Stars of the arts will be honored

The Laguna Beach Alliance for the Arts will honor Donald McKayle with the Legacy Award at the 2nd Annual Art Star Awards March 19 at [seven-degrees].

Tony Award-winning dancer and choreographer McKayle, who will be the keynote speaker, made his professional debut in 1948, and choreographed his first pieces with the New Dance Group when he was 18 years old.

McKayle was in the first performance of “West Side Story,” danced with Martha Graham, and was named one of “America’s Irreplaceable Dance Treasures” by the Library of Congress and the Dance Heritage Coalition.

He is the artistic mentor for the Limon Company, and has choreographed for Alvin Ailey Dance Company, to name but a few.

He is currently a professor of dance, modern technique and choreography at UCI.

As a prolific craftsman whose dances exist in many repertories and mediums, Donald McKayle is considered one of the most influential choreographers of our time, according to the Alliance for the Arts.

Organizations, businesses and individuals who have contributed and shaped the arts and culture of the community and the county will be acknowledged with Art Star Awards.

“Great art matters, perhaps now more than ever. We celebrate the achievements of those in our community who make Laguna Beach one of the finest arts communities anywhere,” said Alliance Chairman Dennis Power.

Alliance members from more than 20 Laguna Beach arts organizations submitted nominees in five categories.

The categories and the nominees are:

?Best New Arts Program: CaDance, Laguna Beach Dance Festival; Laguna College of Art & Design, Master of Fine Arts Program; and Laguna Beach Arts Commission, Juried Fine Art Exhibition.

?Arts Patron of the Year: Claes Anderson, Bobbi Cox, and Fidelity Investments.

?Outstanding Arts Collaboration: Hagan Place “Community,” Mike Tauber/Mark Porterfield; Project Skimboard, Festival of Arts/Sawdust Art Festival/[seven-degrees]; and First Sundays, Laguna Beach Live!/Laguna College of Art & Design.

?Innovation and Arts Leadership: Mark Chamberlain, owner and co-founder of BC Space; Festival of Arts 75th Anniversary; and Greg MacGillivray, president and co-founder of MacGillivray Freeman Films.

?Laguna Beach Artist of the Year: Diane Challis Davy, Louis Longi, and Bree Burgess Rosen.

The winner in each category will be announced during the Art Stars Awards event where they will be presented with a bronze sculpture created by artist Louis Longi. All of Longi’s sculptures are one-of-a-kind originals. Longi is known for his public art commissions throughout Nevada and Southern California, including Laguna Beach.

The Laguna Beach Alliance for the Arts was formed in 2002 as the result of a partnership among more than 20 Laguna Beach organizations. The mission is to serve as an advocate for the arts, promote collaboration and networking among the arts organizations of Laguna Beach and to serve as a united voice for the arts in the city.

For more information about the Alliance for the Arts, visit www.lagunabeacharts.org.