A rite of passage for all L.A. moms of 3-5 year-olds is attending the annual Summer Sounds program at the Hollywood Bowl. It’s akin (I’d guess) to going to the White House Easter Egg Roll if you live in D.C. Each week or 2 in July and August, a specific type of music is showcased in a concert, then paired with a related art project. This week’s focus was Zimbabwe, and the show (at least the part we saw) was awesome spectacle of drums, dancing, and giant marimbas (like xylophones). A definite A. The art segment (for which you buy tickets separately) was disappointing, with projects that aren’t much different from the kind you find in preschools. It also could have something to do with the fact that Jack isn’t all that interested in crafts and was happy to let me glue beads on a piece of cardboard while he munched on a Clif bar. The highlight for him was by far getting to talk in the microphone about his creation. He told the lead person that he made it all by himself and was going to hang it on the wall of his room. 
TIPS: If you only have time for one program, choose the music one. If you do both music and art, try to go to the 10 am concert, followed by the art project. If you choose the 11:15 concert, you end up waiting a good half hour between events. By the time the music started Jack (who slept a measly 8 hours last night) was good and tired and ready to go home.
COST: $6 per person for the concert, $4 (kid only) for the craft.
