EVERYONE LOVES A PARADE
Our Annual Free-Form Parade Is Back, April 24th
The hum of bees is the voice of the garden.
-Elizabeth Lawrence
Continuing the tradition of opening the Sunday Lummis Da
y festivities with a cavalcade of puppets, the Arroyo Arts Collective presents We Need Bees!
The event is a gleefully unstructured procession which starts at the base of the Southwest Museum. Once lined up and packed with joy, our “Fluttering Friends” take to the streets with music from Latino folk band “Cuñao,” a Lummis Days favorite. The spirited marching will start at 11:15am and continue to Sycamore Grove Park, where the puppets and puppeteers will hail the opening of the Lummis Days Festival.
All that is required to march, dance, ride, skip or hop along in the procession is an animal or insect-themed costume, puppet, doll, hat, mask, scarf or any other accessory. Wild flights of imagination are heartily encouraged. For this event, nothing is too subtle or too baroque. We welcome insect costumes, hats and masks, so brush up your antennae and shine your exoskeleton. Individuals, families, and teams; all are welcome!
The We Need Bees! procession celebrates the dazzling creativity of Northeast L.A. and honors the Arroyo Seco, a tributary of the Los Angeles River. Marchers will pay tribute to the species of insects which roam and reside in the lands adjacent to the Arroyo Seco. Native to this region and leading the procession in majestic fashion will be two giant Honey Bees, the Monarch Butterfly, created by Master Puppeteer Beth Peterson.
AAC invites you to join in, have fun, meet your neighbors and make a puppet hat to march with us! Inspiration for participation can be drawn from anything animal. We welcome insect costumes, hats and masks, so brush up your antennae and shine your exoskeleton.
Let our “Hats” really go to your head!
The AAC will also be presenting an Art Workshop at the festival from 1:00 to 3:00pm, where kids of all ages can make Earth Day themed hats, and will receive snacks and milkweed seed packets for planting, to help sustain the endangered Monarch Butterfly. Bring a picnic and stay the day, as all events are free and family-friendly
April 24th Events
Parade Starts: 11:15am (line-up starts 10:30am) – Historic Southwest Museum’s pedestrian entrance: 234 Museum Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90065,
Arrives: 11:45am – Sycamore Grove Park, Bandshell
Workshop: 1 -3PM – Sycamore Grove Park, Family Fun Zone
We Need Bees! is made possible through the generous support of Los Angeles City Council Members Gil Cedillo, 1st District and Kevin de León, 14th District, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and by the California Arts Council, a state agency..