Looking for Something to Do? Free Pasadena Events August 4 to 10

Here are events scheduled Saturday, Aug. 4, to Friday, Aug. 10.

All events are free, so take a look -- and don't you dare say there's nothing to do in Pasadena!

Bring the kids for Nature Tails Storybook Time featuring books about animals and nature Saturday, Aug. 4, at 10:30 a.m. in the Children's Corner inside the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. Nature Tails are scheduled every Saturday morning.

The Tony Inzalaco Quintet will perform Bebop jazz Sunday, Aug. 5, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the courtyard adjacent to Vroman's Book Store for the Playhouse District Association's Summer Jazz Concert Series.

Janet Klein and her Parlor Boys will perform jazz, ragtime, blues and novelty songs popular from 1900 to 1930 Monday, Aug. 6, from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Scott Pavilion at the Pasadena Senior Center. You do NOT have to be a member to attend, and the event is open to ALL AGES. Feel free to bring a picnic/brown bag dinner, family and friends.

The first Tuesday of every month is Free Family Night at Kidspace Children's Museum. On Tuesday, Aug. 7, from 4 to 8  p.m., learn about the history of California through its art -- weave a traditional Native American basket, make a terra cotta tile and shoot a stop motion film. Don't miss a California history-themed musical presentation at 6 p.m. in the Stone Hollow Amphitheater.

Dolphin Tale (2011, PG) starring Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd will be shown Wednesday, Aug. 7, at 1 p.m. in the Donald R. Wright Auditorium at Central Library. A young dolphin damages her tail after being caught in a crab trap, then is rescued and transported to a marine hospital where a marine biologist, prosthetics doctor and a young boy team together to save the dolphin's life. The film is based on true events.

National Night Out, which raises crime prevention awareness, fosters community/police partnerships and strengthens neighborhood spirit and unity, is Wednesday, Aug. 7.

     §  The Pasadena Police Department will host a kickoff event beginning at 5 p.m. at Memorial Park with plenty of free food and activities. Meet first responders from the PD and the Fire Department, see police cars and big red fire engines, register bicycles for free, enjoy a musical performance by School of Rock, speak with elected officials, visit community resource tables from various City of Pasadena departments and nonprofit organizations, and much more.

§  At Hastings Branch Library from 6 to 8 p.m., there will be related children's activities, refreshments and a visit by officers from the Pasadena Police Department.

§  Some neighborhoods will have related block parties. Register your neighborhood by calling the Police Department's Community Services Section at (626) 744-4551.

Polli Chambers-Salazar and Christopher Brennan will perform a piano recital for four hands Wednesday, Aug. 8, from 12:10 to 12:40 p.m. for the popular Music at Noon recital series at Pasadena Presbyterian Church.

The community is invited to see teams of design and engineering students from three countries compete in the Formula E international competition featuring radio-controlled cars, each powered by a 16-foot rubber band, Thursday, Aug. 9, at 4 p.m. in the sculpture garden at Art Center College of Design's hillside campus. Competitions will include a road course, drag race and hill climb.

The French and American duo Freedom Fry will perform folk, pop and alt rock Thursday, Aug. 9, at 7 p.m. in the courtyard at One Colorado. RSVPs are encouraged. 

The next open forum of PasadenaPhotographyArts is Thursday, Aug. 9, at 7 p.m. at Armory Center for the Arts. During a presentation titled L.A. Landmarks: Lost and Almost Lost, former Los Angeles Conservancy communications director Cindy Olnick will discuss how photographic images tell the stories of beloved landmarks.

Parks After Dark presents Early Man (2018, PG) with the voice talents of Eddie Redmayne and Maisie Williams Thursday, Aug. 9, at 7:30 p.m. at Villa-Parke. A tribe of primitive hunters is displaced by emissaries from a distant bronze-making empire, and one tribesman tries to win his home back by challenging the invaders to a game.

I Can Only Imagine (2018, PG-13) starring J. Michael Finley and Madeline Carroll will be shown Friday, Aug. 10, at 1 p.m. in the Scott Pavilion at the Pasadena Senior Center. The film tells the inspiring true story behind MercyMe's beloved, chart-topping song that has brought hope and the power of forgiveness to so many. You do NOT have to be a member of the Pasadena Senior Center to attend but you do have to be 50 or older.

Launched in 2003 with an expected lifetime of five years, the Spitzer Space Telescope is one of NASA's great observatories and a cousin of the Hubble Space Telescope. Now in its 15th year of photographing the universe in infrared light, the Spitzer Space Telescope has succeeded beyond NASA's and JPL's wildest expectations and routinely observes transiting exoplanets and other interesting astronomical phenomena. Dr. Sean Carey, manager of the Spitzer Science Center, will discuss some of the novel engineering feats that have made the extended operation of the telescope possible Friday, Aug. 10, at 7 p.m. in the Ramo Auditorium at Caltech's Baxter Hall (#77 on this map). Parking at Caltech is free after 5 p.m.

Dancing Under the Stars continues with Salsa Night featuring the Yari More Latin Band Friday, Aug. 10, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Paseo Colorado's Garfield Promenade on the street level. Come as early as 7 p.m. for a dance lesson from the Pasadena Ballroom Dance Association, then enjoy the live music -- whether you decide to kick up your heels or not!

SAVE THE DATE!
The Pasadena Police Department will host an open house Saturday, August 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Enjoy free BBQ and refreshments, see forensics demonstrations, tour the police building (including the jail), meet and greet police staff and more, including children's activities. 

Photo credits: Child's Play International, Feiwel & Friends, Sleeping Bear Press, Janet Klein, Kidspace Children's Museum, Alcon Entertainment, National Association of Town Watch, Ramzi Hakim, Art Center College of Design, Fender, Los Angeles Conservancy, Aardman Animations, Kevin Downes Productions, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Paseo Colorado