Icelandic–Danish artist brings a new series of optical installations to MOCA’s Little Tokyo location. Don’t let the reflective, colorful pieces fool you into thinking this is some run-of-the-mill “immersive” exhibit: Olafur Eliasson’s works invite you to admire the everyday miracles of physics that shape how we see the world.

“Color in Motion” features close to 150 objects—pieces of technology, costumes, props and film posters—from the 1890s to today. Broken up into six themes, the exhibition will look at the connection between color, music and movement, like in early dance and animated shorts; decades of color technologies, from Technicolor processes and Disney’s women-led Ink & Paint Department to contemporary digital tools; monochrome silent films; the narrative role of color; and experimental works. The final gallery in the show is dubbed the Color Arcade, an interactive, neon-hued space that includes a corridor inspired by the trippy stargate from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Hatched during the pandemic and 2020’s social justice demonstrations, this exhibition—guest curated by Glenn Kaino and Mika Yoshitake—examines how environmental art intersects with equity. In practice, that means you’ll find pieces that contemplate the power dynamics of our changing natural world, like Tiffany Chung’s floating model of a flooded Southeast Asian village or LaToya Ruby Frazier’s photos of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan.

It’s more than just the low clearance: This exhibition at the Petersen explores the custom paint, engraving, upholstery and, of course, the gravity-defying suspension of the lowrider scene. In addition to iconic cars, the exhibit spotlights influential artists in the Chicano lowrider art scene. Even if you have no interest in cars, this colorful showcase of 20-plus lowered cars and bikes is excellent.

See over 50 garments from Diane von Furstenberg, best known for her iconic wrap dress, during this career-spanning exhibition at the Skirball. Alongside artwork and fabric swatches, the show will also focus on her philanthropic work as well as how her life was shaped as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor.

More than 50 works on display at the Autry showcase how indigenous artists have crafted visions of alternative futures in the face of enduring colonial trauma. The bottom-floor exhibition opens with a semicircle of high fashion, including remarkable crow attire from Cannupa Hanska Luger, which is paired with video footage from his accompanying performance piece. Star Wars plays a surprisingly large role in the vibrant show, including Andy Everson’s Northwest Coast-inspired take on stormtrooper helmets.

A true multi-hyphenate, Carver was a painter in addition to a pioneering agricultural scientist. CAAM will display seldom seen paintings as well as his lab equipment alongside contemporary works that were inspired by his foundational work in modern conservation—ideas that started to spread with his “Jesup Wagon,” an early 1900s moveable school.

Move through a suite of sci-fi installations that depict a world overcome by rising seas and unchecked capitalism in this exhibition from Josh Kline. The MOCA Grand Avenue show includes a mix of sculpture, photography, moving images and ephemeral materials.

Inspired by Steve Martin’s satirical City of Angels comedy—and blessed by the legend himself—“L.A. Story” will bring a group show about L.A.’s enchantments to Hauser & Wirth’s West Hollywood gallery. Though not a one-to-one response to the surreal 1991 film, the exhibition will have plenty of after-the-fact homages to key locations and scenes, including swimming pools (David Hockney, Eric Fischl and Calida Rawles), the coastline (Florian Maier-Aichen), the cityscape (Mark Bradford), major streets (Ed Ruscha) and Hollywood shootouts (Vija Celmin).

A collaboration with the Carnegie Observatories and the Griffith Observatory, this LACMA exhibition brings together a global collection of pieces, from the Stone Age to today, that reflect humans’ ever-evolving attempts to explain the origins of the universe. Alongside pieces of sacred artwork and architecture, you can expect some heady, scientifically-minded contemporary works—like a teaser from Josiah McElheny that’s already on display in the center of the Resnick Pavilion. Island Universe features five reflective, rod-encircled spheres; each individual sculpture is supposed to represent a different parallel universe, and each branching rod the passage of time.

Study the technical and cultural background of colorful clay vessels, textiles, bark-paper pages and sculptures in the Indigenous Americas—and how their significance has been downplayed among colonialist histories—during this LACMA exhibition.

The Natural History Museum’s taxidermy dioramas turn a century old this year, and to celebrate the museum is reviving an entire hall of displays that’ve been dark for decades. Expect some fresh approaches to these assembled snapshots of the wilderness, including alebrijes made of recycled materials, a crystalline depiction of pollution and a tech-driven display of the L.A. River.

Pasadena’s USC Pacific Asia Museum hosts this exhibition based on the Getty’s scientific research into Cai Guo-Qiang’s gunpowder art. The show fills up nearly the entire museum with a vast selection of the artist’s work alongside scientific imagery exploring the nature of gunpowder and Cai’s process in using it.

Gawk at a collection of mid-20th-century illuminated pieces from Andy Warhol, Dan Flavin, Allen Rupperberg and eight others when the Norton Simon mounts this display of electric art.

Artists and JPL scientists come together for this collaborative exhibition in Glendale, where 11 artists across a mix of mediums present their take on how nature and the night sky can inspire wonder in us.

See large ceramic and bronze sculptures at LACMA plus a few more sculptural pieces and collaborative video works at CAAM during this crosstown exhibition of Black feminist artist Simone Leigh.

Marina del Rey rings in the new year with two pyro-filled countdowns. The waterfront city has fireworks at both 9pm and midnight (or a minute before, to be precise). While the fireworks are set off near Burton Chace Park (which hosts a family-friendly “glow party” from 7pm to midnight), all of the restaurants with harbor views should have visibility of the fireworks. Some of the restaurants host ticket dinners for a pricey cost, so we suggest finding a spot along the water and enjoying the fireworks for free.

Stake out a spot in downtown Long Beach to catch this waterfront fireworks show on New Year’s Eve. Though this year’s full details are still to come, past celebrations have included two chances to see fireworks: an early one at a more family-friendly time of 9pm, followed by another at midnight. You can catch the shows from pretty much anywhere near the water, like Shoreline Park and Village, and you can expect dinner specials and parties at plenty of local businesses nearby (including, yes, the Queen Mary, which has again revived its on-board party).