Orange County 6th Among U.S. Counties Receiving Pandemic Relief Funding

for Arts & Culture

SMU Data Arts, one of the nation’s leaders in research about and for the arts and culture sector, has released a new report documenting the distribution of pandemic relief funds to the creative industries nationwide. The new report shows that Orange County ranked sixth among U.S. counties nationwide in the amount of funds received from the various relief programs. 

“Even though Orange County is the sixth most populous county in the nation, pandemic relief funding to OC’s arts & culture sector exceeded that of more populous counties like San Diego and Maricopa (Arizona),” commented ArtsOC President & CEO Rick Stein. “We believe that ArtsOC’s aggressive advocacy work played an important role by persuading the County of Orange to allocate millions of dollars of County-controlled pandemic relief funds to our sector. Additionally, ArtsOC’s vigorous, thorough and persistent communications with the arts community about the various relief funding opportunities, and the guidance that we provided to them, made an enormous impact. Funds were received by over 138 OC arts organizations and arts-related businesses and more than 175 local artists.”

By 2021, Arts Orange County had calculated that OC-based nonprofit arts organizations and for-profit creative businesses had already been awarded in excess of $85 million in pandemic relief from programs such as the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) and Shuttered Venue Operator Grants (SVOG), under the CARES Act and American Rescue Plan (ARPA). Figures from the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) were not included in ArtsOC’s estimate since the program had not yet been launched, but ArtsOC believes that millions in additional relief funds were generated for local organizations and businesses in our sector through the ERC program. The ERC program, which is a refund of payroll taxes for impacted industries, is also not included in the SMU Data Arts report. 

The full SMU Data Arts report may be found here: 

Six OC Arts Orgs Awarded NEA Grants 

The National Endowment for the Arts has released its first round of recommended awards for 2024, which includes more than $32 million going to organizations nationwide. Six Orange County recipients will receive $145,000. Congratulations to the organizations listed below:

Creative Identity $25k to support an arts education program primarily for adults with disabilities

Pacific Chorale $15k to support a choral performance project featuring American composer Caroline Shaw’s “To the Hands,” and including related community engagement activities

Irvine Barclay Theatre $20k to support their Global View series

Pacific Symphony $25k to support artist fees for a performance and community engagement project featuring guest artists and public programming

Philharmonic Society of OC $40k to support an artist residency by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, including performances, education and community engagement events, and a cognitive wellness collaboration with University of California, Irvine

Frida Cinema $20k to support a series of multidisciplinary arts events for the community

Read more here.

Village Recognizing Orange County’s Indigenous People Proposed for Irvine

Irvine City Councilmember Kathleen Treseder has proposed the creation of a village that would honor the culture of the Juaneño Band of Mission Indians, also known as the Acjachemen Nation. Long before Orange County came to be, several indigenous tribes inhabited the area, with some descendants still calling it home. The village would resemble what the tribal members lived in and could showcase structures that the Acjachemen used as shelter and include a small amphitheater to display the history of the people.

Read more here.

2024 Arts Advocacy Field Survey

CA for the Arts invites you to participate in the 2024 CA Arts Advocacy Field Survey and hopes to enlist your help in promoting it.

The purpose of the survey is to help develop and pursue advocacy goals that are defined by the experiences, knowledge and aspirations of California artists, creatives, cultural organizations and arts supporters. Your participation is critical to helping CA for the Arts understand the needs of the field and to prioritize policy solutions.

"This survey will give us the ability to more accurately represent the people who create, manage and absorb the arts in our state," said Patrick Brien, VP/COO of ArtsOC, as well as board member and treasurer of CA for the Arts. "Advocacy based on your voices will allow us to be so much more effective in telling your stories."

To take the survey, click on the above image or click here.

Rancho Santa Margarita Plans

Historical Museum in Bell Tower

Rancho Santa Margarita leaders are exploring bringing a new historical museum to the Bell Tower Community Center, but they need to ensure the community center can accommodate its size and design first.

On January 10, city leaders discussed utilizing the southwest portion of the Bell Tower Community Center after originally proposing it in November. To accommodate the city’s extensive collection of artifacts, maps and city-related documents as well as future donations, city leaders say they need at least 1,600 square feet of space.

Read more here.

Special ArtsOC Discounts for

National Arts Marketing, Development

and Ticketing Conference

Arts Reach is offering constituents of Arts Orange County three registrations for the price of one for the National Arts Marketing, Development and Ticketing Conference, which will be held July 23 and 24, 2024 at NYU’s Kimmel Center in New York. The theme for the conference is “New Ways Forward.” 

For conference details, including registration and lodging, visit https://artsreach.com/conference.php?id=22

In Memoriam

Wade Williamson was a Resident Artist with Chance Theater for over eight years and was extremely active in the local Orange County theatre scene for over 30 years. A graduate of Cal State Fullerton’s acclaimed School of the Arts Department of Theatre & Dance, he served as an actor, stage manager, director, technician, designer, producer and even artistic director. He directed plays at Modjeska Playhouse, STAGEStheatre and Vanguard Theatre Ensemble. 

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