BRIEFLY IN ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Pageant of the Masters casting call

The Pageant of the Masters is looking for men, women and children to volunteer for next summer’s show, “Young at Heart.”

People of all sizes and ages are needed as cast members in the event, which is staged nightly during the summer at the Irvine Bowl.

Prospective volunteers will be measured and photographed, enjoy refreshments and meet the behind-the-scenes pageant staff. No theater experience is necessary. The only requirement is the ability to stand still and have fun.

In addition to needing volunteers to pose in the pageant, volunteers are needed for positions in the wardrobe, makeup, and headdress departments, as well as cast area coordinators and refreshment servers, among other positions.

The casting call will be held at the following times: Saturday, Jan. 6,from 7 to 9 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 7, from 2 to 5 p.m. and Thursday, Jan. 11, from 7 to 9 p.m. backstage at the Irvine Bowl, 650 Laguna Canyon Rd. For more information, call (949) 494-3663.

The 2007 Pageant of the Masters, Young at Heart, will be staged July 7 through Aug. 31. A gala benefit performance will be held on Aug. 25, 2007.

Tickets are on sale now; call (800) 487-3378. The Festival of Arts is a nonprofit organization whose proceeds go to support the arts.

Legacy Project members hold lecture

A lecture and panel discussion by the six members of the Legacy Project, whose work is included in the Laguna Art Museum’s OsCene 2006, will discuss the Great Picture Project from July 2006 that involved turning a former airplane hangar at the El Toro air base into the world’s biggest camera.

The lecture will be at 1 p.m. Dec. 10. at the museum. For more information, call (949) 494-8971.

Concert band stages free concert Sunday

A free holiday celebration featuring a wide variety of music by the Laguna Community Concert Band will take place at the Artists’ Theatre, 625 Park Ave., at 3 p.m. Sunday.

The concert will open with a “Symphonic Prelude on Adeste Fideles,” followed by “Hanukah Is Here” and a flute ensemble playing Christmas carols.

The band is playing two favorite Leroy Anderson numbers — “Sleighride” and “A Christmas Festival.” SwingSet will play three Christmas numbers in jazz style, featuring vocal soloists Linda Hughes and Neil Kleinman.

The specialty sax group (Sax Appeal) will play in the patio at intermission, and Santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive at the end of the program to lead the audience in a sing-along; the professional trombone group (Laguna Bones) will play the whimsical “Trombones on the Housetop.”

The Thurston Singers, under the direction of Roxanna Ward, will join the band and Linda Hughes in a production medley of “Christmas On Broadway.” The eight singers from Thurston Middle School will also present their own specialty number of “Christmas Is Coming and We Are Getting Fat.”

The band, now in its eighth year, under the direction of Bill Nicholls and Ed Peterson. It is supported by grants from the City of Laguna Beach, local lodging establishments and the Festival of Arts.

Refreshments will be available at intermission. For further information, call 497-2658.

Laguna College part of best of O.C.

Laguna College of Art & Design is featured in the current “Orange County on Display” exhibition at John Wayne Airport, on view now through Feb. 2007.

The exhibition, which gives a visual sampling of the history, architecture, arts, natural and educational components of the county, is installed in the Vi Smith Concourse Gallery on the secure side of Terminals A and B.

For information on escorted tours, call (949) 252-5124.

Gallimaufry holds comedy fundraiser

Gallimaufry Performing Arts is joining with the Irvine Improv (in the Irvine Spectrum) to hold a fundraising night of comedy on Dec. 18.

The performance by Roxanna Ward, the A.D.D. Ensemble and Steve Josephson, the Gallimaufry’s executive director, is at 7 p.m., and is $50 per person, which includes a drink and an appetizer.

For more information, visit www.gallimaufry.info or call (949) 499-5060.

Film society screens ‘Miss Potter’ film

The Laguna Beach Film Society will stage an advance screening of “Miss Potter,” the story of Beatrix Potter, starring Renée Zellweger and Ewan McGregor, at 7 p.m. Dec. 21 at South Coast Cinema.

The film opens commercially on Jan. 12, with limited screenings starting Dec. 29.

Registration and a light dinner are from 6 to 7 p.m. at the Wells Fargo Community Room on Ocean St. The film screening follows at South Coast Cinema beginning at 7 p.m. Following the film, a Q&A; session takes place at the Wells Fargo Bank Community Room.

The $15 tickets may be purchased at the Wells Fargo Community Room beginning at 6 p.m. or at the South Coast Cinema prior to the screening. Those who join the Laguna Beach Film Society will receive free admission as part of their membership.

For more information, call (949) 494-5872, ext. 201, or visit www.lagunaart.org.

Laguna appraiser receives certification

Personal property appraiser Rebecca Markman has been awarded Certified Appraiser of Personal Property designation by the International Society of Appraisers, the highest level of recognition the society can bestow.

There are less than 125 such appraisers in the United States and Canada.

Markman has lived in the area since 1991; she is a current Chamber of Commerce member, and has worked in the past for the Laguna Art Museum and the Peter Blake Gallery. She holds degrees in art history, art librarianship and appraisal studies, and specializes in appraisals for 19th and 20th century American and European antique furniture, tableware, silver, glass, porcelain, pottery and paintings.

For more information, call (949) 429-1276 or visit www.rebeccamarkman.com.