L.A. County Holiday Celebration

Wonderful fun today in Los Angeles for free at the 56 Holiday Celebration at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion with the most diverse performances.
Guys were roaming around creating poems on their typewriters. Bollywood dancers kept us warm with a dance-​a-​long. Carolers sung, while we waited in line. You could have your pic taken with a special back-​drop. They gave out candy canes and holiday coloring was available to all.
Aloe Blacc was their surprise guest!

Come watch the 56^th Annual LA County Holiday Celebration LIVE at he Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at the Music Center on December 24 from 3PM to 6PM. FREE PARKING and FREE TICKETS thanks to the LA County Board of Supervisors! The best show in town!

This annual holiday celebration is a generous gift to the community from the LA board of supervisors. They have hosted this free holiday concert extravaganza for the past 54 years.
There are many diverse multicultural acts showcased during the show: Korean, Filipino, African American, Gays, Israelites, Mexican, Middle Eastern, and Indian. The performers are a fantastic representation of the vastly diverse range of people living in Los Angeles.
There are long intimidating lines to gain entrance to the event but they move fast, and everything is well managed. The show is broadcast live to the PBS station KCET. It’s fascinating to be a member of the studio audience and watch the orchestration of the whole affair; and being on TV adds more Hollywood flair to the entire event. If you can snag a seat in the orchestra section there is a very good chance that your mug will be seen on TV as the cameras pan over the audience.
The seating is first come first serve but many people leave throughout the show and the ushers are great at promptly filling them so that they can whittle down the outside line.
While in line we mingled with fellow Angelenos and Southern Californians who were there trying to get into the holiday spirit. I was chatting with a single dad who had brought his two kids from Huntington Beach and trying to get them to feel the spirit of Christmas. Considering it was 80 degrees and perfect lounge on the beach weather it was hard for many of us to feel like wearing Christmas Sweaters and boots. It was more like shorts, tanks tops and flip flop season. A free and festive holiday concert was a great way for those of us who attended to enjoy the season.

FREE PARKING! FREE SHOW!!! Can’t ask for more!!!
Coming down to the Music Center… totally feel the holiday spirits. Beautiful Christmas Tree. People singing the Christmas songs. Everyone has great energy! Loving it~
Lots of staffs on duty in the parking lot, they give great directions and find the parking easily.
We arrived around 2pm, the door opens at 2:30pm. There is already a long line waiting. Since the TV broadcast at 3pm, they open the door right on time and trying to get hundreds & hundreds of people into the theater as soon as possible. We didn’t come early enough… have to sit on the 3^rd floor. :(
Some people came really early and even bring folded chairs so they could sit down & wait. But they sure get the great seats in the Orchestra floor.
Many talented performers at the show from different countries & different cultures. Each performance is about 5 – 10 minutes. Very organized show!
We are glad we check it out at least once!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

Looking for something FREE to do on christmas eve? Bring your entire family to this! My parents love LOVE music and dancing, so this was perfect!
This was the 51^st anniversary and it was great! You can definitely watch it on KCET-​TV, but the LIVE experience is something to remember. This event is an annual gift from the LA County Board of Supervisors that started with the late Supervisor Hahn. When Dorothy Chandler sought Hanh’s support for the Music Center, Hanh said he would do it only if for one day a year, the theater would be opened to the public for free. Awesome!
It was a 3-​hour music and dance EXTRAVAGANZA. It was quite long, but it was the MOST diverse show I have seen. And everyone was in good spirits. Everything from African dance to Korean children singing to Bollywood to Mariachi bands. Tia Carrera (true lies, wayne’s world) sang and hosted the show along with Fred Willard. Tia is STILL hot! Don’t even know how old she is.
So now with the logistics. I though the event coordinators did an awesome job. The show didn’t start until 3pm, but you had to go at 11:30am to get a wristband. We got there at 11am (btw, PARKING was FREE all day/​night (right under the music center) and super organized with people directing you to a spot (like in disneyland!). There was already a long line! It was really organized with people standing around, directing the line. It’s first come, first served, so if you got there first, you’d be in orchestra seating. Not sure how early the first people were there. It’s not assigned seating. You had a color wristband to tell you where your area was. We got our wristband in 40 min from where they started distributing at 11:30. We were assigned the 3^rd floor, which was totally fine. We could see everything and they also had a large screen to watch. Can’t complain about free shows. After we got the band, we had lunch and walked around downtown. Coming back at 2pm they have performers outside, a large tv screen showing last year’s performance, and another LINE! You have to get back in line. There’s one for those who have wristbands, and ones who don’t. The ones who don’t have wristbands are in the «standby» line. During the performance, as people were leaving, the people from standby would be directed into the empty seats.
Thought this was a great event for everyone (maybe not for babies, but you can leave at anytime) and especially for those who would not normally be able to afford seeing a show at the Music Center. They even had a section for the hearing impaired and a person doing sign language. Thank you LA County Board of Supervisors!
.