Weekend Events in Pasadena

Good morning, Pasadena. This is News N’ Roses. Did you see Earth’s shadow take a bite out of yesterday’s full moon? If you looked up last night, you may have caught a near-total lunar eclipse, with about 96% of the moon slipping into Earth’s shadow. It’s probably the best lunar eclipse until 2028.

In this weekend’s News N’ Roses:

• Five Acres Celebrates 100 Years in Altadena with Golf, Dinner and Yacht Rock

• Viva la Hispanidad Brings Two World Premieres to Pasadena

• Explore JPL Returns This October

• Events this Weekend

• Live Music Lowdown

Let’s get to it.

—Matthew Ramirez

THE DIGEST

Five Acres Celebrates 100 Years in Altadena with Golf, Dinner and Yacht Rock

I spent Monday at the Five Acres Golf Classic and Dinner, Paradise on the Fairway, at San Gabriel Country Club, and the event had a little bit of everything: golf, dinner on the fairway, auctions, tropical drinks and a live set from Ambrosia.

The bigger reason for the night was Five Acres itself. The nonprofit was established in 1888 and works with children and families across Southern California through foster care, adoption, mental health services and family support programs. Today, Five Acres serves more than 7,000 children and families each year. This year also marks a pretty major milestone. Five Acres opened its historic Altadena headquarters on July 15, 1926, so the organization is celebrating 100 years at the campus. That made this year’s golf classic and dinner part fundraiser, part birthday party.

The golf tournament took over the course during the day, with contests like the Hole-in-One Challenge and Canon Shot Challenge mixed in along the way. Later, everyone moved onto the fairway for dinner, drinks, auctions and the evening program. Then Ambrosia took the stage, with original member Joe Puerta performing with the band. Elliot Lurie of Looking Glass also came out for “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl).” Never thought I’d see either of them live, considering I learned their songs from the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack instead of, you know, when they actually came out. They were great and the crowd loved them.

The event was led by Golf Chair Ryan Trent and Dinner Chair Chris Selak, along with a volunteer committee that helped put the whole thing together. Five Acres also runs its Wear Your Heart outreach and education initiative, which works with community partners to expand awareness and access to care for kids and families. It was a fun way to mark 100 years in Altadena while raising money for work Five Acres is still doing every day. Read more about it on my blog here.

Viva la Hispanidad Brings Two World Premieres to Pasadena

Pasadena is getting a night of contemporary Latin American classical music this fall. Viva la Hispanidad will bring the Hispano String Quartet to St. Andrew Catholic Church on Oct. 24 for a program featuring music from Cuba, Costa Rica, and Mexico.

The big draw is two world premieres: Guerra String Quartet by Costa Rican composer Francisco Castillo and De cuerdas… by Cuban composer Jorge Maletá. The program also includes Dr. Yalil Guerra’s String Quartet No. 2, which was nominated for a Latin GRAMMY in 2014, plus works by Paquito D’Rivera, Eddie Mora, and Eduardo Gamboa.

Presented by composer and producer Dr. Yalil Guerra, the concert is part of an effort to bring more Hispanic and Latin American composers into the classical music spotlight. Viva la Hispanidad takes place Saturday, Oct. 24 at 8PM at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Pasadena. Read more about it here. For tickets, click here.

Explore JPL Returns This October

JPL is opening its doors again for Explore JPL on Oct. 10 and 11. The free event gives visitors a rare look inside places like the Space Flight Operations Facility, Spacecraft Assembly Facility and Machine Shop, plus full-scale models of Perseverance, Voyager and Galileo. This year also marks JPL’s 90th anniversary.

Tickets are free, but they go fast. Registration opens this Saturday, Aug. 29 at 9AM, and JPL says past events have filled up within 10 to 15 minutes. There’s a limit of five tickets per reservation, and names for all attendees are required when booking. Click here for more info.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

This Weekend

⚡ Power Morphicon: The official Power Rangers convention brings more than 200 guests from nearly 30 years of the franchise, along with the world’s largest collection of Power Rangers. Pasadena Convention Center | Friday–Sunday | August 28–30

Friday (8/28)

🔗 Curiosity Connection at Kidspace: Altadena Library sets up a mobile outpost outside Kidspace where you can check out books and sign up for a library card. Kidspace Children’s Museum | Friday | August 28 | 2PM

🧶 Cozy Crafters: A casual crafting meetup where you can bring your own project or use the shared supply basket. Callisto Tea House | Friday | August 28 | 4PM

🎵 Golden Hour: Music in the Garden: A live musical performance held in the Norton Simon’s outdoor garden. Norton Simon Museum | Friday | August 28 | 4:30PM

🍕 Back to School JackBox Pizza Party Night: High schoolers play Quiplash and other JackBox games over free pizza and drinks at the library. Hastings Branch Library | Friday | August 28 | 4PM

🍷 Friday Nights at The Gamble House with West Altadena Wine + Spirits: West Altadena Wine + Spirits hosts an evening on the grounds of the historic Gamble House. The Gamble House | Friday | August 28 | 5:30PM

🦌 Cemetery Wildlife Walk: A Pasadena Humane guide leads a walk through Mountain View Cemetery to spot birds, squirrels, and coyotes among historic gravestones. Mountain View Cemetery | Friday | August 28 | 6:30PM

🎭 Pericles: Shakespeare’s Pericles performed in Ellen McLaughlin’s translation, with movement and music woven through the story. Boston Court Pasadena | Friday | August 28 | 7:30PM

🔭 Altadena Revealed Lecture Series #13: The Scientists of Cal Tech & JPL: Prof. David Zierler presents on the scientists of Caltech and JPL. Eaton Fire Collaboratory | Friday | August 28 | 7PM

🎶 Sunset Sessions | Live Music & Libations Featuring Caught A Ghost: Soul and indie pop act Caught A Ghost performs live in the outdoor courtyard. One Colorado Courtyard | Friday | August 28 | 7:30PM

🎬 Movies in the Park: The Sandlot (PG): The 1993 coming-of-age baseball classic screens outdoors at Playhouse Village Park. Playhouse Village Park | Friday | August 28 | 7PM

🎭 August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom: Opening night! Gregg T. Daniel directs this 1927 Chicago recording-studio drama, the seventh in A Noise Within’s August Wilson American Century Cycle. A Noise Within | Friday | August 28 | 7:30PM

🎮 Movies in the Park: Super Mario Bros. Movie: An outdoor screening of the 2023 animated film at Sierra Madre Memorial Park. Sierra Madre Memorial Park | Friday | August 28 | 8PM

🎤 Babatunde HipHopera: A hip-hop opera performance at Sierra Madre Playhouse. Sierra Madre Playhouse | Friday | August 28 | 8PM

Saturday (8/29)

🌽 Pasadena Farmers’ Market at Victory Park: Weekly outdoor market with fresh produce and local vendors. Victory Park | Saturday | August 29 | 8AM–12PM

🌱 Weekend Projects: Garden Rebuild with Sybil Grant: Volunteer Sybil Grant leads a hands-on garden rebuild at Arlington Garden. Arlington Garden Pasadena | Saturday | August 29 | 9AM

🌽 La Canada Farmers’ Market: A weekly outdoor market running Saturday mornings on Rinetti Lane near the post office. Rinetti Lane (Next to LCF Post Office) | Saturday | August 29 | 9AM–1PM

🐝 Nature Lab: The California Bumble Bee Atlas: A nature program at Descanso Gardens focused on California bumble bees. Descanso Gardens | Saturday | August 29 | 10AM

🐦 Bird Walk with the Pasadena Audubon Society: A guided morning walk through Brookside Park with Pasadena Audubon Society volunteers spotting local birds, geared toward beginners. Santa Catalina Branch Library | Saturday | August 29 | 10–11:30AM

🔧 Fix, Mend, Create: Repair Cafe Pasadena Returns to Altadena: Volunteers help repair broken or worn household items so you don’t have to toss them. Altadena Community Center | Saturday | August 29 | 10AM–1PM

💃 The Dancing Storytellers: “Indian Mythology and Me”: A dance performance exploring Indian mythology through storytelling. Sierra Madre Playhouse | Saturday | August 29 | 11AM

🌵 Succulent Swap: Bring a succulent cutting to trade with other plant lovers at the Hill Avenue Branch Library. Hill Avenue Branch Library | Saturday | August 29 | 11AM

🎨 Movie & Craft: A film screening paired with a craft activity at the Santa Catalina Branch Library. Santa Catalina Branch Library | Saturday | August 29 | 2:30PM

🔭 Arts@theObservatory: Within Sound 2 – The Acoustic Sculpture of Michael Brewster: Michael Brewster’s acoustic sculptures are installed and presented at the historic mountain observatory. Mt. Wilson Observatory | Saturday | August 29 | 3PM & 5PM

🔭 Explore the Universe through Physics: A physics-themed program at the Lamanda Park branch library. Lamanda Park Branch Library | Saturday | August 29 | 3PM

🎭 Music of the Night: Andrew Lloyd Webber & Friends: The Pasadena Symphony & Pops closes its Summer Pops Series with soloists Scarlett Strallen and conductor Larry Blank performing hits from Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita, and more. LA County Arboretum | Saturday | August 29 | 7:30PM

Sunday (8/30)

🏃 Foster the Future 5K/10K Run or Walk: The 9th annual race through Hahamongna Watershed Park benefits Journey House, a Pasadena nonprofit supporting foster youth. Hahamongna Watershed Park | Sunday | August 30 | 8:30AM

🔭 Special Behind the Scenes Engineering Tour: A guided look at the inner workings of Mt. Wilson Observatory’s facilities and equipment. Mt. Wilson Observatory | Sunday | August 30 | 9AM–2:30PM

🎵 AANMI: Echoes of Home: A musical performance presented by AANMI at Sierra Madre Playhouse. Sierra Madre Playhouse | Sunday | August 30 | 4PM

🐱 Sketch & Purr: Feline Figure Drawing with Tail Town Cats: A figure drawing session where the models are the resident cats at Tail Town Cafe. Tail Town Cafe | Sunday | August 30 | 5PM

Nothing in this section is sponsored. These are just the things you need to know. I’ll always let you know if something is sponsored!

WEATHER

Friday

94 🌡️ 73 |☀️| 💨 SW 9 mph

🌆 Air Quality Index: 60 (Moderate)

Saturday

92 🌡️ 73 ☀️| 💨 S 9 mph

Sunday

88 🌡️ 63 |☀️| 💨 S 8 mph

⚠️Extreme Heat Warning: Heat advisory remains in effect thru Friday evening at 8PM.

Temperature readings taken from the Pasadena Doppler Radar.

LIVE MUSIC

🎵 Sofar Sounds: Live at Descanso: Three emerging LA artists play short sets on the Main Lawn, spanning acoustic folk to R&B. Descanso Gardens | Friday | August 28 | 7–8:15PM

🎸 Mini Trees @ Sid The Cat Auditorium: Mini Trees brings the Slow It Down North American Tour to South Pasadena. Sid The Cat Auditorium | Friday | August 28 | 7PM

🎶 Yeek Zodiac Release Show: Singer, songwriter and producer Yeek celebrates the release of Zodiac with a live show in Highland Park. Lodge Room (Highland Park) | Friday | August 28 | 7PM

🍹 Sunset Sessions | Live Music & Libations: An evening of live music and drinks in The Courtyard. One Colorado | Friday | August 28 | 7:30PM–9:30PM

🎸 Live Blues at Visionarium with Jeff Dale: Award-winning blues artist Jeff Dale brings his Chicago blues sound back to South Pasadena for an evening of live music. Visionarium Live Italian | Saturday | August 29 | 7PM–9PM

🎸 Daryl Darden: Guitarist Daryl Darden brings more than 55 years of experience performing jazz and blues, with a career that includes collaborations with George Benson, B.B. King, Albert King and Kenny Burrell. Edwin Mills | Saturday | August 29 | 7PM–11PM

🎤 The #1 Ultimate Rod Stewart Tribute – Forever Rod: A live tribute to Rod Stewart featuring favorites including “Maggie May,” “Forever Young,” “Hot Legs” and “Young Turks.” Hawg Heaven BBQ & Gastro Pub | Saturday | August 29 | 7:30PM–9PM

🎭 Music of the Night: Andrew Lloyd Webber & Friends: The Pasadena Symphony & Pops closes its Summer Pops Series with soloists Scarlett Strallen and conductor Larry Blank performing hits from Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Evita, and more. LA County Arboretum | Saturday | August 29 | 7:30PM

THANKS!

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