The Philharmonic Society of Orange County and Laguna Beach Live! invite the public to the 2020 Laguna Beach Music Festival Prelude reception at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 5, at the Laguna Art Museum, 307 Cliff Drive.
The prelude offers a preview of the 2020 festival, hors d’oeuvres, wine and a performance by festival artistic director Ray Chen and friends. Tickets are $125 and can be purchased online at LagunaBeachMusicFestival.com or by calling Leah Heit at 949-553-2422 ext. 234. Laguna Beach Music Festival donors at the Festival Patrons level receive two complimentary tickets to the prelude.
Local Artist Shows Work at John Wayne Airport
Artwork by Orange County artist Elizabeth Nguyen-Espinoza is on exhibit at the John Wayne Airport Community Focus Space on the departure (upper) level near security screening areas in Terminals A, B, and C and on the arrival (lower) level adjacent to baggage carousels 1 and 4 through Feb. 13.
Nguyen-Espinoza established the Rosa Thay Nguyen Children’s Foundation (RTNCF) in honor of her late mother, to inspire others in joining her efforts to provide medical care and intervention to underprivileged children in the U.S. and developing countries.
Comprised of artists, medical doctors, and other medical professionals, the Foundation’s members all work together to promote humanitarian causes by donating their time and skills to help children in need.
Nguyen-Espinoza’s series of artworks, including “Remember Me,” “A Butterfly’s Dream,” “Mindfulness,” and the “Beauty of Love” are available through RTNCF events, galas, and the ISEE Artist’s Gallery in Huntington Beach. For more information about her artwork, visit www.iseegallery.com.
Upcoming Community Focus Space artists include photographer Breck Rothage (Feb. 14 – March 19) and painter Melissa Murphy (March 20 – April 16).
Bare Bones Brings New Plays to Laguna Playhouse
“Dust,” by Nicole Oglesby is the story of three orphaned sisters fighting to stay alive during the worst of the Depression on a dying Dust Bowl farm with a miraculous apricot tree. With little money and no real community, they struggle to find resilience in faith, love and each other. It will be read at 7:30 p.m. on Monday Feb. 3 by Lily Gibson, Rachel Rosenfeld, Veltria Roman, Erika Schindele and Brent Schindele and directed by Lojo Simon. A post-play conversation about finding resilience in difficult times will be led by John Becknell, PhD.
Perfect, by Jonathan Luskin explores the nature of disability and genetic enhancement and what parents will do to give their children the best advantages in life. The play is inspired by the discovery of CRISPR-Cas9, a faster, less expensive, more accurate DNA editing technology. Joseph Kibler, Deb Conroy, Ava Burton, Ben Farrow, David Šášik, Sarah Levin and Andy Clark will read the play at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, March 2.
Bare Bones play readings are held in the Brick Room located just west of the main Playhouse entrance, down the stairs from the Box Office at Laguna Playhouse, 580 Laguna Canyon Dr. Parking for the new venue is available in the Village Entrance lot and the Playhouse lot.
Tickets are $20 plus an online ticketing fee and are available at https://artwow.tix.com. Limited $25 seating may be available at the door.
Wyland Offering Art Classes for Kids
Children ages 3-12 can take an art lesson via video feed by local environmental artist Wyland at 9 a.m. and go on a free two-hour whale watching adventure at 10 a.m. for $15 from Jan. 25 through April 25. Additional whale watching tickets are available from $29-$49.
Art class participants will be entered in a contest to win prizes as well as a gift from Wyland. The 2020 grand prize will be a limited edition signed and numbered framed Giclee on canvas by Wyland called “Orca Realm,” valued at over $2,500. All children’s artwork will be judged by Wyland for a chance to win other prizes.
For reservations and additional information, visit danawharf.com or Wyland’s Whale and Dolphin Adventure – Art Lessons in the Wild.
Laguna Beach FOA Foundation Accepting 2020 Grant Applications
Applications are now available for 2020 Art Grants. Nonprofit organizations with programs promoting fine arts in and about Laguna Beach may apply. Grant applications are available online at www.LagunaFestivalofArts.org and the submission deadline is Feb. 14.
“Each year the Foundation is proud to be able to provide grants to many of the art-related nonprofits in Laguna Beach,” shared FOA Foundation President Bob Earl. “We look forward to helping fund programs that provide enrichment to our community.”
The Laguna Beach Festival of Arts Foundation (now named the FOA Foundation) was established in 1989 to preserve and promote the fine arts and all other artistic endeavors in and around Laguna Beach. For more information on the grant application process, contact Bob Earl at 949-494-4132.
Laguna Craft Guild Returns Feb. 9
The Laguna Craft Guild will host a show on Sunday, Feb. 9, from 9 a.m. to sunset on the Main Beach cobblestones.
Families Invited to Celebrate the Year of the Rat
Pacific Symphony and South Coast Chinese Cultural Center/Irvine Chinese School join to present the family-friendly Lantern Festival, commemorating the end of the Lunar New Year celebration from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22. The festival, spread throughout the concert hall and the Julianne and George Argyros Plaza, features performances by the Pacific Symphony Chamber Ensemble, the South Coast Chinese Orchestra, Pacific Symphony Youth Octet, Pacific Symphony Santiago String Quartet and the Irvine Chinese Chorus. Activities will include lantern making, Vietnamese wood block art and Chinese knotting. Trying on traditional Áo Dài Vietnamese outfits and the finale Dragon Dance will provide photo opportunities.
The event is free and open to the public, but tickets must be reserved in advance through PacificSymphony.org, or by calling 714-755-5799. Guests are encouraged to bring cash for the numerous activities including the popular lantern making with the Bowers Museum.
