Los Angeles Kids Off The Couch: What's On Our December Radar!

'Tis the season to lift our voices in song... or at least to hum along as professional singers ring out the music of the season. We love that in our diverse city we can enjoy the holiday classics in multiple ways - we can sing along with the Messiah, or listen to the LA Master Chorale do it perfectly. We can watch the Joffrey Ballet dance the Nutcracker, and can also see local kids offer up their rendition at theWestside Ballet Company. We never miss the chance to revisit classics like A Christmas Carol but also like to learn seasonal traditions from other cultures.

Ticket Giveaway: Kids Off the Couch subscribers may enter to win one pair of tickets to the LA Phil's 11:30 AM Holiday Sing-A-Long event on Saturday, December 17th. Tickets are still available for both shows on Saturday, December 17 (11:30 AM & 2:30 PM at Walt Disney Concert Hall), so bring the whole family to celebrate a cherished holiday tradition. Lyric sheets provided to all. Enter to win by writing to us atfamilysavvy@gmail.com. Tickets are available to all the 2011 Deck the Hall concerts so check out the many ways you can get your fill of music this month.

Movie Update: Apparently families spent more of their Thanksgiving together time shopping than film-going -- a trend which could explain why two of our local theaters are shutting down this month (the Crest and the Avco, both in Westwood). The truth is that there is a surfeit of entertaining family movies in the theaters between now and the end of the year. The Muppets are thriving, Puss in Boots 3D is still lapping up box office receipts, and Hugo, which arrived with critical acclaim, gets our Must-See award for the holiday season... at least until Spielberg's two holiday gifts arrive in late December: The Adventures of TinTin andWar Horse. (Hugo, based on the wonderful book, "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" is directed by Martin Scorsese and we thought it was truly magical).

Elementary: Another wonderful World City event takes place on December 3 at the Music Center. Kitka & Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre features an all-female singing group accompanying a marionette show performing stories and skits handed down from the puppeteer's Czech grandfather. Performances take place on Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 11:00 AM and 12:30 PM. FREE tickets are distributed on Grand Avenue at 2nd Street. Tickets for the 11:00 AM performance are distributed beginning at 10:00 AM. Tickets for the 12:30 PM show are distributed beginning at 11:00 AM. FREE Art Workshops are available during each World City engagement.

Middle School: A nice thing to do while in-laws are in town is to head on up the coast to the Getty Villa and take in Modern Antiquity: Picasso, de Chirico, Leger and Picabia in the Presence of the Antique - which examines how the artists looked to ancient sculpture to inspire their work. The show will be in town only until mid-January when it travels to the Picasso museum in Antibes, France. And, while you're at the Villa, grandma will adore Tea by the Sea. Get ready for the holidays by purchasing a boxed set of Harry Potter DVDs -- the studio is pulling all of the movies off the shelf at the end of 2011 and will then plan limited releases of the titles (as Disney does with its classic titles).

Teen: Reading a little Shakespeare at school? Let actors help with your homework by heading out to A Noise Within's Twelfth Night, or What You Will from now until mid-December at the company's exciting new stage in Pasadena. And find some cool gifts for your teens by shopping (RED), Bono's line of products that helps fight the spread of AIDS (today is World AIDS Day).

Adults: Possibly the coolest film title sequences of all time were created by Saul Bass -- you know him from the opening credits of countless Hitchcock movies. Come learn more at a lecture titled Saul Bass: A Life in Film & Design at the Hammer on Tuesday, December 13, and meet the author of a beautiful new book about his life's work (this book is at the top of our holiday gift list!). Annette Bening and friends will do two readings of It's A Wonderful Life! at the Geffen Theater on December 10.

Ready-Set-Shop: Unique LA will be held December 3-4 downtown at the California Market Center, where you can get hand-made, original gifts for everyone on your list. Kids under 12 get in FREE. The Craft and Folk Art Museum holds a boutique this Saturday, as well, from 10-4. If you haven't gotten your holiday card yet, check out our new fave design shop, Pinhole Press. Also, the gals at Cool Mom Picks put out their 2011 Holiday Gift Guide today and it rocks. Did you know Lego had an Architectural series??

Looking Ahead: Pick up tickets to a family show by They Might Be Giants at UCLA Live on January 28 at Royce Hall. Teens might be into a traveling show from the Discovery series, Mythbusters, coming to town on January 15.

Kids Off The Couch

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Ticket Giveaway: LA Phil Presents MGM HD West Side Story at the Hollywood Bowl

Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the iconic film with The LA Phil!


Certain films become classics by virtue of their perfect execution, and others pass the test of time because they capture an emotional veracity that rings true with generations of audiences. West Side Story has remained in our hearts by accomplishing both seamlessly, and with style that is truly timeless. Celebrate the movie's 50th anniversary at The Hollywood Bowl when The LA Phil plays Leonard Bernstein's electrifying orchestral score and memorable songs with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim live, while the newly re-mastered film is shown in glorious high definition on the Bowl's big screen with the original vocals and dialog intact. 

This classic romantic tragedy echoes Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, re-setting the story of the rivalry between the Montagues and the Capulets to 1950s New York, where the Sharks and the Jets fight over turf. Tune into Nathalie Wood's rendition of "Tonight" and show the kids that some stories just never get old.


What: LA Phil Presents MGM HD presents West Side Story at the Hollywood Bowl Friday, July 8th and Saturday, July 9th at 8:00pm. Plenty of seats are still available. Click here for tickets and more information about the show.

Enter to Win: Kids Off the Couch has a Family Four-Pack to give away to the Friday, July 8 show. Click here to be in the drawing - and please include your telephone number. Winner will be chosen by June 17.

West Side Story: The 1961 film, which garnered ten Oscars including Best Picture, ignited musical theater with innovations in its electric dance numbers and a cross-cultural love story that captured the imagination of a nation. Memorable songs include "Something's Coming", "Maria", "America", "Somewhere", "Tonight", "Jet Song", "I Feel Pretty", "A Boy Like That", "One Hand, One Heart", "Gee, Officer Krupke" and "Cool".

Kids Off The Couch

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Kids Off The Couch Ticket Giveaway: LA Phil at Hollywood Bowl Fourth Of July Fireworks Spectacular!

The Fourth of July means fireworks, plain and simple. When we were little, we danced the hokey pokey at a bandstand on Cape Cod and then stretched out with our siblings on blankets in the middle of a football field to watch thefireworks. The memory is plenty potent and we've been challenged, as parents, to create the same type of memories here in Southern California. We have watched from thebeach (fun but oh-so-crowded), stayed home to watch fireworks in TV after a backyard party (big mistake, they're best observed in person) and once spent an evening on the101, kids asleep in their car seats after an all-day beach party, watching high-school fireworks celebrations going offin succession across the valley.

One of the most relaxing ways to spend the Fourth in LA is to cap off a concert at the Hollywood Bowl with their spectacular fireworks. The explosions are timed to the 1812 Overture, and the kids can simply gaze upwards and watch a terrific display. This year, the LA Phil has invited Darryl Hall and John Oates to headline three shows with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. The pop-duo, who are members of members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, will play their own hits as well as plenty of good-old fashioned American music.

What: LA Phil Presents July 4th Fireworks Spectacular (Saturday, Sunday & Monday, July 2-4, 7:30 PM) with special guests Daryl Hall & John Oates. Plenty of seats are still available. Click here for tickets and more information about the show.

Enter to Win: Kids Off the Couch has a Family Four-Pack to give away. Click here to be in the drawing - and please include your telephone number.

Hits from Hall and Oates Remember these classics: "Sara Smile", "Rich Girl", "Kiss on My List", "Private Eyes", "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)", "Maneater", and "Out of Touch".The duo had 34 singles chart hits make the Billboard Top 100.

Kids Off The Couch

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Kids Off The Couch: Snow Days, Teacher Gifts and a Date Night Idea

Ticket Giveaway for Holiday Sing-Along at Disney Hall and Great Expectationsat A Noise Within

It wasn't so easy to deck the halls while the temperature was in the 80s last week, but with our sweaters and boots back in rotation, we're feeling merry as we scramble about getting holiday tasks done. Once the kids get out of school, they'll be chiming for something to do. Here's what looks like fun to us:

Holiday Sing-Along Ticket Giveaway: LA Holiday Sing-Along at Walt Disney Concert Hall12/18, 11:30am (great seats available) and 2:30pm.

Tune up your vocal chords and get ready to make a joyful noise as you sing along to holiday classics. Lyric sheets are provided for all. We have a Family Four Pack for Saturday's matinee performance of the Holiday Sing-Along (December 18 at 2:30 PM). Click here for more information on The Holiday Sing-Along. Click here if you are free for this weekend's performance and please remember to leave us a telephone number; we'll notify the winner by Friday morning.

The LA Phil has tickets left for their three other holiday shows - LA Phil Presents Go Tell It on the Mountain: The Blind Boys of Alabama(12/20), LA Phil Presents Eileen Ivers: An Nollaig - An Irish Christmas (12/23), and LA Phil Presents New Year's Eve with Kristin Chenoweth (12/31).

Great Expectations at A Noise Within: It's the last weekend of a fabulous production of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations at A Noise Within in Glendale. Great Expectations is the story of Pip, orphaned as an infant and thrust into a childhood of cruel poverty, who clings to the hope of a brighter life. An anonymous benefactor anoints Pip heir to a tremendous fortune, setting into motion a life's journey ripe with wonder, heartbreak and finally triumph. A Noises Off provides a study guide which can help your middle school-ers comprehend all that this classic tale has to offer. We have four tickets to a Sunday matinee performance of this show (12/19 at 2:00 PM). Please click here and let us know your phone number so we can call if you are chosen.

Christmas Boat Parade: What's more festive (or more Californian) than spending an evening watching a parade of boats ablaze with holiday lights? The Newport Harbor Christmas Boat Parade motors off each evening between now and Sunday (12/19), leaving Bay Island at 6:30 PM and returning at the same site at approximately 9:00 PM. Click here for more details.

Snow Days at Kidspace Museum: Every year, it snows in Pasadena -- at least, it does at Kidspace where tons of snow is shipped in for kids to enjoy. Mark your calendars for Sunday, December 26 and Monday, December 27, 2010. Kidspace also hosts an adorable New Year's event at noon (not midnight!). Learn more about all three events here.

Downtown Arts Celebration: Don't miss the LA County Art Commission's 21st Annual Holiday Celebration, a raucous, creative (and free) bonanza of music and dance on Friday, December 24 from 3:00 PM -6:00 PM.

Visions of Sugarplums: Every child has to see a live performance of the Nutcracker at least once in his or her lifetime. The Los Angeles Ballet performs the Tchaikovsky classic at UCLA's Royce Hall this weekend, and at Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center next week. We adore the animated version of the story, so check out our chapter on the KOTC website. Click here for a link.

Still Shopping for Teacher Gifts?: A subscriber raves about The Spiral Foundation,a non-profit humanitarian organization working in Nepal and Vietnam. Purchase unique crafts made from recycled materials, and support the medical and health needs of the people who created them. Please call to make an appointment before swinging by their Palisades shop. (310 459 6671).

Date Night -- India: We checked out the new show at LACMA, India's Fabled City: The Courtly Art of Lucknow, and determined that while it's not that intriguing for kids, it's the perfect launch pad for an evening with friends. Drop in to soak in the sumptuous art created at the height of Lucknow's artistic prowess, grab an Indian meal at one of several wonderful local restaurants (we love Bombay Cafe), then rent A Passage to India, David Lean's 1984 masterpiece about the final days of British rule in India... definitely an adult film!

New to the Zoo: If Asian animals interest you, and if a bit of controversy doesn't alarm you, there is a new elephant habitat open at the LA Zoo. Click here for arecent LA Times article about the troubles surrounding the opening of this exhibit.

New Program at the Getty Center: Check out the Getty Center's brand newFamily Art Stops program, which gives families an up close and personal experience with a single work of art in a half-hour, hands-on gallery experience. FromDecember 21 through December 31, this free activity is offered every day at 2:00 PM. and again at 2:30 PM. (Museum is closed Monday). Sign up at the Museum Information Desk 30 minutes before the program begins. Check out their new Art Scoops project, that provides the scoop on dozens of works of art from the collection, with an emphasis on fancy princesses, spooky sea monsters, kooky characters from history, and magical animals from mythology.

Advance Planning: If you have a moment between egg nogs, set your calendar up to catch a few of the big events in 2011. First off, the Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World show at the Bowers Museum opens this weekend - we haven't been yet, but it looks fabulous and will definitely sell out. The exhibition presents the stories of Franklin's life through his personal belongings used during his early years in Boston as a rebellious teenager, during his life as a printer and during his years of service to the American colonies and the newly formed United States. A scientist, inventor, diplomat, humorist, philanthropist and entrepreneur. Franklin's dynamism comes to life further through interactive activities and animations geared toward a school-aged audience. Opening summer 2011, IRIS from Cirque du Soleil will take up residence exclusively at the world-renowned Kodak Theatre. Directed by French director/choreographer Philippe Découflé, and featuring music from Danny Elfman, IRIS brings together dance, acrobatics, live video, filmed sequences and animation, and takes spectators on a fantastic voyage through the world of cinema and its genres. Tickets on sale NOW or 1.877.943.IRIS.

Counter-programming in the Kitchen: Want to provide an alternative to turkey and mashed potatoes? Check out our new obsession: the fried chicken at Honey's Kettle Restaurant and Bar. We don't want to say that "it's finger licking good" but... it really is.

Enjoy the Season.

Kids Off The Couch

If you like what we do, please tell a friend to sign up!info@kidsoffthecouch.com

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Kids Off The Couch December Radar Screen - LA Phil Presents Denève Conducts Debussy Ticket Giveaway

DIY Gifts and Timeless Classics

We survived Black Friday and Cyber Monday but are pretty sure that a home made gift trumps all. Avoid the mall crush and get off the computer -- just put on some holiday music and muck up the kitchen table with crafts. What's better for putting everyone in a festive mood? (You'll be saving up for some of these splurge-worthy shows and exhibits around town).

LA Phil Presents Denève Conducts Debussy -- a Matinee Ticket Giveaway: Over the past month, the LA Phil has helped us send Kids Off the Couch subscribers to several classical concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall. This week, we're excited to have two sets of two tickets to a matinee performance of LA Phil Presents Denève Conducts Debussy (Saturday, December 4 at 2:00 PM). Concert-goers will be treated not only to Debussy, but also a Beethoven piano concerto performed by a brilliant pianist, as well as the West Coast premiere of a contemporary work composed for the conductor. Click here for more details, including a link to hear some of the music and to purchase tickets for this weekend's series, which is also being performed on Friday night at 8:00 PM and Sunday afternoon at 2:00 PM. Click here if you are free for this weekend's performance and please remember to leave us a telephone number; we'll notify the winner by Friday morning.

Get Scrooged This Weekend! Scrooge is one of the most adapted characters in all of cinema, so don't let Jim Carreybe your family's only vision of Dicken's cranky old man. Get the family downtown for Albert Finney's rendition this Sunday (12/5) at a screening of A Christmas Carol with the Los Angeles Conservancy at the glorious Million Dollar Theater. Tickets are $10 for adults, and $5 for kids under 12. If you can't get there, at least read the book to the kids this holiday. The Dickens story has timeless wisdom, and is always fun to revisit, especially with this cool pop-up story book.

DIY Ideas: Remember hand-loomed pot holders? These days, there are so many better options for handmade gifts in the craft section of any toy store. Check out a new generation of Shrinky Dinks (our faves). Little kids can create beautiful beaded bracelets and necklaces, or string cranberry and popcorn garlands for the tree. Tweens and teens can mix their favorite song onto CDs for cousins and parents, and love being dropped at one of the many craft houses around town: throw pots at the Clayhouse, stop in for a class at The Urban Craft Center or pick up a manageable first project at Artesia Needlepoint shop or one of the many cool knit shops around town. And, ultimately there is nothing better than baked goods for teachers or neighbors. Martha Stewart can help you with a single sugar cookie recipe that can be adapted to tens of other treats.

Get to the Getty: We love the villa's new Tea by the Sea service (Thursdays at 1:00 PM) which is an especially nice treat for visiting grandparents. While the weather is spectacular, why not spend Sunday (12/5) at a Getty Villa Family Festival Celebrating the Art of Greek Theater. From 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM. It's FREE, but click here for entry ticket. Children and adults can fashion their own Greek theater masks, costume themselves as ancient actors, and applaud or join in pint-sized versions of classical Greek comedies onstage.

Family Flicks at the Hammer: This Sunday (12/5) the UCLA Film and Television Archive presents Family Flicks: Azur and Asmar, an unusual digital animation project about two rival princes. Screening is FREE and starts at 11:00. Enjoy free admission to the Hammer through December 18 as part of their 20th Anniversary celebration.

Kick Up Your Heels: From Radio City Music Hall, those famous legs travel across the nation and will be in Los Angeles for nine shows between December 9-12. Click here for tickets. These are pricey seats but doesn't everyone have to see this show once in their lifetime? Speaking of kicking up your heels the plastic starter ice rink at the W Hotel in Westwood is a fun and festive way for kids under ten to get their legs under them. Everyone else will love ICE at Santa Monica, open through February.

Yum Yum: The Westside just got even more delicious with Sweet Lady Jane opening a shop on Montana at 17th, and Thomas Keller's pastry chef opening his FarmShop at the Brentwood Country Mart.

Shop if you Must: Click here for the Cool Mom Picks Holiday Gift Guide (including these cool Advent calendars). It's easy to purchase handmade gifts this year - start at a holiday bazaar at the Craft and Folk Art Museum this weekend (their Holiday Bazaar is on Saturday 12/4), and check out the Los Angeles Times' wonderful BUY LOCAL neighborhood guide to handmade things.

Sounds of the Season: We love classic Christmas songs sung by a full chorus, and also throw on the Special Olympics compilation albums (Sting singing "I Saw Three Ships" is pretty great). We aren't susceptible to every pop star that puts out a holiday album, but are tickled by Pink Martini's latest.

Giving Back: Most charities have a wish list, so let the kids check out these lists and give a gift to a child their age. We always get Target gift cards and send them to foster kids through United Friends of the Children. Here is their Holiday Wish List. Our favorite charity for kids to learn about during the holidays is Heifer International. Choose how much you want your kids to give away and then let them choose whether they want to give a pig, a cow or some honeybees!

Our wishes for a happy holiday season.

Kids Off The Couch