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Best Events To Look Forward To In L.A. For 2015

special olympics 2
(credit: Special Olympics)

2015 is upon us and with it brings five exciting events and opportunities to the city of Los Angeles. From direct-from-Broadway musical theater excitement to brand new festivals, a new art museum, and two competitions, including the Special Olympics World Summer Games, 2015 will be an exciting year for Los Angeles.

napa valley grille dineLA summer restaurant
(credit: Napa Valley Grille)

dineLA 2015
Restaurants Around Los Angeles
www.discoverlosangeles.com
January 19 - February 1, 2015

For 14 days, dineLA restaurant week is taking over the city. The fixed price structure offered for lavish meals (both lunch and dinnertime options), exclusive dineL.A. entrees, and a 15% discount on all dishes at some of the 300+ participating restaurants means you are sure to "Resolve to Eat Better" this 2015 with the help of LA restaurants. Explore our favorite entree picks for the promotion: What You're Eating, The Best of dineL.A. 2015. Follow dineL.A on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for all updates and tag dineL.A. in social media posts during restaurant week to be entered to win dineL.A. for a year with fifty two $50 gift cards (total worth $2600) from a selection of participating restaurants. Through February 1.

crave chocolate chip cookies
(credit: Crave)

Los Angeles Cookie Con and Sweets Show
Pasadena Convention Center
300 East Green Street
Pasadena, CA 91101
(626) 449-7360
www.thepasadenacivic.com

If you're the type that enjoys a cookie or something sweet, then LA's Cookie Con and Sweets Show is right up your alley. Offering hundreds of samples of cookies, chocolates, coffee, ice cream and candy, this festival is something you won't want to miss out on. Taking place at the Pasadena Convention Center, the full day of festivities will include pastry workshops, new cooking tools, as well as dessert competitions and more.

2015 GRAMMY Nominees
(Photo by Patrick Beaudry via Getty Images)

Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga
2301 North Highland Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90068
(323) 850-2000
www.ticketmaster.com
May 30, 2015 at 7:30pm

Performing both at the Wiltern on February 8, 2015 and the Hollywood Bowl in May, Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga are sure to give a performance of a lifetime. The unlikely duo, which released their 'Check to Cheek' album in September of 2014, will perform their mix of Bennett's veteran tunes and Lady Gaga's pop hits.

special olympics 1
(credit: Special Olympics)

Special Olympics World Summer Games
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
3911 South Figueroa St.
Los Angeles, CA 90037
www.la2015.org
July 25 - August 2, 2015

The largest sporting and humanitarian event in the world this year, Los Angeles will be home to the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games. The events, which will feature 25 Olympic-style sports in a variety of Los Angeles venues, will be played by over 7,000 athletes (and their 3,000 coaches) representing 177 countries across the globe. The mission of the Special Olympics, which "strives to create a better world by fostering the acceptance and inclusion of all people" through sport, will be on display at hundreds of unique events during the week-long games. Don't miss the opening ceremony at the LA Coliseum.

Hollywood Pantages
(Credit: ©Disney. Photo by Deen van Meer)

"Newsies"
Hollywood Pantages
6233 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90028
(323) 468-1770
www.hollywoodpantages.com
March 24 - April 19, 2015

Direct from Broadway, the Tony-Award winning musical Newsies will land in Los Angeles with a month-long run at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. The story, based on true events during the early 20th century in New York City, brings high-energy dancing, amazing set pieces, and an incredibly talented vocal cast together on stage. Winner of the 2012 Tony Awards for Best Score (Alan Menken and Jack Feldman) and Best Choreography (Christopher Gattelli), the musical, leaving New York for the first time, is sure to delight Los Angeles.

2013 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival - Weekend 2 - Day 1
(credit: Karl Walter/Getty Images for Coachella)

Coachella 2015
81-800 Avenue 51
Indio, CA 92201
(888) 512-7469
www.coachella.com
April 10 - 12, 2015 & April 17-19, 2015

The lineup has already been announced for this year's Coachella music festival and it's going to be one you're not going to want to miss. For two full weekends, denizens of LA will flock to the desert just south of Palm Springs for a weekend of music and fun. Top musical acts performing this year include David Guetta, Drake, Fitz & The Tantrums, Florence + The Machine, Hozier, Kimbra, Lights, St. Lucia, AC/DC and many more.

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
(credit: The Broad and Diller Scofidio + Renfro)

Nature Festival
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
900 Exposition Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90037
(213) 763-3466
www.nhm.org
June 27 - 28, 2015

The city's inaugural Nature Festival will take place this June at the Natural History Museum in Exposition Park, thanks in part to its recent renovation. With a focus on LA's urban nature, the two-day festival will include nods to coyotes, lizards, P-22 (the resident mountain lion), seagulls, Manzanita trees, and more.
Citizen science projects, family activities, and the chance to explore the collections with NHM's scientists will work together as Angelinos explore their own natural urban environment at the museum and in their back yards. Confirmed workshops will help residents know what to plant now that they have torn out their lawns, composting demos, and a taxidermy workshop. Kids will love the snake feeding presentation and the puppeteer walkabouts.

The Broad_Lobby rendering
(credit: Image Courtesy of The Broad and Diller Scofidio + Renfro)

The Broad Museum Grand Opening
221 S. Grand Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(310) 399-4004
www.thebroad.org

A new contemporary art museum, The Broad, will open its doors this fall in downtown Los Angeles. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and built by philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad, the museum will house nearly 2,000 works of post-war contemporary art from The Broad Art Foundation. The collections will be showcased in a unique "veil-and-vault" concept two-story gallery space on Grand Avenue.

coffee competition
(credit: US Coffee Championships)

U.S. Coffee Championship
Long Beach Arena
300 E. Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA 90802
(562) 624-4100
www.uscoffeechampionships.org
February 19 - 22, 2015

The specialty coffee industry will come together at the United States Coffee Championships (USCC) in 2015, featuring a variety of individual coffee championships including the U.S. Barista Championship, U.S. Brewers Cup, U.S. Latte Art Championship, U.S. Cup Tasters Championship, and the Roasters Guild Roasters Choice competition. Held at the Long Beach Arena, the event is open to the public; don't miss the Latte Art Championship, where artistic baristas race for six minutes to create 2 free pour and 2 designer, patterned lattes for a panel of judges.

Katie Bodell is the Blog Editor for Trekaroo, the largest family travel website in the U.S. She is also a freelance writer, a happy wife to her best friend, and a mom to three sweet California girls. See more on: Trekaroo | CheapOair | Google+ | Twitter.

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