Dog Days of Summer in Topanga 

Perhaps your air conditioning unit is broken and you’re lying prostrate on the sofa, succumbed to the heat in a listless lapse of energy. Maybe your teenager’s rejecting all suggestions of fruitful activities in favor of oblivion-scrolling on their phone (we’ve all done it). If the looming launch of August adds some seasonal anxiety to summer’s eventual end, fear not––it’s just the dog days of summer, and there’s plenty happening in the canyon!

Hit the Outdoor Dance Floor Reggae on the Mountain, one of Los Angeles’ premier reggae music festivals, returns to the Topanga Community Center on Saturday, July 25, headlined by Jamaican powerhouse Protoje and featuring a dynamic lineup of top-shelf acts like Don Carlos, Yellowman, Chalice, Marlon Asher, Yaadcore, and more. The lush grooves and magnetic stage performances emphasizing unity, peace, and love are, as always, essential sounds to the soul of our canyon. Beyond the music, there’s gourmet food trucks, beer, wine and specialty cocktails, and a diverse group of Rastafarian, artisanal, and other craft vendors rounding out the vibrant atmosphere. Tickets can be purchased at www.reggaeonthemountain.com.

Paint a Picture Local artist Will Henry offers a serene watercolor workshop session every Wednesday from 11:00am to 1:00pm at the Inn of the Seventh Ray. It’s open to all skill levels, whether the attendee considers themself a beginner, intermediate, or the next Georgia O’Keeffe. It’s an ideal space for painting landscapes and honing techniques, nestled beside the Topanga creek. The emphasis is on embracing and enjoying the creative process, connecting with fellow artists, and taking inspiration from the moment in hand in the woodsy fairyland of the Inn. All supplies are provided. (Must be 18+) Buy tickets in advance: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/watercolor-wednesdays-in-topanga-canyon-tickets-197821433532

Support Local Farmers and Vendors The Topanga Farmers Market inhabits the Community Center every Friday morning, transforming the parking lot into a hub of lively activity. Local farmers, gardeners, bakers, artists, and creatives offer everything from seasonal produce and fresh flowers to local honey, vintage and handcrafted clothing, prepared foods, and small-batch treats. Even if your refrigerator is already full, it’s worth stopping by for the friendly community atmosphere, to browse the many booths before the sun climbs too high.

Catch a Play

The summer repertory season at the Theatricum Botanicum is in full swing, featuring Shakespeare classics and a multi-genred variety of adaptations and originals. Its annual production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is always a fitting venture at this time of year, and will run until October 10. Romeo & Juliet, reimagined in America’s Gilded Age rather than Renaissance Verona, continues through the end of September. Treasure Island, Ellen Geer’s adventurous adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel, runs through early October.

Also running through early October is Noël Coward’s Waiting in the Wings, a witty and poignant comedy set in a retirement home for actresses, opening the season’s lighter side with theatrical rivalries and sharp dialogue. Finally, Bernardo Cubría’s The People of Pompeii opens on August

1. Set in the aftermath of the 2025 Los Angeles fires, the play asks “what ‘home’ really means–and whether we are willing to do the work it takes to build it together, before the next fire comes.”

Read a Book

The aesthetically stoned walls of the Topanga Library complex harbor not only a sanctuary of air conditioning and comfortable silence, but just outside is the beloved Friends of the Topanga Library, reliably stocked with local donations and treasures. The carts outside are lined with secondhand donations from residents and nearby readers, including a wide variety of fiction, nonfiction, and kids’ books—all just $1 each. The inventory further expands inside the shop with a uniquely compiled assortment spanning every genre, including cookbooks, indie poetry compilations, songbooks and sheet music, scripts, CDs and DVDs, and more.

Have some old books? Donate them to the bookshop, or drop them off with the librarians inside! Want to help out? The bookshop is always looking for volunteers to oversee the bookshop, assist customers, organize shelves, and unload donations. Email friendsofthetopangalibrary@gmail.com to contact Jenni Klemp.

Whether you’re grooving in a crowd, with reggae’s soundbath swirling all around you; painting alongside the creek; filling your tote at the Farmer’s Market; spending an evening beneath the oaks at the Theatricum; or hunting for your next favorite used book, there’s still plenty of summer left to savor. The dog days are hot, but in Topanga, they needn’t be dull.