A Guide to Art & Culture This Spring in the Valley—and Beyond

GOING ON NOW

Common Ground

Through January 2025, Skirball Cultural Center, skirball.org

An exhibition by LA-based artist Adam Silverman aimed at celebrating American pluralism while also fostering human connection. The ceramicist collected clay, water and wood ash from all 50 American states and the five inhabited U.S. territories. From that material he created plates, bowls and cups as well as 56 ceremonial pots.

Right: Photo of Adam Silverman with The Common Ground installation by Jacek Dolata

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Betye Saar: Drifting Toward Twilight

Through 2025, The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, huntington.org

Betye Saar, a 96-year-old American artist well known for her assemblage art, shows off what makes her extraordinary in this Huntington-commissioned exhibition. In a room with dark blue walls and shifting light effects, you’ll discover a 17-foot-long vintage wooden canoe. The “passengers” are antlers, metal birdcages, chairs and other objects that Saar found on the grounds of the library. 

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100 Carats: Icons of the Gem World

Through April 21, Natural History Museum, nhm.org

Step into a dazzling array of magnificent gemstones from around the world. With more than two dozen gems on display, the centerpiece of the exhibit is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world: the Jonker Diamond, discovered in 1934, weighing in at 125 carats. 

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To Paint is to Live: Art & Resistance in Theresienstadt

Through summer, Holocaust Museum LA, holocaustmuseumla.org

An exploration of daily life in the Theresienstadt Ghetto through the works of remarkable artists Erich Lichtblau-Leskly, Fred Beckmann, Moritz Mueller and Leo Haas, all of whom endured the harrowing conditions of Theresienstadt. The exhibition underscores how, in the face of unimaginable adversity, prisoners were able to use creative expression to reclaim their humanity. 

Right: “The Crooner Of Theresienstadt” Painting by So Erich Lichtblau-Leskly. Photo courtesy of Holocaust Museum LA.

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FEBRUARY

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Masters of the American West

February 10 to March 24, Autry Museum of the American West, autry.org

With over 60 artists, this exhibition and sale displays paintings, mixed media and sculptures by nationally recognized artists in one of the nonprofit museum’s biggest annual fundraisers. Proceeds from purchases contribute to the Autry, a vibrant cultural institution dedicated to telling the diverse stories of the American West.

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Frieze LA

March 1-3, Santa Monica Airport, frieze.com

The fifth edition of SoCal’s most prestigious art fair, Frieze LA brings together a carefully curated group of over 95 exhibitors from 21 countries. The much-celebrated Focus section of the fair will explore the idea of ecology to highlight a diverse selection of newer U.S. galleries and emerging artists. 

Right: “Without Airs” by Lilian Martinez. Photo courtesy of Frieze LA.

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MARCH

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

March 9, The Soraya, thesoraya.org

Nathalie Stutzmann broke the gender barrier at the pinnacle of classical music when she became only the second woman in history to lead a major American orchestra. In a program featuring Beethoven and Dvorak, the orchestra’s music director leads Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor,” one of the composer’s most demanding works.

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One of the Good Ones

March 17 to April 7, Pasadena Playhouse

pasadenaplayhouse.org

A funny, heartfelt story from Gloria Calderón Kellett, the co-creator of Netflix’s One Day at a Time. When the “perfect” Latina daughter brings her boyfriend home to meet the parents, her family’s biases and preconceptions are on full display. As tensions run high, everyone must navigate the ins and outs of family dynamics and the boundaries of acceptance.

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Esa-Pekka Salonen and the San Francisco Symphony

March 22, LA Phil, laphil.com

This performance features John Adams’ “Naive and Sentimental Music”—a piece originally dedicated to and premiered by Salonen. The work combines the scale and scope of a Bruckner symphony with Adams’ free-flowing and expressive minimalist language. Plus violinist Lisa Batiashvili joins Salonen, performing Sibelius’ dramatic Violin Concerto in D Minor.  

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Rita McBride: Particulates

Opens March 26, The Hammer, thehammer.ucla.edu

Composed of high-intensity laser beams, water molecules and dust particles in the air, this installation prompts reconsideration of fundamental elements of sculpture such as mass, scale, verticality and surface. Stretching across the former commercial space at the corner of the office tower that houses the museum, Particulates is a rotated, hyperbolic parabola structure that is both optical and ephemeral. 

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Fat Ham

March 27 to April 28, Geffen Playhouse, geffenplayhouse.org

This Pulitzer Prize–winning take on Hamlet, direct from Broadway, makes its West Coast debut. It tells the story of a queer Black man who encounters a dilemma when the ghost of his dead father shows up at his family’s barbecue wedding reception demanding his murder be avenged.  

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APRIL

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Camille Claudel 

April 2 to July 21, The Getty, getty.edu

Camille Claudel was among the most daring and visionary artists of the late 19th century. Although she is remembered today for her passionate relationship with artist Auguste Rodin and her 30-year stay at a psychiatric institution, her art remains little known outside of France. This exhibition seeks to reevaluate Claudel’s work and affirm her legacy.

Right: “Crouching Woman” by Camille Claudel. Photo by Marco Illuminati.

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Ed Ruscha / Now Then

April 7 to October 6, LACMA, lacma.org

Ed Ruscha has consistently held up a mirror to American society by transforming some of its defining attributes—from popular entertainment to the ever-changing urban landscape—into the subject of his art. This exhibition includes his early works and installations and his photographic documentation of the streets of LA beginning in 1965.

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Funny Girl

April 7–28, Ahmanson Theatre, centertheatregroup.com

A Broadway revival that tells the comedic story of the indomitable Fanny Brice, a girl from the Lower East Side who dreamed of a life on the stage. Everyone told her she’d never be a star, but she ultimately became one of the most beloved performers in history.

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MAY

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Come From Away

May 7–12, Pantages Theatre, broadwayinhollywood.com

A stirring and inspiring musical that takes you into the heart of the remarkable true story of the small town in Newfoundland that opened its homes to 7,000 stranded travelers on 9/11. During that week, cultures clashed and nerves ran high—but uneasiness turned into trust, music rang out into the night, and gratitude grew into friendships.

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Dance Me

May 10–11, The Wallis, wallis.org

A performance by artists from Ballet Jazz Montreal, “Dance Me” is inspired by the work of songwriter Leonard Cohen (who was from Montreal and who, during his lifetime, approved this production). The show combines scenic, visual, musical, dramaturgical and choreographic writing to pay tribute to Montreal’s greatest ambassador. ν