Contra Costa County high school students interested in competing for enrollment in the California State Summer School for the Arts in Valencia (INNERSPARK) may obtain information from the Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County (AC5) if their school does not have copies of the informational brochure. Call AC5 at (925) 646-2278 or e-mail to ac5@ac5.org. Further information can also be found at www.csssa.org. The application deadline is February 28, 2006.

On October 5, Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB1194, authored by assembly member Jenny Oropeza (D-Long Beach). This bill requires that any person or public or private firm, organization or corporation, which owns, rents, leases or manages a facility that hosts a ticketed event for live entertainment, shall make an announcement of the availability of emergency exits prior to the beginning of the live entertainment. As used in this section, "facility" means a building or portion of a building having an assembly room with an occupancy load of less than 1,000 persons and a legitimate stage for the gathering together of 50 or more persons. This new law takes effect January 1, 2006. Failure to comply is a misdemeanor.

Presenters and performing arts organizations should be prepared to add to the traditional "welcome and turn off cell phones" announcements, "please take a moment to look around for the nearest available emergency exit" by January 1, 2006.

Americans for the Arts is reminding constituents that it strives to generate more resources for local and national arts organizations. Its Web site ww3.artsusa.org includes legislative updates, research on a variety of arts-related topics, and a well-organized bookstore.

With a focus on arts in education and community development, the organization co-sponsors an annual Arts Advocacy Day and provides important information for foundations, arts policy makers, and the media.

What’s Happening on the Arts Scene

Point Richmond—Thieves broke into the famed Masquers Playhouse on December 18 and walked off with the theater’s light boards, contents of a safe, musical instruments, headsets, and tools. The loss occurred at a time when Masquers was preparing for its annual New Years Eve gala. Officials are accepting donations to help recover from the loss. Donations may be made to Masquers Playhouse, Attn: Burglary Recovery, P.O. Box 71037, Richmond CA, 94807. The Playhouse was honored by the Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County for its 50 years of operation.

Walnut Creek— A seven-member consulting team comprised of Stanford Business School alumni completed a study of the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts. Among the team’s recommendations: The center “should be operated as an entity independent and separate of the City and Center Rep.” Center Rep is the city-supported resident performing company at the center. The Stanford team also studied the Diablo Regional Arts Association (DRAA), which raises funds for groups that perform in the center. The team recommended that, “for the future DRAA must be perceived as independent of the City to meet its fundraising objectives.”

Martinez—The Concord-based Willows Theatre and the John Muir Festival Center, based in Martinez, are in the midst of “Bringing ART to MARTinez,” a capital campaign to complete conversion of a former auto parts store into a cabaret in the city’s historic downtown area. Funds also will be used to complete a production facility in Waterfront Park near the John Muir Amphitheater. The campaign goal is $457,000. Among the contributions to date is a $75,000 donation made by Pat Campbell of Pleasant Hill, former president and active board member of the Diablo Symphony. The goal is to open the cabaret in the June 2006 timeframe.To donate, go to www.willowstheatre.org

Antioch—The El Campanil Theatre, a 77-year-old vaudeville cum movie theatre, celebrated its first anniversary in October as a performing arts center. Dance companies, musical theatre and drama groups along with such acts as the Kingston Trio and the Limelighters have appeared on the theater’s stage. In December, the Diablo Symphony became the first symphony to play in the El Campanil, attracting a near-capacity audience. Upcoming in February: singer-composer Randy Newman.

Danville—The Eugene O’Neill Foundation, Tao House, is arranging an advance preview of “Eugene O’Neill: A Documentary Film” that will be shown as part of the American Experience series on PBS on March 27. The film is a collaboration between the acclaimed filmmaker Ric Burns and the award-winning O’Neill biographers Arthur and Barbara Gelb. Burns will be present at the preview, scheduled for March 3 at AT&T’s Bishop Ranch facility in San Ramon.

The Arts and Culture Commission of Contra Costa County (AC5) completed its 10th year of operation in 2005. Below is a report highlighting the Commission's activities. It is also available on the AC5 Web site at www.ac5.org

Anniversary: The commission celebrated the 10th anniversary of its establishment by the Board of Supervisors. Many of the events in 2005 reflected this milestone.

Grants: The commission has been active in pursuing grants for its services and projects.

• The National Endowment for the Arts awarded AC5 a $10,000 grant for communications projects, including updating our Web site and directory of arts and culture organizations. The grant is distributed after funds are spent on approved projects – a reimbursement until the $10,000 is spent.
• A $3,000 grant from Wells Fargo Bank was presented AC5 to cover expenses associated with the commission’s annual arts awards ceremony.

Fundraising: At the invitation of Sheriff Rupf, AC5 collaborated with the Sheriff’s Posse in an event that raised more than $1,000 for the commission. Members of the Posse, their friends and the public attended a performance of Diablo Light Opera Company’s “West Side Story” in May. The sheriff appeared briefly as part of the cast. Prior to the show, guests attended a pizza party at a restaurant near the performance venue, the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. The sheriff has asked that we repeat this activity in 2006. Plans are being formulated for a performance of “My Fair Lady” in March.

Awards: This marked the 10th year that AC5 has presented awards to individuals and organizations whose meritorious work in the arts and culture have had a significant impact on the quality of life in Contra Costa County. The awards ceremony was held in October at the Willows Theatre in Concord and attracted the largest audience ever—nearly 200 people. It was the second year that the Willows donated use of its theater. Four individuals and two organizations received awards. The ceremony was telecast several times via the county television network. In addition, the Contra Costa Times continued its practice of devoting the entire front page of its Sunday Arts and Entertainment section to a large photo of the honorees. An additional inside page carried profiles of each honoree. The event was made possible in part by a $3,000 grant from Wells Fargo Bank.

Symposium: AC5 is the only institution in the county that arranges symposia on arts issues and support services. The first was in 1996. The fourth had been planned for the fall at St. Mary’s College in collaboration with the California Assembly of Local Arts Agencies and the California Arts Council. However, the untimely death of AC5’s managing director made it necessary to reschedule the symposium to 2006.

Student Arts Scholars: On June 3, AC5 again hosted a ceremony and reception for talented and gifted Contra Costa County students who were selected for an intensive professional training program at the California Summer School for the Arts in Valencia. The event was held in the chambers of the Board of Supervisors. It was telecast several times via the county television network.

Arts Passages: In December 2003, AC5 inaugurated Arts Passages, an ongoing series of art exhibits in the County Administration Building at 651 Pine Street, Martinez. The exhibits feature the works of artists in designated supervisory districts. The exhibit has drawn praise from employees, visitors and artists. The first exhibit included 60 works of art in the lobby. The final exhibit represented the works of 24 artists. AC5 continues to install art in the Supervisors’ chambers – a project that began in 1996.

Special Art Program: AC5 remains an active partner with Art in the Courthouse Committee on Public Art in the Spinetta Family Law Center.

Programs: AC5 has been active in arranging seminars and training programs for constituents, including:

• A daylong program on marketing the arts, a program of the California Arts Council, held at the Diablo Light Opera Company Firehouse in Pleasant Hill. More than 30 individuals representing county arts organizations attended.
• A workshop for individual artists on how to seek grants. We collaborated with the Foundation Center in San Francisco on this program. More than 60 area artists attended.

Arts Alive: One of AC5’s key objectives is to revive Arts Alive, a highly successful program that was initiated in 1996 by AC5 as hands-on arts program for children in public housing units. AC5 is attempting to identify prospects for funding this activity.

State Fair Exhibit AC5 provided support and direction in getting the exhibit completed. The Fair theme this year was “Beach Party,” and the county’s exhibit featured Summer Reading. It received a silver award from the Counties Exhibits Program.

Communications:

• Web site: The commission’s Web site is undergoing revisions to include more information that is more timely and relevant to constituents and of general interest to the public.

• Newsletter: AC5 continued to publish Artbeat, the commission’s newsletter that keeps the broad arts community informed on contemporary issues and opportunities. To save money, the newsletter is distributed via e-mail. In addition, current and past issues are posted on the AC5 website, www.ac5.org.

• Resource Directory: This online directory is undergoing a major update that will be completed in 2006.

• Media: AC5 wrote and distributed press releases for media throughout the Bay Area to publicize commission events and activities.

Operations: The year 2005 was an emotional and challenging year for the commission. On April 1, AC5 received the sad news that its part-time managing director, Karen Ciraulo, was fatally injured in an auto accident while returning from a vacation in New Mexico. The former holder of this position graciously agreed to assist the commission until a successor could be employed. In July, the commission hired Robin Moore to assume the managing director duties under the title of office manager.

Governance: With support from the Board of Supervisors, AC5 eliminated two of four at-large commissioner positions. This allows the commission a greater likelihood of achieving a quorum for its monthly meetings. However, the commission continues to struggle with having vacancies filled in a timely manner to ensure meeting quorum requirements and other responsibilities. Commissioners attended a county workshop on the Brown Act to ensure that AC5 is complying with its requirements.

Friends of AC5: As the non-profit 501(c)(3) fundraising arm of the commission, Friends of AC5 has created an account to which individuals have made financial donations in memory of Karen Ciraulo. The fund began with a donation of $10,000 from her parents along with contributions from many individuals. Friends of AC5 expects to make a decision, in collaboration with Ms. Ciraulo’s parents, on disposition of this fund in 2006 after all donations have been made.