Vocalist Leslie Lewis leads a sextet of musicians in a performance Wednesday, Aug. 2, in the Hotel Laguna Rose Garden.
Band members include pianist Gerard Hagen, bassist Peter Giron, drummer Jerry Kalaf, trombonist Joey Sellers and violinist Luis Mascaro.
The Laguna Beach Live series begins at 6 p.m. Doors open at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at www.lagunabeachlive.org or by phone at 800-595-4849.
Top Talents to Attend Festival of Arts’ Gala
The Festival of Arts’ “Pageant of the Masters” performance will be hosted by actor Bryan Cranston, with a pre-show concert by performers Herb Alpert and Lani Hall, on Saturday, Aug. 26. Tickets start at $50.
The legendary trumpet player, Alpert’s musicianship has earned him five top hits, Grammy awards and record sales topping 72 million.
Grammy Award-winning vocalist and producer Lani Hall started her singing career as the lead singer of Sergio Mendes’s break through group, Brasil ’66. The group recorded with A&M Records, co-founded by Alpert, who became her husband. Hall has recorded 22 albums in three different languages: English, Portuguese and Spanish.
Cranston, an award-winning television and theater actor, made his Broadway debut as President Lyndon B. Johnson in “All The Way.”
For more information or tickets, please visit foapom.com.
Festival Welcomes Children with Story Time
Jennifer Gray Olson, author and illustrator of “Ninja Bunny,” kicks off the weekly series Art and Story Time at 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 17, at the Festival of Arts. She will read and sign her book, which will be available for purchase at the Festival gift shop, 650 Laguna Canyon Rd.
The event is suited for children under 5 and features a different book read aloud and a hands-on art project each week. The event is free with Festival admission.
‘Hairspray’ Held Over
“Hairspray” will be extended another week through Saturday, Aug. 5, Laguna Playhouse announced.
Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., 2 p.m. on Thursdays and Saturdays and 1 p.m. on Sundays.
Tickets, $45- $80, can be purchased online at www.lagunaplayhouse.com or by calling 949-497-2787. The Playhouse is located at 606 Laguna Canyon Rd.
New Venue Opens for Jazz Artists
Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens jazz series features contemporary artists and composers Gerald Clayton and Kyle Eastwood, headliners at the 60th annual Monterey Jazz Festival, who are performing locally Friday-Sunday, Sept. 8-10.
Tickets are available online at www.CasaRomantica.org, by calling 949 498-2139.
Casa Romantica is located at 415 Avenida Granada in San Clemente.
Soka Adds New Series to Season
Packages are on sale now for Soka Performing Arts Center’s upcoming season, which consists of nine themed series of performances at the Aliso Viejo campus.
They are Chamber Music, International Symphony, Sundays at Soka (with Pacific Symphony), Jazz Festival, Jazz Monsters, World Music, Pop Classics, Colburn at Soka, and TenPints New Music, up-and-coming, local and touring musicians.
Packages can be purchased online at PerformingArts.Soka.edu, by calling (949) 480-4ART (4278) at at the box office, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.
