Strike a pose

Published: Monday, August 26, 1996

Friday, August 25, 1995

Pageant of the Masters brings art to life through elaborate sets, lightingBy Kristin Fiore

Summer Bruin Senior Staff

If museum art just doesn't "come to life" for you, you may want to visit the Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach. It's like a museum except the art is life-size, the walls are made of trees, and the ceiling is 10,000 miles high.

The stars are the perfect canopy for this unique spectacle that gives a second meaning to "performance art." This year, more than 280 volunteers participated in bringing nearly 40 famous paintings, sculptures and monuments to life through the magic of make-up, elaborate sets, special lighting, a live orchestra and narration.

Before the show guests meander through the Festival of Arts, a showcase of painting, sculpture, jewelry, photography and other singular items by nearly 160 local artists. A section is also reserved for Laguna's elementary and high school students, many of whom are extraordinarily talented. You won't believe the art that can roll off of a 10- or 15-year-old's fingertips.

Many artists have exhibits year after year, giving the festival a sense of familiarity and continuity for returning guests. However, there is also a lot of new talent, infusing the show with fresh blood each year.

As the sun dips behind the canyon, guests file into the Irvine Bowl for the Pageant of the Masters those in the know armed with binoculars and a blanket.

For many years there has been no particular theme to the pageant, but with new artistic director Diane Challis, this show incorporates many new or long-absent ideas. Presumably in the spirit of Atlanta's Olympic Games, the first half of the show focuses on "The American Masters," including Edward Hopper's famous "Nighthawks" and tributes to Lincoln and great American authors. The re-creation of the Lincoln Memorial is particularly moving and awesome.

The most fascinating part of the show is the chance to watch the cast assemble a re-creation, an element included more often this year than in the past.

Even though you see the elaborate set, the cast in their costumes getting in position and the props they use to hold themselves in place for the three or four minutes their work is on view, it does not prepare you for the effect the re-creation will have under proper lights.

Even through binoculars, it is difficult to tell that you are not looking at a two-dimensional painting right down to the dots in Georges Seurat's pointillism masterpiece, "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte."

The crown jewel of the American theme, the 1996 Olympic gold coin, is reserved for the second part of the show. It and the colorful Native American Kachina dancers, as well as many other sculptures, photo re-creations and porcelain and gold figurines, are testament to the fact that the pageant is dwelling less on paintings and more on other media, as well as more varied subject matter.

The second half of the show includes more traditional works like Edgar Degas and the always-popular gold Saltcellar by Benvenuto Cellini. And like every year, daVinci's "The Last Supper" closes the show this night, with a female Jesus for the first time.

The pageant also extends its use of areas other than the stage. The Virginia State Monument, the Robert G. Shaw Memorial and Daniel French's Abraham Lincoln confront the audience from the sides, making use of the Bowl's hilly topography and unique design. Other pieces tower above the crowd or stage, adding variety, majesty or mystery to the show.

The greatest enhancements of effect, however, are the music and commentaries. From before the curtain first opens to its final closing sweep, orchestra music arranged, conducted and (at times) written by Richard Henn and narration by Skip Conover give the history of and set the mood for each work of art. From the tragic story of Orpheus to the swinging days of the Gershwin-accompanied "Nighthawks," Henn and Conover share equal storytelling credit and provide what so many wish for while at a museum that vital link with the artist and the history that shaped his vision.

For 65 years The Pageant of the Masters and the accompanying Festival of Arts have given art lovers and even the "artistically challenged" an experience they can't find anywhere else and won't ever forget. From the casual outdoor atmosphere of the Festival to the nighttime magic and grandeur of the Pageant which seems to improve with each passing year, the afternoon and evening are well worth the drive, the price and the (very) early reservation of a date in your calendar.

Pageant/Festival: Pageant of the Masters and Festival of Arts run daily through Aug. 31 at Irvine Bowl Park, 650 Laguna Canyon Road. $2-3 for the Festival, $15-40 for the Pageant.

(top) Frederic Remington's "Comin' Through the Rye" comes to life at the Pageant.

(left) Live cast members re-create French artist Georges Seurat's 19th century painting titled "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte."