Howard County Arts Council Announces Celebration of the Arts Gala Performers

The Howard County Arts Council, celebrating 35 years of fostering the arts, is pleased to announce the guest performers for the 19th annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County gala. Featured this year are: Full Circle Dance Company and accompanist Ross Scott Rawlings. You can catch them, along with the ten finalists in the Arts Council's Rising Star Competition, at the Celebration gala on March 19, 2016 at 8 p.m. Emcee for the event is Richard W. Story, Senior Vice President, Community Relations and Government Affairs, and Business Development Liaison for Howard Bank.

Full Circle Dance Company, under the direction of Donna L. Jacobs, is a multiethnic professional ensemble that performs exciting choreography from a variety of modern dance traditions. Based in Baltimore, the company draws on the diverse backgrounds of its dancers and works in a collaborative spirit to bring technically stunning and emotionally challenging dance to a wide audience. Full Circle is the company in residence at Morton Street Dance Center, Inc. The important partnership between the school and company creates opportunities for professional dancers to share their knowledge with young dancers in training.

Ross Scott Rawlings has more than eighteen years of Broadway touring production credits, including both national and international productions. In addition to being the Director of Vocal Music at Glenelg High School, he has performed and directed with Toby's Dinner Theatre, Rep Stage, and Olney Theatre Center. He holds a BS in Music Education and Piano from Towson State University.

The Celebration is a multi-faceted signature event, showcasing and promoting the arts and raising funds for Howard County artists and arts organizations. In addition to the main stage performance, the evening also features a reception from 6-8 p.m. with a Silent Auction of work by local artists and delectable edibles from area restaurants and caterers. Reception entertainment will be provided by classical guitarist Bruce Casteel followed by the musical stylings of vocalist and 2012 Rising Star winner Samantha McEwen Deininger and pianist Stephen Deininger

The Celebration will take place in Columbia at Howard Community College's Peter and Elizabeth Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center. Information and tickets are available on the Celebration page of the Arts Council website athocoarts.org or by phone at 410-313-2787.

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