Jazz event for Ocean Institute sells out

The fourth annual Jazz in January will consist of two performances this year. The opening night dinner show tonight -- benefiting the Ocean Institute in Dana Point -- is an overflow sellout at $350 per person.

Due to popular demand, organizers have created an encore event for Sunday evening. Called a Twilight Taste of Sophisticated Jazz tickets are priced at $125 for reserved seating and $95 per seat for open seating. Both events will take place at the Ocean Institute and will star jazz entertainer Rick Braun.

Braun began his career as a trumpeter for the jazz-fusion group Auraclez. He has been named a smooth jazz artist of the year and has performed with Tina Turner, Natalie Cole, Tom Petty and many other stars of the music world. Braun recently released a CD, “Yours Truly.”

The Ocean Institute is a nonprofit academic center for students in the field of marine biology and maritime history. For the fourth year, the event will be chaired by Tim McMahon, senior vice president of Grubb and Ellis retail services group.

Jazz in January is also supported by local business interests, including Northern Trust Bank, Ketel One Vodka, LiveWire Marketing, and AmeriPark.

Also supporting the Ocean Institute are a number of local hotels, including the St. Regis, Monarch Beach, the Laguna Cliffs Marriott, the Montage, and the Ritz Carlton.

For reservations and information about the encore concert, call (949) 496-2274, ext. 412.

The marriage of commerce and culture in Orange County will once again raise the bar of the social scene as the elegant house of Mikimoto -- pearl, diamond and fine jewelry purveyors -- hosts an exclusive post performance reception in honor of Ballet Pacifica’s “Kings of the Dance.” The February 18 performance in Segerstrom Hall at the Orange County Performing Arts Center will be capped by the Mikimoto reception that will unfold later in the evening in the private Center Room.

Ethan Stiefel, Ballet Pacifica’s artist director, will join leaders of the dance world, including Angel Corella of the American Ballet Theatre, Johan Kobborg of the Royal Ballet and Nikolay Tsiskaridze of the Bolshoi Ballet.

Four of the world’s most accomplished dancers will take center stage in Orange County for the world premiere of “Kings of the Dance.”

Mikimoto has taken a role in promoting the connection between business and culture in Orange County and elsewhere, in both America and on international soil. Last October, the company sponsored a reception at South Coast Plaza to introduce the community to the exceptional dance recital that will unfold February 18.

For ticket information, call (714) 556-2122.

The Pacific Life Foundation hosted a reception recently honoring some 200 nonprofit organizations working to improve life in the community. Grants totaling more than $3 million were bestowed upon a diverse list of nonprofit endeavors as some 500 guests mingled at a cocktail reception thrown in their honor by Pacific Life.

The Pacific Life Foundation, the charitable giving arm of the insurance company headquartered in Newport Beach, has been a significant donor for decades to many charitable endeavors. Pacific Life CEO Tom Sutton and Pacific Life Foundation President Bob Haskell were on hand for the presentation.

* THE CROWD runs Thursdays and Saturdays.

20060128its1p6nc20060128gzf7uqke(LA)At left, John and Janice Markley, Amanda McKerrow and William Thomas attend a South Coast Plaza reception for Ballet Pacifica.20060128its1nwnc(LA)Roxanne and Dan Stetson join Newport Beach residents Sharon and Greg Wohl at Jazz in January 2005, benefiting the Ocean Institute in Dana Point. The fourth annual Jazz in January 2006 is tonight, with an encore Sunday. 20060128its1ponc(LA)Amy Kim-Araneo, Tyler Stonebreaker, Danielle Schulz, and Susannah Fairbanks prepare for the upcoming Ballet Pacifica presentation “Kings of the Dance,” which opens Feb. 18 at the O.C. Performing Arts Center.