Things to Do in LA: Salsa, Séances, and Surprise Pop-Ups!

Hey listeners, Oly Bennet here and welcome to Things to do in Los Angeles! It’s Thursday, September 18th, 2025, and let me just paint today’s picture: we’re basking in that classic, sun-drenched LA glow with perfect late-summer warmth—bluer skies than the Dodgers’ uniforms and just the right light breeze for an alfresco adventure. The city’s got a sprightly pulse today—there’s electric anticipation as we barrel toward the weekend, with pop-up surprises and high-rise parties kicking things into gear.

Let’s dive into what’s popping across the city right now. First up, tonight at the Hotel Indigo, you can literally salsa and bachata above the downtown skyline. The event “Salsa and Bachata with Highrise Views” kicks off at 8 PM on the 18th floor and promises beginner lessons followed by a full-on rooftop dance fest—imagine busting a move with city lights as your backdrop and DJ Andy spinning the tunes. Sore feet, massive smiles, and a new appreciation for that one guy in the corner who spins like a tornado expected! That’s at 899 Francisco Street, for those with dancing shoes itching to get groovin’ according to Dancer University.

If you’re in the mood for chills and something mysterious, the acclaimed “Phasmagorica” séance at Heritage Square Museum is running select dates this month. LA Times calls it a séance reimagined as immersive performance art, where composer-magician BC Smith sets you in a pitch-dark Victorian-era tent and takes you on a journey through the wild history of spiritualism—cocktails included, fake ghosts not guaranteed. Word on the street: tickets sell out faster than you can say ‘boo,’ so follow their socials for last-minute spots.

For family fun, mark your calendars for the weekend’s “Touch A Truck” event this Saturday in Encino, where kids and grownups alike can clamber into real fire trucks, police cars, and more—if you’re a fan of gigantic vehicles and kids with sticky fingers, this one’s a classic.

Music lovers, don’t miss Nine Inch Nails shaking up downtown tonight with their stadium show at 7:30 PM. If your ears crave a gentler vibe, The Crescendo event offers an intimate performance at The Shared Experience Studio, promising a night full of eclectic music and a friendly crowd.

Shifting gears to city buzz, there’s some sizzling news—Countdown NYE just announced its new home for the 2025 celebration: the Los Angeles Convention Center. That means even more jaw-dropping electronic music to ring in your resolutions come December, with tickets going on sale… drumroll, please… today!

If you’re staying local during the day, LA’s legendary food scene never quits. New restaurant pop-ups have sprouted downtown near Grand Avenue; rumor has it, a vegan taco stand and a new Filipino-Japanese fusion spot have already attracted lines around the block. Public transit tip: Metro’s Blue Line is adding more express trains all week to cut your wait—perfect if you’re sprinting to catch that rooftop salsa lesson or making a beeline for tacos.

Here’s my Oly-approved activity mix for today: Stroll the Venice Canals and snap a sunset selfie, grab a scoop from Salt & Straw’s wild flavor menu on Abbot Kinney, and—if you’re feeling truly daring—hunt down a Lucha Libre wrestling pop-up, which only happens on Thursdays in secret alleyways (no joke, ask a friendly local and see what happens).

Need a local hack? If you hit Griffith Park after 5 PM, parking is less of a wrestling match and the Observatory is perched for golden hour magic with fewer crowds.

Before I dance off, a little teaser for tomorrow… LA Comic Con is just a week away, but cosplay pop-up parties are already hitting Koreatown tonight and tomorrow, and rumor is a surprise Hollywood Bowl jazz night could drop last-minute tickets. You won’t want to miss it. Tune in tomorrow for all the wildest happenings and unmissable LA discoveries—the adventure never stops.

Thanks for listening, please subscribe, and remember—this episode was brought to you by Quiet Please podcast networks. For more content like this, please go to Quiet Please dot Ai.

For more check out https://www.quietperiodplease.com/

and make sure to jump on these great deals https://amzn.to/3V0gjPt

For more on Oly check out https://www.instagram.com/olybennet/

This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is your Things to Do in Los Angeles podcast.
Hey listeners, Only Bennett here and welcome to Things to
Do in Los Angeles. It's Thursday, September eighteenth, twenty twenty five,
and let me just paint today's picture. We're basking in
that classic sun drenched La glow with perfect late summer warmth,

(00:20):
bluer skies than the Dodgers' uniforms, and just the right
light breeze for an al fresco adventure. The city's got
a sprightly pulse today. There's electric anticipation as we barrel
toward the weekend, with pop up surprises and high rise
parties kicking things into gear. Let's dive into what's popping
across the city right now. First up, tonight, at the

(00:41):
Hotel Indigo, you can literally salsa and Bakata above the
downtown skyline. The event Salsa and Bakata with High Rise
Views kicks off at eight pm on the eighteenth floor
and promises beginner lessons followed by a full on rooftop
dance fest. Imagine busting a move with city lights as
your backdrop and Dj Andy spinning the tunes. Sore feet,

(01:03):
massive smiles and a new appreciation for that one guy
in the corner who spins like a tornado. Expected. That's
at eight nine nine Francisco Street for those with dancing
shoes itching to get gruven. According to Dancer University, if
you're in the mood for chills and something mysterious, the
acclaimed Fasmagorica Seance at Heritage Square Museum is running select

(01:24):
dates this month. La Times calls it a seance reimagined
as immersive performance art where composer magician B. C. Smith
sets you in a pitch dark Victorian era attent and
takes you on a journey through the wild history of spiritualism.
Cocktails included fake ghosts not guaranteed. Word on the Street
tickets sell out faster than you can say boo, so

(01:46):
follow their socials for last minute spots. For family fun,
mark your calendars for the weekends. Touch a Truck event
this Saturday in Encino, where kids in grown ups alike
can clamber into real fire trucks, police cars, and more.
If you're a fan of gigantic vehicles and kids with
sticky fingers, this one's a classic. Music lovers. Don't miss

(02:08):
nine inch Nails shaking up downtown tonight with their stadium
show at seven point thirty pm. If your ears crave
a gentler vibe, the Crescendo event offers an intimate performance
at the Shared Experience Studio, promising a night full of
eclectic music and a friendly crowd. Shifting gears to city Buzz,

(02:34):
there's some sizzling news countdown. NYE just announced its new
home for the twenty twenty five celebration, the Los Angeles
Convention Center. That means even more jaw dropping electronic music
to ring in your resolutions come December, with tickets going
on sale. Drum roll please today. If you're staying local

(02:55):
during the day, LA's legendary food scene never quits. New
restaurant pop ups have sprouted downtown near Grand Avenue Rumor
has It? A vegan taco stand and a new Filipino
Japanese fusion spot have already attracted lines around the block.

(03:17):
Public transit tip Metro's Blue Line is adding more express
trains all week to cut your weight perfect if you're
sprinting to catch that rooftop sile's a lesson, or making
a beeline for tacos. Here's my only approved activity mix
for today. Strall the Venice Canals and snap a sunset selfie,
Grab a scuote from Salt and Straw's Wild Flavor menu

(03:37):
on Abbot Kinney, And if you're feeling truly daring, hunt
down a Lucha Libre wrestling pop up which only happens
on Thursdays in secret alleyways, no joke, Ask a friendly
local and see what happens neither local hack. If you
hit Griffith's Park after five pm, parking is less of
a wrestling match and the observatory is perched for Golden

(03:58):
Hour Magic with fewer Before I dance off a little
teaser for tomorrow. La Comic Con is just a week away,
but cosplay pop up parties are already hitting Corytown tonight
and tomorrow, and rumor is a surprise Hollywood Bowl Jazz
Night could drop last minute tickets. You won't want to
miss it. Tune in tomorrow for all the wildest happenings

(04:21):
and unmissable LA discoveries. The adventure never stops. Thanks for listening,
Please subscribe, and remember this episode was brought to you
by Quiet Please Podcast Networks. For more content like this,
please go to Quiet Please dot ai