#259: Are you ready to get dancing, Los Angeles?
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, yes, that iconic New York dance company, will be hitting the Music Center's stage here in Los Angeles. But this is more than just a tour. It's a homecoming. 

In this episode, host Brian De Los Santos talks with HTLA's associate editor Aaricka Washington about her experience taking a community dance class with the company, and how it felt to be at the opening night of the Alvin Ailey company's 4 year L.A. residency. Join us as we get into Ailey's L.A. history and give you a rundown of what to expect at next season's shows.  
Read Aaricka's piece on the Alvin Ailey residency here.

#258: Los Angeles is spending nearly $4 million to clean up and fence off the Oceanwide Towers after the three abandoned buildings were covered with graffiti. Some people are glad to see the graffiti go, but others say they like what the murals represent, arguing that their removal is a bad use of tax dollars.

Meanwhile, LAist reporting shows the company who owns the Oceanwide towers has been linked to bribery and money laundering investigations. With all this drama on our mind, we wanted to talk with someone with deep knowledge of LA's graffiti writing scene.

We meet up with Red Ortiz, a graffiti writer turned barber and film director. He'll tell us how painting illegal murals changed his life, and why he thinks graffiti is so important to LA's culture.

If you want to share your hot take, write to us at howtola(at)scpr.org

Music in this episode composed by Dexter Thomas

#257: Today, we’re saying goodbye to a space with a storied legacy in this city – the Conga Room. The Latin nightclub opened in 1998, and brought in artists ranging from Celia Cruz and Tito Puente to Maluma and Bad Bunny. 

The club’s star studded list of investors included Jennifer Lopez, Sheila E., comedian Paul Rodriguez, and actor Jimmy Smits. 

This week, the Conga Room is closing its doors. 

The legacy of the club will live on through a non-profit called Conga Kids, a program bringing music and dance of the African diaspora to classrooms across L.A. But it is still the end of an era.
One of the Conga Room’s original investors, Jimmy Smits, talked with me about the club’s legacy.
Music featured in this episode:

• Celia Cruz - Que Le Den Candela
• Bad Bunny - Soy Peor
• Prince Royce - Adicto
• Jennifer Lopez - Una Noche Más
• Wisin & Yandel - Recordar
• Tito Puente - Ran Kan Kan

#256: Today we’re gunna get moving!

In our next installment of our series on How Not To Be Lonely in LA, we’re covering all the ways moving in synchrony together promotes closeness. Really, it’s just an excellent way to make friends.

Luckily in LA, there are unlimited amounts of classes, courses, leagues and clubs one can join based on your particular interests. Whether it’s a dance class, sports league or a mixed martial arts training, there’s literally something for everyone.

How To LA producer Megan Botel discovers why moving in what’s called "behavioral synchrony" is so good for connection, and learns about how one really popular activity in L.A. is bringing people together.

Guests: Sana Kim Davis, marketing director at Santa Monica Pickleball Center; Jamie Krems, assistant professor of psychology at UCLA; Micah Mumper, Longbeach resident and pickleball fan

#255:

We're back with another episode of Revival House, but this time we're not heading to a 100 year old theater...

The David Geffen and Ted Mann theaters at the Academy Museum of Motion Arts and Pictures are a new addition to L.A's revival programming. In this episode, we explore what the theaters, which only opened in 2021, have to offer our city's moviegoing landscape. And hopefully, we demystify what seeing a movie here is actually like! (Did you know that tickets are only $10? And no, they don't just show Oscar winners.)

In this episode, How To LA producer Victoria Alejandro sits in the red velvet seats of the David Geffen theater with Academy Museum Director of Programming, K.J. Relth-Miller, to talk community access, screening trends, and the power of movie theaters.

If you're curious about the Academy Museum, you can check out our other LAist Studios series, The Academy Museum Podcast here.

Guests: Academy Museum Director of Programming K.J. Relth-Miller 

#254: The National Register of Historic Places is the federal government’s official list of locations it considers worthy of preservation. There are more than 98,000 places on the register, and about 600 of them are in L.A. County.
Angeleno Etan Rosenbloom is on a quest to visit them all. Since 2021, he's visted more than 200 spots in L.A., and he chronicles his journeys on his website and social media accounts, all titled "Etan Does LA."
We recently asked Etan to show us something on the National Register that we might not know about already, and when we said Pasadena, one of his first thoughts was: bungalow courts.

#245: Revival House is breaking format for this episode, and we’re saying goodbye to a historic first-run movie theater.

The Highland Theatre in Highland Park was one of the only movie theaters in Northeast LA. A designated historic cultural monument, the exterior will remain intact, but its future is uncertain. 

In this episode, How To LA producer Victoria Alejandro chats with host Brian De Los Santos about community memories, the history of the theater, and what might be next…

Links we mentioned in this episode:

Eastsider LA

Los Angeles Theatres

Guests: Highland Park Independent Film Festival co-founder and executive director, Marita De La Torre; historian and film professor Ross Melnick, and local employee Denise Hernandez

#252: The rain is, we hope, behind us. Although it could bring us another big wildflower bloom like last year.

We all might know the popular – and overcrowded – spots to see the blooms, like Anza Borrego Desert State Park and Antelope Valley. But today, the How To LA team comes together to offer its take on best hikes to see wildflowers, and maybe even a waterfall. 

P.S. Please use these tips wisely! Do not step on, or pick, the flowers, stay on the path and leave nothing but footprints behind. Be a good steward of the land!

How To LA Team recs:

Evan Jacoby, producer:

• The Backbone Trail, Santa Monica Mountains. Start at Mishe Mokwa Trailhead

Megan Botel, producer:

• Zuma Canyon Trail, short and sweet
• Zuma Canyon Loop Trail, long and hard
• Lily’s Malibu, amazing Mexican grub

Jens Campbell, production coordinator:

• Claremont Wilderness Park (includes info about the Claremont Loop & Thompson Creek Trail)
• Whittier Narrows
• Frank G. Bonelli Park 

Megan Larson, executive producer:

• The Grato Trail, park at Circle X Ranch
• Escondido Falls
• Use Seek app with kids!
  
  

For an expert take, listen to the Theodor Payne Foundation's wildflower hotline: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/theodore-payne-foundation-wild-flower-hotline/id1676116861