Universal Citywalk

With summer in full swing, the movies are heading outdoors. On Thursday nights until the end of August, Universal CityWalk is showing mostly recent releases on a giant screen for free. On tap tonight is last year's "Mamma Mia!" Included in the fun is ABBA-inspired live entertainment. www.citywalkhollywood.com The Westfield Century City shopping center has also gotten into the free outdoor movie act Wednesdays on the Level Two dining area.

Wacky KROQ radio show hosts, Kevin & Bean, are hosting a fun-filled night of comedy called "April Foolishness. " The stellar lineup includes comedians Jay Mohr, Bill Burr, Doug Benson, Rob Delaney, Ari Shaffir and Brad Williams. Gibson Amphitheater at Universal CityWalk, 100 Universal City Plaza, L.A. 8:15 p.m. Sat. Prices vary. (818) 677-8800; http://www.kroq.cbslocal.com.

THEATER "Gleeks" — that's a portmanteau of "Glee geeks," for the uninitiated — will converge at Universal CityWalk for "Glee Live," the touring stage version of the beloved Fox TV show. Cast members will sing and dance in character, performing such hits as "Don't Stop Believin' " and "Sweet Caroline." Gibson Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City. 8 p.m. Today-Fri., 2 and 8 p.m. Sat. $44.25-$84.25. (818) 622-4440. http://www.gleetour2010.com.

“American Idol” winner Lee DeWyze, Nickelodeon stars Leon Thomas III and Cody Longo are among the acts that will headline Universal CityWalk's concert series, the entertainment complex announced earlier this week. CityWalk's “Music Spotlight Series” features a mix of street performers and emerging artists. The series happens every Friday and Saturday night from March 22 to April 20 at CityWalk's free outdoor venue, 5 Towers. PHOTOS: 'American Idol': Where are they now?

It was the best of L.A. on display, looking great the L.A way--with a lot help from make-believe. Universal Studios had a party for thousands Monday night to inaugurate its newest attraction, Universal CityWalk. The guests sipped wine, downed sushi and mixed with celebrities, all in a setting that was the perfect essence of the City of Angels.

On the same lot dominated by multimillion-dollar images of the make-believe, a group of youngsters growing up in different worlds yet possessing similar dreams has added another creation. It's a giant mural, mounted along the newly opened Universal CityWalk in Universal City, and there's nothing extraterrestrial about it. The kids, from 5 to 13 years old, simply drew portraits about a tomorrow that they want to see.

David Strassman first learned to be a ventriloquist in junior high school in the 1970s, but now he is pushing the age-old art into the 1990s. "Capt. Dave's Space Adventure" comes to Wizards on the Universal CityWalk for a week's run, starting Monday. In the family-oriented show, Strassman combines ventriloquism with the technology of the 1990s: robotics, lighting, lasers and CD-quality sound.

Four Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies were slightly injured and three men were arrested early Saturday in connection with a fight that started as several hundred celebrants left a Halloween costume party at a restaurant near Universal CityWalk, authorities said. The fight, which reportedly involved three men still dressed in costume, broke out about 2 a.m.

“American Idol” winner Lee DeWyze, Nickelodeon stars Leon Thomas III and Cody Longo are among the acts that will headline Universal CityWalk's concert series, the entertainment complex announced earlier this week. CityWalk's “Music Spotlight Series” features a mix of street performers and emerging artists. The series happens every Friday and Saturday night from March 22 to April 20 at CityWalk's free outdoor venue, 5 Towers. PHOTOS: 'American Idol': Where are they now?

Walk on: Universal CityWalk will become "Universal MoonWalk" on Thursday with a live dance retrospective of Michael Jackson's musical history and screenings of "The Wiz" and "Thriller."

Shortly after Christmas, the same question arises every year: What are we going to do on New Year's Eve? Here's what some California amusement and theme parks have planned for the last night of 2012: Disneyland in Anaheim will stay open until 2 a.m. with live bands, DJs and midnight fireworks. Across the way, Disney California Adventure will remain open until 1 a.m. with live bands, the Mad T Party dance party and a midnight showing of the "World of Color" nighttime water spectacular.

Mexican American singer-songwriter Jenni Rivera, who died along with six other people when their Lear jet 25 crashed near Iturbide, Mexico, on Dec. 9, will receive a public memorial  Wednesday at the Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal CityWalk. The memorial is being called a "Celestial Graduation," and will take place between 10 a.m. and noon. "We will celebrate the graduation, with honors, of our beloved mother, daughter and sister Jenni Rivera," her family said in a statement.

DreamWorks Animation and China's largest media companies plan to invest more than $3 billion to build a sprawling entertainment, dining and shopping district in Shanghai. A new joint venture called Oriental DreamWorks announced Monday that the company would open Dream Center - an entertainment hub with theaters, cinemas, restaurants and tourist attractions - in 2016. The announcement marks the latest effort by Glendale-based DreamWorks and other Hollywood studios to bolster business in the world's most populous country, which this year has surpassed Japan as the world's second-largest market for movies outside the U.S. It also fits the studio's strategy of trying to diversify its business by expanding into television shows, live entertainment and theme parks.

In a recession that's forced large malls to reevaluate leases and diversify offerings to the public, Universal CityWalk's most anticipated new tenant this summer isn't a restaurant but an upscale nightclub. Infusion Lounge L.A., which held a "first look" open-to-the-public preview event last weekend preceding an official opening Aug. 18, is the chain's first outpost outside of San Francisco, where the original Infusion Lounge has been making consistent money on dancing and bottle service since 2009 — right through the recession.

Paying steep prices for concert tickets is such a pre-recession mentality. This summer, the city's cup overflows with free (or practically free) pop, rock and dance music options, no matter what neighborhood or musical genre you call your own. Here's just a taste of the summer's offerings. Cee Lo Green The voice behind smash hits "Crazy" and "Forget You" gives a free concert for the launch of the new 5 Towers outdoor stage at Universal CityWalk. The venue, decked out with a jumbo video screen and thousands of LED fixtures, will be presenting a host of free pop, rock and Latin music shows in the coming months.

'Glee Live! In Concert' When: 2 p.m. (sold out) and 8 p.m. Saturday Where: Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal CityWalk, Universal City Prices: $84.25 Info: (818) 622-4440, http://www.citywalkhollywood.com

Santana fans are used to seeing the innovative rock guitarist and his band in the vastness of arenas and stadiums, so the musician's benefit concert at the relatively intimate Gibson Amphitheater at Universal CityWalk exerts a special lure -- especially because the second-billed act is his old friend and former bandmate Pete Escovedo, with his orchestra.

Pop listing--The pop music listings in Sunday's Calendar and Thursday's Calendar Weekend mistakenly stated that the band Better Than Ezra would be appearing Saturday at B.B. King's Blues Club at Universal CityWalk. The band is not performing there.

MOVIES David Carradine tribute This four-day celebration of the late American actor David Carradine will have double features on Thursday through Saturday at the New Beverly Cinema and a grand finale of rare films, as well as 35-millimeter and video performances on Sunday at Cinefamily's Silent Movie Theater. Sunday's event will be hosted by longtime Carradine fan and "Kill Bill" collaborator Quentin Tarantino. New Beverly Cinema, 7165 W. Beverly Blvd. 7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat.

THEATER "Gleeks" — that's a portmanteau of "Glee geeks," for the uninitiated — will converge at Universal CityWalk for "Glee Live," the touring stage version of the beloved Fox TV show. Cast members will sing and dance in character, performing such hits as "Don't Stop Believin' " and "Sweet Caroline." Gibson Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City. 8 p.m. Today-Fri., 2 and 8 p.m. Sat. $44.25-$84.25. (818) 622-4440. http://www.gleetour2010.com.