OCSA Student Recognized

for Poetry

Orange County School of the Arts sophomore Olivia Le has won the California Poetry Ourselves competition with an original poem she submitted as part of the state’s Poetry Out Loud contest. In addition, Le has made it through the first two rounds of the recitation portion of the competition and is a Poetry Out Loud finalist.

Le won the right to compete at the State level by winning the county's regional Poetry Out Loud competition, co-produced by ArtsOC and the Orange County Department of Education and held on January 30.

“I am proud that of all the things I could be doing with my time and energy, I chose poetry,” said the Irvine resident. “I am so beyond thankful that my community values this powerful art form and that I get to represent something that supports teens who want to share their voice.”

Le will be performing her original piece as well as competing at the State Finals, which will be taking place virtually on Sunday, March 19 at 5:00 p.m. For information on the event, which will be livestreamed, please visit: https://www.capoetryoutloud.org/finals

$2 Million Library Renovation 

After a $2 million renovation project, the San Juan Capistrano Library reopened to visitors on March 7. Built in the 1980s, the building had been closed for more than a year.

Read more here.

Pacific Chorale Welcomes New

Development Director

Thelma Valenzuela has joined Pacific Chorale as its Director of Development. Valenzuela comes to the chorale having previously been with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles, and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Los Angeles. 

Read more here.

New VAALA Board President

Thảo Hà has been elected the incoming Board President for the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (VAALA). She has stated that she is committed to working collaboratively with the board and community members to ensure that VAALA continues to be a leading voice and resource for the Vietnamese American community and beyond. 

To learn more about the organization, visit their website at https://vaala.org/.

In Memoriam

Longtime arts patron Carl Neisser passed away at the age of 96 on March 8, 2023. He was one of the earliest Board members of Arts Orange County, serving as an early President of the Board. Other organizations with which he was deeply involved included South Coast Repertory, Orange County Museum of Art and Bowers Museum

Individual Artist Fellowship

Applications Being Accepted

Arts Orange County invites artists practicing any art form to apply for a prestigious California Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship. Unrestricted awards range from $5,000 to $50,000. The application deadline is April 14, 2023.

ArtsOC is the administering organization for the Region I portion of this statewide program. Region I includes North County Coalition for the Arts in Imperial County; Arts Orange County in Orange County; Riverside Arts Council in Riverside County; Arts Connection in San Bernardino County; San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture in San Diego County. 

For complete guidelines and access to the application portal, visit https://artsoc.org/individual-artist-fellowship/

Also, ArtsOC is conducting two free informational webinars:

To register for Thursday, March 23 at 5:00 p.m. click here.

To register for Saturday, March 25 at 10:00 a.m. click here.

Nominations for 2023 OC Arts Awards

Being Accepted

Arts Orange County is now accepting nominations for the 23rd OC Arts Awards. The benefit evening that recognizes and celebrates Orange County arts organizations, artists, and arts patrons will be held on October 17 at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts' Samueli Theater.

For nomination guidelines and to submit a nominee, click here.

ArtsOC’s Richard Stein to be Honored by Pacific Chorale

Grammy Award-winning Pacific Chorale's season ending gala will include honoring ArtsOC President and CEO Richard Stein with the Entrepreneur in the Arts Lifetime Achievement Award.

“Richard Stein deserves recognition from the entire Orange County community for his incredible dedication to bolstering, advancing, and fostering the arts and arts education across the region,” says Pacific Chorale CEO & President Andrew Brown. “That the arts continue to thrive here is in no small measure because Richard has made it his mission to uplift and advocate for local arts organizations small and large. We are deeply grateful to Richard and so proud to recognize him at Pacific Chorale’s gala for his selfless achievements that have enhanced Orange County beyond measure.”

The event will take place on Saturday May 20 at 7:00 pm in Costa Mesa’s Avenue of the Arts Hotel immediately following the chorus’ season finale concert at Segerstrom Hall. 

For tickets and information, visit www.pacificchorale.org or call 714-662-2345.

We acknowledge with respect our presence on the ancestral lands of the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians - Acjachemen Nation and the Tongva People.