The Celebrity Benefit at the Festival of Arts and Pageant of the Masters, the most entertaining and star-studded night of the summer art season, will be held in Laguna Beach on Saturday, August 24. This red carpet one-night affair will offer guests an evening of fine art, entertainment and a special performance of this summer’s popular Pageant of the Masters, “The Time Machine.”
The event begins at 5 pm with a private viewing of the Festival of Arts Fine Art Show and red carpet arrivals walked by attending celebrities, including the evening’s Pageant host actor John O’Hurley. Other guest celebrities scheduled to appear are Jonathan Adams (Last Man Standing), Ginger Chan (KTLA 5), Shawn Christian (Days of our Lives), Robert Hays (Airplane!), Gregory Itzin (24), Eva LaRue (All My Children), Jerry Mathers (Leave it to Beaver), Joe Mantegna (Criminal Minds), Lea Thompson (Back to the Future), McKenzie Westmore (Face Off), Arianne Zucker (Days of our Lives) and many, many others.
“August 24th will be an incredible night,” says Sharbie Higuchi, Director of Marketing and PR for the Festival of Arts. “We can’t wait to share the evening with John O’Hurley, Melissa Manchester and our celebrity supporters… and we look forward to welcoming our most enthusiastic Festival and Pageant fans!”
Guests will enjoy an intimate concert on the Festival green at 6 pm, performed by Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated singer/songwriter Melissa Manchester and the Citrus College Blue Note Orchestra. Manchester’s career is remarkable not only for its longevity and accomplishments, but for its versatility. Following her stint as a founding member of Bette Midler’s Harlettes, Manchester’s tremendously successful solo career brought her critical and commercial acclaim. The “Midnight Blue” singer received her first Grammy nomination for Best Pop Female Vocal Performance in 1979 for the Peter Allen/Carole Bayer Sager-penned “Don’t Cry Out Loud,” winning the Grammy in that category four years later for “You Should Hear How She Talks About You.” Two songs she performed, “Through The Eyes Of Love” and “The Promise,” were nominated for Oscars in the same year. She has recorded over twenty albums across her four-decade career, releasing her most recent album, The Fellas, in 2017.
After the concert show, award-winning actor, best-selling author and tv host John O’Hurley will draw the winning ticket for a 2019 Acura RDX ($38,295 value). This is the conclusion of a summer-long raffle. Since the Festival season opened on July 5, visitors have been purchasing their raffle tickets in hopes of being the lucky winner. Raffle tickets will continue to be sold right up until 8 pm that night: $5 for one ticket, $20 for five tickets (winning ticketholder need not be present to win).
Culminating the evening, guests will enjoy a special performance of the 2019 Pageant of the Masters production of “The Time Machine,” introduced by the celebrity host John O’Hurley. O’Hurley won a Screen Actors Guild Award for his role as “J. Peterman” on Seinfeld. He has also won season one of Dancing with the Stars and named People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive.” He has hosted The National Dog Show, Family Feud and To Tell the Truth and voiced characters on Spongebob Square Pants and Phineas and Ferb. He appeared on Broadway and on stages across the country including Spamalot, Chicago and his one-man show A Man With Standards. As a composer/pianist, both of his albums “Secrets From The Lake” and “Peace Of Our Minds” have reached the Billboard charts. His three books have all been Amazon and New York Times Best Sellers. In 2012, he was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in recognition for his accomplishments in the Arts and Philanthropy.
Tickets are on sale now and range from $50–$240. There will be limited and open seating for Melissa Manchester’s performance and assigned seating for the Pageant of the Masters. The event is sponsored by Southern California Acura Dealers, KOST 103.5 and Yamaha. To purchase tickets, go online to www.PageantTickets.com or call 1-800-487-3378. The Festival of Arts is a non-profit organization that produces the Festival of Arts and the Pageant of the Masters.