Center Benefit Offers Taste of Early California

About 130 people got a glimpse of Early California on Sunday at a champagne brunch presented by the Con Brio Chapter of the Guilds of the Orange County Performing Arts Center.

The brunch was held in the Hacienda restaurant in Santa Ana and included a fashion show of antique clothes from Con Brio member Anna Lee Shetler. The $40-per-person brunch raised about $5,000 for the Performing Arts Center.

A Taste of History

Guests piled their plates from a Mexican buffet loaded with cheese enchiladas, shrimp Vera Cruz, made-to-order omelets, a sombrero filled with tortilla chips, papas rancheros (potatoes with bell peppers, onions, cheese) and other spicy fare.

While guests dined, models (some of them Con Brio members) descended the staircase in the restaurant’s Early California-style Taos dining room. Many sported feathered bonnets and carried delicate lace parasols and beaded bags. Their floor-length dresses--with leg-of-mutton sleeves, high-neck collars and bustles--dated from 1840 to 1905. The clothing was in mint condition.

“If I could look that good in 140 years, I’d be happy,” joked Moira Niehaus, fashion show narrator and ways and means chairwoman of Con Brio.

“Look at that dress! That’s beautiful,” said one guest, as a model paraded by in a green silk taffeta gown from the 1880s.

Thin Was In

Many in the audience marveled at the Early California woman’s tiny proportions.

“You need a waist this big to wear those dresses,” said Rina Paterno Fox, chairwoman of the Con Brio chapter, holding her hands inches apart.

Most chapter members wore gaucho hats with their modern attire in keeping with the party’s theme.

After the show, guests could shop for original paintings, antiques and crafts at stands set up around the restaurant, or wander through the original adobe wing of the Hacienda, built in 1910 by the Brisco family.

Supporting the Arts

The Con Brio chapter, whose members come primarily from Tustin, Santa Ana and Irvine, is one of the oldest of the 35 chapters supporting the Performing Arts Center, according to Fiona Petersen, chairwoman of the guilds.

“Chapter members are like ambassadors for the Center,” she said.

Among those attending the brunch were Rolena Black, Hugh and Connie Coble, Jean and Fred Hamann, Shirley Hoestery, Vivien Owen, Barbara Reichel, Doreen Schlesinger, Oscar and Corynne Stricklin, Dee Trujillo and Faye Wilkinson.