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Why Costa Mesa Is The Cultural Epicenter Of Orange County

Costa Mesa is a cultural goldmine, providing a host of world-class venues for showcasing terrific visual and performing arts. It's no wonder why Costa Mesa has officially been dubbed the City of the Arts. To find out why this is so, take your own self-guided art walk and get up-close-and-personal with the wealth of award-winning public installations this city has to offer. Most have been built thanks to the late business magnate Henry Segerstrom.

Costa Mesa Self-Guided Art Walk
"The Ram" by artist Charles O. Perry is an excellent beginning point from which you can begin Costa Mesa's art walk. The bright yellow painted steel sculpture was the second sculpture installed in Town Center Park, across from The Westin South Coast Plaza, and to this day is a colorful focal point. From there, find legendary artist Jean Miro's "Oiseau", an alluring cast bronze "bird" of a monumental and unorthodox order. As one of the 20th century's most celebrated and appreciated artists, Miro is known for abstractions like "Oiseau" and more. The art piece can be found in the lobby of the Center Tower on Town Center Drive. Meanwhile, sitting in the lobby is French sculptor Jean Dubuffet's color-blocked "Tour Aux Jambes". The epoxy, polystyrene and polyester creation has been likened to a three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle. Then there is George Rickey's stainless steel "Four Lines Oblique Gyratory – Square IV," which serves as a high flying kinetic sculpture towering above the Center Club's outdoor patio.

Continuing on, "Reclining Figure" by the masterful artist Henry Moore sits at the end of Town Center Drive on the orchestra level terrace of the Segerstrom Hall. Soaring through the facade at Segerstrom Hall is the "Fire Bird," by renowned artist Richard Lippold. The enormous architectural sculpture is made of red, gold and silver aluminum and steel, and its vibrant colors make it a piece not to be missed. Also on these hallowed grounds, "Connector", a 360-ton sculpture by Richard Serra, consists of five twisted, winding steel plates which stand together to form a hollow structure that visitors can walk into and through.

To complete your Costa Mesa art walk, go over to the verdant spot recognized by its rectangular shape that sits adjacent to Plaza Tower. There, you'll be at the right vantage point to ogle Aiko Miyawaki's "Utsurohi 91", a sculpture for which this top Japanese artist adorned the inside of a dozen 10-foot columns with her glossy relief interpretations of the Chinese zodiac animals.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts
Segerstrom Center for the Arts, one of the nation's premier performing arts centers, is the place for culture in Costa Mesa. Centered around an imposing, pink granite structure created by acclaimed architect Cesar Pelli, this center handily accommodates large-scale music, theater and dance productions throughout the year. Home to three resident companies including the Pacific Symphony, The Pacific Chorale and the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, Segerstrom Center for the Arts is made up of the nearly 3,000-seat Segerstrom Hall opera house and the nearly 2,000-seat Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, as well as the more intimate 250-seat Founders Hall and the 300-stadium-seat Samueli Theater. As the center of theatrical performances, the Segerstrom Hall has held many Tony Award®-winning Broadway productions, including Disney's "The Lion King" and "Kinky Boots."

Of particular note at The Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall is the famous William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, which was designed by built by C.B. Fisk, Inc of Massachusetts. Nearly 30 tons of a keyboard instrument, this musical masterpiece commands 4,322 pipes.

Also of importance is the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School, which follows the ABT's National Training Curriculum, a ballet program designed specifically for children. There are dance studios featuring professionally sprung floors and amenities. The school provides unparalleled access to world-renowned companies and performing arts experiences. It is designed to train the next generation of dancers, as well as furthering the evolution of dance.

South Coast Repertory
Another fitting place for great theater in the Orange County enclave of Costa Mesa is South Coast Repertory, which lays claim to some of the most memorable stage work in this part of Southern California. South Coast Repertory has three stages and often brings in contemporary plays and big Broadway musicals. In addition, a special young audience program acclimates the smaller set to the thrilling world of the living stage. The South Coast Repertory also plays host to the annual Pacific Playwrights Festival, which presents staged readings, full productions, and other theatrical performances over a three-day period. Since its inception in 1998, the festival has only grown in notoriety and has included world premieres of plays like Beau Willimon's "The Parisian Woman," Julia Cho's "The Language Archive," Amy Freed's "The Beard of Avon," and many others.

Article by Jane Lasky.

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