Experiencing L.A. at the Hollywood Bowl - with Kids

How can anyone say they're experienced Los Angeles without spending an evening at the Hollywood Bowl?

With the summer concert season just starting, why not make plans to attend?

Back in 2003, almost exactly nine years ago, my wife and I decided to take the plunge. Along with my in-laws, we brought our three "bigger" kids (at the time, ages 3, 4, and 5) to a family-friendly Sesame Street themed concert at the Hollywood Bowl. 

We were way up in the nose-bleed section. I think our tickets were something like $7 each. Cheaper than a movie. 

I don't remember much about the concert except that Big Bird made an appearance and there was a lot of music our kids were familiar with. It was fun, I'm glad we did it. 

And fireworks. There were fireworks at the end. That was fun. It was a couple days before the 4th of July, so very appropriate. Our kids liked it. 

The grand finale - or something like that. Great way to kick off the 4th of July, L.A. style. 

Apparently this year, Barry Manilow, rather than the Sesame Street gang, will be there July 2nd-4th. Hmmm, maybe not quite as kid friendly. 

However, July 6-7, the Hollywood Bowl will be hositng a live version of the BBC/Discovery Channel's "Frozen Planet "on the big screen with live orchestra accompaniment by the L.A. Philharmonic. (Here's a link - thanks to Andy at the Hollywood Bowl for this information.)

Our five years actually living in Los Angeles, aside from a very meaningful Easter Sunday service we attended there, we only made it back to the Hollywood Bowl once - for the Sound of Music sing-a-long (the links are to previous posts on this blog, with more information). 

I kept thinking, "we should go back" - but we didn't, and then we moved. Our loss. 

View Hollywood Bowl in a larger map

It's an amazing venue, definitely part of experiencing L.A. 

Here's a link to the Hollywood Bowl's website. 

© 2012 www.experiencingla.com

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Easter at the Hollywood Bowl

Easter Sunday my wife and kids and I joined friends at the huge city-wide Easter Service sponsored by Bel Air Presbyterian Church.


Parking was free, but we decided to park on Cahuenga (pronouced Co-wang-a) a few blocks away to avoid the "stacked parking" in the lots around the Bowl.


Walking towards the Bowl, a large white cross nearby was visible. This cross was erected as part of the original "sunrise service" held at the Hollywood Bowl every year since 1921. I've thought it would be neat to bring my kids out for the sunrise service, but there was no way getting them up and there by 5:30am was going to happen.

Last year Bel Air Presbyterian Church began holding their Easter service at 11am - honestly, a lot more do-able for families with younger kids.


Walking up Highland: this annual event apparently attracts 10,000 people.


The entrance to the Hollywood Bowl with the Easter Cross on the hill above it.


If you've never been to the Hollywood Bowl - this is a great (and free) way to see and experience it. While still a large crowd, it's much more manageable than a concert in the summer.


If you've never been to a church service, or haven't been in years, this is an outstanding place to connect, or re-connect, with what Christianity is all about.


Everyone was given a program with the words to the songs and the order of the service.


Bel Air Presbyterian Church's mission statement is "Making Los Angeles the greatest city for Christ." Wow, really visionary.


The cover to the program.


The Easter Service was very moving, very emotional. The music was outstanding - focusing on the historical reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.


The church choir, the live orchestra, and the contemporary band ... all volunteers, yet really helping focus our attention on Jesus Christ and the hope of the resurrection.


Pastor Mark Brewer delivered an outstanding message. Relevant, thoughtful, challenging. I'm looking forward to downloading it off their church's website www.belairpres.org to listen again.

The service was a real cross section of Los Angeles: singles and suburban families, kids and seniors, those in coat and tie next to those wearing shorts and sandals, aspiring actors from Hollywood next to executives from Century City. Sitting next to us was group of staff and those "in the program" who had come over from the downtown Union Rescue Mission. Very cool.


My wife (Molly) in pink with our kids and friends afterwards, next to an amazing old apartment building on Cahuenga in Hollywood, where we parked.

We're very committed to our church community here on the westside, so I don't know if we'll be making this an annual event. On the other hand, it was an outstanding experience - especially for anyone who is just checking out Christianity. (FYI, if you plan on going, bring some bottled water and a hat or sunblock: it was surprisingly warm in the sun.)

Many thanks to Bel Air Presbyterian Church for hosting "Easter at the Hollywood Bowl" and their work in making Los Angeles the greatest city for Christ.


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"The Sound of Music" sing-a-long at the Hollywood Bowl

Last night we joined two other home school families for an evening at the Hollywood Bowl.



The bowl offers a huge variety of musical performances throughout the season. Having no idea what to expect, we thought we'd try "The Sound of Music" sing-a-long.



Three tips: one, bring something for a picnic before the show. We spread out a blanket in one of the grassy areas outside the bowl and enjoyed our "Subway" sandwiches, picked up along the way.



Two, if at all possible, try and avoid the "stacked" parking lots next to the Bowl. They're not cheap, and you can't leave until the show is over. I always prefer parking far away and literally walking in.

Three, bring a sweater or jacket, and a blanket. Even on a very warm September day, it got surprisingly cool into the evening.


"The Sound of Music" sing-a-long is just that: you watch the movie with 18,000 of your closest friends and sing along to the music. Think a G rated (or PG) version of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.




We read that there was a "costume parade" before hand. We had no idea what this would be, but my son wanted to participate at the last minute, using what we had at home. In that we didn't have any lederhosen or other Austrian costumes laying around, he went as a goat herder. You know, from the marionette scene. His costume looked more like a shepherd, maybe from a millennium or two earlier.



It was less of a parade, more of a costume contest. My son was in the very front of the line, which was fun. Each participant (there were at least 200) individually went on stage, said their name, and who they were. The host asked my son "and who are you?" He said "I'm the shepherd boy" - she responded, "that's perfect, you can be in the movie and in the nativity scene ..." 60 years from now he'll be able to tell his grandkids "Hollywood Bowl? No big deal, I was on stage there back in the day."



Some of the costumes were pretty amazing: a group behind us came as the "boat scene" (from the movie). Others were even more creative: one couple were dressed in huge numbers "16 going on 17". The group that won the contest (they actually had prizes) dressed up as musical notes: "do, re, mi, fa, so ...." The costume contest went for a whole hour.

The movie finally started when it got dark around 7:30pm. We opted for the "cheap seats" (or "cheaper seats") near the top. The sound was great, but the screen was small.

It was a unique experience watching a movie with 18,000 other people. The crowd was rowdier than I expected - there's a lot of alcohol consumed at the Hollywood Bowl, even on evenings that attract a lot of families.

In additional to singing along to every song, the crowd booed the Nazis, hissed at the Baroness, cheered along with Maria and the children, laughed at anything that was remotely funny, and waved their illuminated cell phones during "Edelweiss." I don't want to be a grouch - but I was pretty annoyed with the handful of people who brought in red laser pointers (designed for highlighting a power point demonstration) to "boo" the bad guys during the film (the Baroness, the Nazis and Nazi sympathizers).

It was fun to go once, but if you're looking for a traditional Hollywood Bowl concert experience, "The Sound of Music" sing-a-long is probably not for you.

"The Sound of Music" was released in 1965 (and based on the 1959 Broadway musical) and won 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It remains one of the most popular films of all times. While not what I would call a "Christian film" in the strictest sense, it contains strong themes of good and evil, faith, love, courage, family. I'm reminded of St. Paul's admonition to "hate what is evil, cling to what is good" (Romans 12:9).

Watching the film in the Hollywood Bowl, with a clear view of the Hollywood sign behind it, I couldn't help but wonder when the next time a G (or PG) rated film will win an Academy Award for Best Picture. My hope is sooner rather than later.

Here's a link to the Hollywood Bowl website.

© 2008 www.experiencingla.com

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