Rising Star Winners Compete for All-Star Title and $5,000 Prize at the 20th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County

The Howard County Arts Council will celebrate 36 years of fostering the arts at the 20th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County on Saturday, March 25, 2017 at the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center at Howard Community College (HCC) in Columbia. In honor of Columbia's 50th anniversary, Padraic Kennedy, the first and longest serving president of the Columbia Association (1972-1998), will act as Honorary Chair. Richard W. Story, Senior Vice President, Community Relations and Government Affairs, and Business Development Liaison for Howard Bank, will serve as Event Emcee.

The Celebration is a multi-faceted event showcasing and promoting the arts and raising funds in support of the arts, artists, and arts organizations in Howard County. A highlight of the gala is the Rising Star Emerging Performing Artist Award Competition, in which up to ten finalists - aged 18 to 35 years and currently or recently living, working, performing regularly, or receiving training in Howard County - compete for a cash prize of $5,000. This year, a special 20th anniversary edition of the competition will feature previous winners vying for the title of Rising 'All-Star'. The winner of the competition will be selected by the Celebration audience of artists, arts patrons, business and political representatives, and community members, with the award presented live on stage that evening!

The seven performers competing at the Celebration are:

Samantha McEwen Deininger, Musical Theatre

Mark Dubac, Clarinet

Mark Edwards, Classical Guitar

Sola Fadiran, Musical Theatre

Alexander Francis, Piano

Maggie Kudirka, Contemporary Ballet

Tao-Chang Yu, Violin

Tickets to the 20th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County are available online beginning January 15at hocoarts.org or by phone to the Howard County Arts Council, 410-313-2787.