Each week, Arts Orange County and Culture OC deliver you this look at the stories and events happening in our arts and cultural community.

OC Día del Niño Festival

The Annual "Day of the Child" Festival features dozens of workshops and performances geared towards awakening the artistic spirit in kids; this year's free celebration happens at the newly-reopened Hunt Library in Fullerton MORE

Dining Near Angel Stadium, Honda Center and Knott’s Berry Farm

Baseball season, concerts and all things Snoopy are reasons why you’d find visitors driving around Anaheim and Buena Park as soon as the rain eventually subsides. Dining elsewhere before an Angels or Ducks home game often saves time (plus a reasonable chunk of money) normally spent standing in an arena line for overpriced food. Yet if you’re not familiar with this area of OC, a little bit of research prior to leaving for your destination will help you select better meal stops before getting super “hangry.”

With 'Prelude to a Kiss, The Musical,' SCR Adds New Wrinkles to the Play it Originated 36 Years Ago

REVIEW: Playwright Craig Lucas and company have, for better or worse, wrought a different theatrical animal, seemingly missing key emotional dynamics.

Biblical Times, a Musical 'Prelude' and More at the Pacific Playwrights Festival

If new plays are indeed the life blood of theater companies, then it stands to reason that any such company dedicated to developing and producing new scripts is at the forefront of American theater.

Count South Coast Repertory as among the most prominent in that regard.

SCR has long championed nurturing the works of both new and established playwrights, and for more than a quarter century, its Pacific Playwrights Festival, colloquially known as PPF, has provided what amounts to a more than month-long celebration of new plays.

Each week, we recommend a variety of events and experiences from the listings at SparkOC.com, our free website for Orange County's arts and cultural community.

Verdi’s Falstaff

Lyric Opera of Orange County presents an intimate, concert version of the legendary opera, with performances in Irvine and Laguna Beach MORE

Festival of Nations & Parade

The diverse cultural heritage of Southern California is celebrated this weekend in La Palma with a carnival, dances, a martial arts demonstration, and the "Hometown Parade" MORE

Movies at the Library

The Fountain Valley branch of OC's Public Libraries hosts a free screening with refreshments of the 2023 blockbuster "Barbie" with Margot Robbie. MORE

Asian Comics After Hours + Metropolis (2001) screening

This month's edition of the "Final Fridays" after-hours events at the Bowers Museum features live DJs, special access to the current exhibition of manga and anime art, and a screening of the 2001 anime film written by legendary "Akira" director Katsuhiro Otomo MORE