Thinking World Beat, Producing Locally

Lucinda Prewitt was sitting in a high school drama department office getting ready to launch the Laguna World Beat concert series when a telephone answering machine fielded a call typical of so many others:

“I was calling to see if you could use a piano or organ,” a local businessperson said. “Just let me know.”

“I can’t say enough about the support within this community,” said Prewitt, a Laguna Beach resident who is coordinating the multicultural series. “Steve Wood of Honk and Dave Edwards of the Laguna Playhouse are helping with the sound, [UC Irvine drama department chairman] Cameron Harvey is handling the stage lighting design, and a local architect, Charlie Bell, is drawing up plans for a sound diffuser board. . . .”

Another key player is Sundarajan Mutialu, the programming director of the San Juan Capistrano Multicultural Art Series. He has volunteered to coordinate the selection of artists for Prewitt’s series, which kicks off Sunday afternoon at Thurston Middle School with a concert by Paraguayan harpist Alfredo Rolando Ortiz.

The concert will take place in the school’s new Pinto Family Amphitheatre, named for local philanthropist Michael Pinto and his family, who spearheaded the drive to rebuild the school after portions were destroyed by the fire of 1993. (Sunday marks the third anniversary of the fire.)

After the Ortiz concert, the series--which is to include one or two programs a month by internationally known musicians and dancers--will move indoors, to the Artists’ Theatre at Laguna Beach High School. Confirmed performers and dates are Makina Loca, a high-octane Afro-Cuban rhythm act, Dec. 14; Gypsy-inspired violinist Kim Angelis (who was raised in Newport Beach), Jan. 11; the Neva Russian Dance Ensemble from San Francisco, Feb. 15; and Celtic folk musicians Begley and Cooney, March 15.

The Artists Theatre has undergone a $1-million renovation, funded by the city and the school district before the recent budget cutbacks. The face-lift has resulted in a tiered 465-seat theater with excellent sight-lines and acoustics.

In ‘91, as director of the Laguna Beach Education Foundation, Prewitt was campaigning to get funds for educational activities. “Part of my sales pitch,” she says, “was emphasizing that the Artists’ Theatre would give something back to the community.” Five years later, the World Beat Series is her way of keeping her promise.

“This series offers cultural enrichment and entertainment that isn’t available anywhere else in town,” she said. “The students need exposure to the type of cultural and ethnic diversity we’re offering. They can even get hands-on work experience by volunteering to help with the lighting and sound.”

Ortiz, a native of Cuba who is on the current touring roster of the California Arts Council, has a repertoire that includes music of the African, Hispanic and South American cultures. He said he feels “privileged to open the series, and my repertoire fits in nicely with its theme and goals.

“The harp can be gently soothing, but my style also is quite upbeat in my use of dancing, striking rhythms. I think some folks will be pleasantly surprised by the harp’s wide-ranging scope.”

Ortiz is especially happy that the series is being aimed at students as well as adults.

“It’s shameful what’s been done in California to remove the arts from the school curriculum,” he said on the phone from his home in Corona. “A generation growing up without formal exposure to the arts is a tragedy.” As school budgets cut deeper, he said, such series as World Beat should be nourished.

* Who: Alfredo Rolando Ortiz.

* When: Sunday, 4:30 p.m.

* Where: Thurston Middle School, 2100 Park Ave., Laguna Beach.

* Wherewithal: $15 for adults, $10 for students.

* Where to call: (714) 497-ARTS, (714) 497-7769.

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THE LAGUNA WORLD BEAT SERIES

* Sunday: Alfredo Rolando Ortiz at Thurston Middle School, 2100 Park Avenue.

* Dec. 14: Makina Loca at Laguna Beach High School, 625 Park Ave.

* Jan. 11: Kim Angelis at the high school.

* Feb. 15: The Neva Russian Dance Ensemble at the high school.

* March 15: Begley and Cooney at the high school.