For five bucks on Friday, Aug. 14, Pasadena residents can spread a blanket on the lawn of one of America's most celebrated Arts and Crafts homes, listen to live R&B and walk through rooms of hand-carved teak woodwork and art glass without booking a formal tour.
The Gamble House Conservancy hosts the next-to-last installment of its Friday Nights summer series from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at 4 Westmoreland Place. Los Angeles-based vocalist and pianist Gal Pearl, who blends R&B, soul, jazz and pop, performs on the grounds of the 1908 Greene & Greene landmark, according to Pasadena Now.
The series, which has run on second and fourth Fridays since May, is a partnership with Altadena-based West Altadena Wine + Spirits. The shop pours curated wine flights at each event, and Triple Beam Pizza operates a mobile oven on-site for guests who skip the picnic basket.
Sheryl Scott, the Conservancy's director of communications and operations, said the casual format is deliberate. "Not everyone wants to engage with the house in the same way," Scott said in a Pasadena Now report. "It allows people to kind of dip their toe in and see what we have as far as programming."
The first floor of the house opens for self-guided touring during the event, with docents stationed in each room to answer questions about the architecture and history. That access is included in the ticket price.
Scott said in June that the Conservancy has increased public programming to make the landmark more welcoming to visitors who might not otherwise book a guided tour.
What it costs
General admission without wine tasting is $5 for non-members. Wine tasting (ages 21 and older) runs $40 for non-members or $35 for Conservancy members. Members enter free without the tasting. Children 12 and under get in at no charge. Wine tasters must show ID at check-in; outside alcohol and pets are not permitted.
Free parking is available on Westmoreland Place and along Orange Grove Boulevard. Tickets are available at gamblehouse.org or by calling (626) 793-3334.
One date left after Friday
After Aug. 14, the series wraps with Pasadena Youth Night on Aug. 28. The Gamble House, designed by Charles and Henry Greene as a winter residence for David and Mary Gamble of the Procter & Gamble Company, was deeded to the City of Pasadena in 1966 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977.
