What’s up: Events for the first weekend of the new year
New Year’s resolutions are at the top of the list for the coming weekend, so you can work on creativity and movement, learn about health and art, walk bucolic paths and listen to music — and, oops, head to a chocolate festival.
Santa Monica
Two extremes of life — the egg as the origin of life and a grenade, representing the opposite — are featured in the photography exhibit “Shells,” by David Krovblit. Krovblit uses themes from imperial Russia’s Fabergé eggs, Japanese pottery and American advertising to create a thought-provoking exhibit.
When: Through Jan. 6
Cost, info: Free. Children welcome. No dogs. (310) 829-6990, lat.ms/shells
Los Angeles
At the Chocolate Festival and Pastry Show at the Omni Hotel, chocolate and pastry chefs will feature creations that are almost too gorgeous to eat. The show benefits St. Baldrick’s Foundation for research into treatments for childhood cancer.
When: 3 p.m. Jan. 6
Cost, info: From $100 plus fees; students with ID $49 plus fees. Family-friendly (but no strollers). Only service dogs permitted. (213) 915-8003, indulgela.net
Palos Verdes
Settle into the Rose Garden at South Coast Botanical Garden for a Rock the Garden performance by singer-guitarist Shin Kawasaki, or wander the pathways as his live jazz-fusion, progressive, technopop and metal tunes are broadcast along trails winding through California native plants, a desert landscape and children’s, fuchsia, Mediterranean and rose gardens.
When: 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Jan. 6
Cost, info: Adults $9, seniors (62 and older) $6, students with ID $6, children (5-12) $4, children (4 and younger) free. No dogs. (310) 544-1948, lat.ms/rockthegarden
Palm Desert
At the LiveWell Festival at Civic Center Park, you’ll find around 120 healthcare leaders with interactive fitness exhibits and demonstrations. Visitors can practice yoga, enjoy live entertainment and jog on a one-mile Color Run while getting splashed with powdered, nontoxic paint. The festival benefits the American Cancer Foundation, the Desert Cancer Foundation and Cancer Partners.
When: Jan. 6
Cost, info: Free but fees for some activities, including $15 for the Color Run. Family-friendly. Dogs on leash OK. (800) 873-2428, pdfirstweekend.com
Santa Monica
Check out Cultivating the Expressive Body, a class designed to combine visualization, meditation and improvisational movement to enhance mind-body connections and to develop creativity and a sense of play.
When: 11:30 a.m. Jan. 6.
Cost, info: $10. Children younger than 16 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. No animals. (310) 458-2239, lat.ms/expressivebody
Brentwood
The live, interactive “A Faery Hunt Enchanted Adventure” is a children’s show in which audience members wander through the park while on “magical adventures.” Most kids wear fairy-type costumes. Besides being fun, the show is designed to encourage kindness, promote creativity and emphasize respect for nature.
When: 10:30 a.m. Jan. 7
Cost, info: $15. Family-friendly. Child-friendly dogs on leash welcome. (818) 324-6802, afaeryhunt.com
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