Join LAVA for our second free monthly Sunday Salon since November 2011. We return to South Broadway, to the mezzanine of Les Noces du Figaro, which was recently opened by the family behind Figaro Bistro in Los Feliz. This handsome space was formerly Schaber’s Cafeteria (Charles F. Plummer, 1928), and the mezzanine features wonderful views of the Los Angeles Theatre.

On the last Sunday of each month , LAVA welcomes interested individuals to gather in downtown Los Angeles (noon-2pm), for a loosely structured conversational Salon featuring short presentations and opportunities to meet and connect with one another. If you’re interested in joining LAVA as a creative contributor or an attendee, we recommend Salon attendance as an introduction to this growing community. We also recommend the eclairs.

Read about the original Sunday Salon at Clifton’s Cafeteria here.

The Salon will be broken into two distinct presentations each lasting about 45 minutes. You are encouraged to arrive early if you wish to order food and beverages from the counter downstairs, and bring your meal upstairs.

Presentation One:

Oviatt Building scholar Marc Chevalier will give a lecture with accompanying slide show on the life and times of James Oviatt. Topics will include Oviatt’s eponymous building, his contributions to the Art Deco in Los Angeles, his fashionable haberdashery Alexander & Oviatt, myths, legends and the even more fascinating reality. Oviatt’s arc is a microcosm of the upwardly mobile in Jazz Age Los Angeles, and his story touches almost every major aspect of culture and commerce in pre-war Los Angeles.

Presentation Two:

Hillsman Wright of the Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation will give an illustrated talk on the history of theaters on Broadway from the turn of the last century up to the present day.At the conclusion of the 45-minute talk, we will take a stroll around Broadway to look at some of the theaters we have just been discussing.