Celebrate Los Angeles

Celebrate Los Angeles is a civic nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting cultural programming, public festivals, and community engagement across Los Angeles County, California. It coordinates large-scale events that bring together performing artists, cultural institutions, and neighborhood organizations in collaboration with municipal agencies and philanthropic foundations. The initiative aims to showcase the diversity of Los Angeles through partnerships with museums, theaters, parks, and ethnic community centers.

History

Celebrate Los Angeles was founded in 1996 amid a period of civic revitalization linked to the redevelopment of Downtown Los Angeles and preparations for the 1996 centennial cultural programming that followed initiatives from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Music Center. Early collaborators included the Department of Cultural Affairs (Los Angeles), the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and neighborhood organizations in Hollywood, Echo Park, and South Los Angeles. The organization expanded programming after the 2002 opening of major venues such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall and partnered with civic leaders from the Mayor of Los Angeles office and the Los Angeles City Council to support public space activation. In the 2010s Celebrate Los Angeles worked with institutions like the Getty Center, Griffith Observatory, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art to create cross-institutional festival weeks. Responding to seismic and public-health events, it adjusted formats during the Northridge earthquake aftermath and the COVID-19 pandemic to include virtual presentations and outdoor activations in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Events and Festivals

The organization produces an annual calendar that features signature events including a summer celebration centered in Grand Park, a winter concert series staged with the Hollywood Bowl and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and neighborhood pop‑ups in collaboration with the Los Angeles Public Library system. Celebrate Los Angeles curates multidisciplinary programs involving partners such as the Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles), the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, and the California African American Museum. It has presented large-scale street festivals in partnership with the Chinese American Museum in Chinatown and with the Mexican Cultural Institute in Olvera Street, and collaborated with LA Opera for open-air performances. Seasonal events include film screenings with the AFI Fest, dance showcases with the Mark Taper Forum and Sankofa Dance Theatre, and culinary festivals featuring chefs affiliated with James Beard Foundation awardees and restaurants from Beverly Hills and Koreatown. It also organizes commemorative ceremonies in coordination with the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and civic remembrance events with the Japanese American National Museum.

Cultural Attractions

Celebrate Los Angeles leverages landmark sites across the region, programming at cultural anchors like the Getty Center, The Broad, and the Annenberg Space for Photography. It has staged exhibitions and performance series in historic venues such as the El Capitan Theatre, the Orpheum Theatre (Los Angeles), and the Union Station (Los Angeles), often collaborating with repertory organizations including the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and Center Theatre Group. The organization supports neighborhood museums including the Autry Museum of the American West, the Skirball Cultural Center, and the Museum of Latin American Art, creating itineraries that connect Santa Monica Pier, Venice Beach, and the Port of Los Angeles for visitors. Celebrate Los Angeles also partners with educational institutions like the University of Southern California, the University of California, Los Angeles, and the ArtCenter College of Design to present student exhibitions and public lectures featuring curators from the Hammer Museum and critics from publications associated with the Los Angeles Times and LA Weekly.

Community and Civic Initiatives

The organization runs community outreach programs in collaboration with neighborhood councils, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Cultural Affairs Unit, and service groups including the United Way of Greater Los Angeles and the LA Regional Food Bank. Its youth arts initiatives have partnered with schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District and with nonprofit youth ensembles such as Inside Out Community Arts and Para Los Niños. Celebrate Los Angeles convenes public forums with civic partners like the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the James Irvine Foundation to address cultural equity, and it works with labor organizations including the Screen Actors Guild‐American Federation of Television and Radio Artists on performer contracts for public events. The group has collaborated on public‑space improvements with the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Services and promoted accessibility through partnerships with United States Access Board-related advocates and disability service organizations.

Economy and Tourism Impact

Celebrate Los Angeles engages with economic development agencies such as the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation to attract visitors and stimulate hospitality sectors in Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, and West Hollywood. Its festivals generate hotel demand for chains and independent properties managed by groups like Walt Disney Company-affiliated resorts and family-owned inns in Pasadena and Long Beach, and drive patronage to dining establishments represented by the California Restaurant Association and restaurateurs from Chinatown and Little Tokyo. The organization measures impact through studies conducted with academic partners at California State University, Los Angeles and UCLA Anderson School of Management and consulting firms that have worked with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to model transit ridership during events. Corporate sponsorships have come from entities such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and technology firms headquartered in Silicon Beach, aiding marketing campaigns that target travelers arriving via Los Angeles International Airport and the Bob Hope Airport network.

Category:Nonprofit organizations based in Los Angeles Category:Arts organizations based in California