The Howard County Arts Council Announces 24th Annual Celebration Of The Arts

There's still time to reserve your tickets for Howard County's signature arts event, the Celebration of the Arts in Howard County on Saturday, October 2, 2021 from 7:00-9:00pm at thea??Jim Rousea??Theatre for Performing Arts in Columbia, Maryland.

Tickets to the Celebration are $40 and may be purchased online at hocoarts.org/celebration. A virtual ticket option including a live-stream of the event is also available.

Doors open at 6:00pm for the Special Preview Art Auction featuring works by local artists, followed by the main event at 7:00pm - the Rising Star Performing Arts Competition and presentation of the Howie Awards!

The Rising Star competition gives emerging performers with local ties the opportunity to vie for a no-strings-attached award of $5,000. Audience members (both in-person and virtual) will enjoy performances by nine finalists, then vote for their favorite. The votes will be tallied, and a winner announced on stage that evening! The Rising Star finalists who will perform at the 2021 Celebration are Lizzi Albert, Theatre; MaryKate Brouillet, Musical Theatre; Alyssa Cox, Classical Voice; Amanda Cunningham, Singer-songwriter; Teresa Deskur, Recorder; Daisha Graf, Dance; Madhulika C. Nallani, Dance; Eleanor Parks, Musical Theatre; and Gabrielle Stanback, Violin.

The Howie Awards honor individuals or businesses that have made a significant impact on the arts in Howard County. This year's recipients are: Linda Joy Burke, Outstanding Artist; Patricia Hunter and Eric Posner, Outstanding Arts Educators; and Phyllis Madachy, Outstanding Community Supporter of the Arts (posthumously). A special Legacy in the Arts Award will also be presented to Linda and Philip Press.

Liz Bobo and Lloyd Knowles will act as honorary co-chairs for the Celebration. Joseph W. Ritsch, producing artistic director for Rep Stage, will serve as event emcee.

All guests attending the Celebration of the Arts live at the Jim Rouse Theatre for Performing Arts on Saturday, October 2, 2021, will be required to wear a mask for the duration of the event and upon entry, will be required to show proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 (vaccine card or photo of card) or a medically administered laboratory-based negative test result from within the 48 hours prior to the event, along with a photo ID.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit hocoarts.org/celebration or call 410-313-ARTS (2787).