Take Esotouric's Hippodrome art walk shuttle

July 10: THE HIPPODROME, Esotouric's Curated Downtown LA Art Walk Shuttle

WHAT: The Hippodrome, a rolling curated salon on a custom vintage school bus

WHEN: Every Second Thursday (July 10, Aug 14, etc.) during downtown LA Art Walk, 6-10pm nightly

WHERE: The shuttle route circles Gallery Row (Main and Spring Streets between 9th and 2nd Streets)

COST: Free shuttle and entertainment

FEATURING ON JULY 10:
1) Hosts Kim Cooper & Richard Schave of Esotouric bus adventures sharing tales of historic downtown vice, answering visitor questions and passing out Esotouric discount coupons,

2) Trio "Zona Lilly,"debuting the Hippodrome Theme Song and playing LA-themed country rock classics,

3) Madame Pamita telling fortunes and playing weird old timey American music on her ukulele,

4) Senor Stretchy Skin, a real live circus freak,

5) Mike The Poet rockin' poems about L.A. authors and the city's underground.

INFO: http://www.esotouric.com/hippodrome, 323-223-2767

The Downtown L.A. Art Walk, held every second Thursday year round, is one of the great success stories of the neighborhood's revival. Launched in 2004 by a small group of independent gallery owners in what was then the western edge of Skid Row, the event now draws upwards of 4000 people, and includes live music, a thriving bar and restaurant scene, book signings, and of course art exhibits.

July 10 sees the second month when, Kim Cooper and Richard Schave of Esotouric, the eclectic bus adventure company whose tours reveal L.A.'s secret history, transform what's been a sleepy free city DASH bus shuttle into something more appropriate to the Art Walk: The Hippodrome, a curated rolling salon. Art Walk visitors can still use the Hippodrome to get from Bert Green Fine Arts to The Hive -- but with so many interesting things happening on the bus, they may find they don't want to disembark when they arrive.

The Hippodrome shuttle is named in honor of promoter Adolph Ramish's legendary Hippodrome Theater, formerly located at 4th and Main. With 3000 seats, it was the biggest theater west of the Mississippi when built in 1913, and featured Toddles the Elephant on opening night. In 1952, the theater was demolished for a parking lot, and the site is now under development as the mixed-use Medallion project.

The new Hippodrome is a customized former school bus brightly painted on the outside with lively graffiti-style scenes of beautiful women. Inside, passengers and performers sit face-to-face in a comfortable nightclub-style setting, with checkerboard flooring, cocktail tables and softly blinking lights. Every month the Hippodrome features interesting performers channeling the spirit of the neighborhood's storied past.

Appearing during the July 10 ArtWalk:

MADAME PAMITA (6:30pm-7pm), who uses the powers of euphonious prognostication to tell fortunes and plays original and covers of rural blues, old time, jug band and proto-jazz numbers about romance and revenge and mirth and mayhem on early 20th century ukuleles. Fans of "the Old Weird America" will be transported to the birth of recorded music when an evening's entertainment meant surprises, amusements and a singular experience like no other!

SENOR STRETCHY SKIN (7:00pm-7:30pm), the guy who makes Stretch Armstrong look like a sissy. Watch as he stretches the skin on his face over two feet and places over 130 clothes pins on it--backed by appropriate musical accompaniment.

Guitar and vocal trio ZONALILLY (8:00pm-8:45pm) debuts their original "Hippodrome Theme Song" followed by a set of classic Los Angeles country-rock and blues tunes by the Flying Burrito Brothers, Guy Clark and many more.

Hippodrome regular MIKE THE POET (8:45pm-9:15pm) rockin' poems about LA authors & the city's underground.

Link to hear ZonaLilly's Hippodrome Theme Song: http://esotouric.com/hippodromesong
Link for musical guest Madame Pamita: http://madamepamita.com/
Link for Mike the Poet: http://www.myspace.com/mikethepoet
Link for guest Senor Stretchy Skin: http://www.myspace.com/senorstretchyskin
Link for Hippodrome info: http://www.esotouric.com/hippodrome