Michele StuevenThe 18th Annual OC Japan Fair & Freedom LA Music Festival will take place at the OC Fair & Event Center starting Friday, April 3, bringing together music, cuisine, and cultural experiences from across Japan for a three-day celebration.
One of Southern California’s most popular Japanese cultural festivals, the OC Japan Fair showcases the best of Japan’s music, food, and art in an immersive setting with 200 booths featuring traditional crafts, anime merchandise, interactive games, and 60 varieties of Japanese food.
The Freedom LA Japanese Music Festival will once again be featured as part of the fair, with a lineup that includes Minmi, Naoto Inti Raymi, Genki Iwahashi, Yuriyan Retriever, and Britany Tokyo. A special Lantern Release Ceremony will take place on Saturday, April 4.
Other festival highlights include Cosplay & Ai♡Fes Idol Festival and Anime Merchandise, Oiran Dochu procession, a traditional Japanese tuna cutting show, Japanese street food, Asakusa-inspired Nakamise Street, and traditional cultural performances
Courtesy OC Japan Fair
In honor of legendary director Richard Fleischer, famous for his stylish, low-budget noir thrillers (Armored Car Robbery, The Narrow Margin), swift-moving fantasies (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Fantastic Voyage); and sword-and-sorcery films (Conan the Destroyer, Red Sonja), there will be a double feature at Fine Arts Theatre, Beverly Hills on Saturday, April 11.
Fleischer came from a movie business background. His father, Max Fleischer, was a pioneer in film animation. Along with his brother Dave, Max founded Fleischer Studios, whose creations include Betty Boop, Popeye, and Koko the Clown.
In addition to the double feature on the big screen of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) and Compulsion (1959) at 1:30 p.m., Richard’s daughter Jane and granddaughter Claire will be in person for a Q&A moderated by entertainment journalist and publicist Tim Williams.
For The Record, the creators behind the hit innovative productions TINSELCOLOR and Tarantino Live have revealed the full cast of Teen Beat Live, a new immersive concert experience celebrating the music of 1980s cinema. The production runs from Thursday, April 9, through Sunday, May 17, at CineVita, the 15,000 square foot Spiegeltent at Hollywood Park next to SoFi Stadium. Tickets are available now HERE.
Teen Beat rebel guitar (Courtesy For The Record)
Inside the jewel box splendor of mirrors, stained glass, and carved wood, Teen Beat Live transforms CineVita into a living mixtape of the decade that defined movie soundtracks. Featuring songs from more than 25 popular films, including Footloose, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Say Anything, Dirty Dancing, Top Gun, Valley Girl, and Back to the Future, the production turns the soundtrack of a generation into a high-energy communal celebration performed by a company of singers, musicians, and dancers.
Leading the cast of Teen Beat Live are James Byous, Brian Justin Crum, Dionne Gipson, Nina Ann Nelson, Ty Taylor, and Cheyenne Isabel Wells. Tickets start at $29 for standing room only and $59 for balcony seating, with shared floor tables and premium private booths available. Tickets and additional information are available at www.teenbeatlive.com.
Plaza Mexico in Lynwood will be holding a Holy Week celebration on Friday, April 3rd, Good Friday, with the Passion Play, celebrating the life, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Cecilia Cruz’s International Group of Independent Actors, known as Gidai Teatro, is the theater group performing the Passion play. It’s made up of 35 actors from all over Southern California, from Bakersfield to Riverside County, who have performed this play at Plaza Mexico since 2013. Even the wood for the crosses comes from Southern California, made from approved pine trees grown locally in Big Bear, CA.
This play intends to transmit a positive message of Christ’s love to all generations, especially to young children and millennials who have experienced this love through their parents and the generations before them. As the Passion has done for generations, this play is expected to encourage the development of faith and freedom of religious expression. The family-friendly event is free.
The Passion Play (Courtesy Plaza Mexico)