In The Arts

Get 2011 off to a creative start by attending First Thursdays Art Walk from 6 to 9 p.m. in Laguna Beach. Stroll and take a trolley on a self-guided tour and enjoy gallery openings, artist demonstrations and receptions, live music and other entertainment and refreshments. The free event and trolley service are open to the public. An Art Walk brochure that includes a map and a complete schedule of all the evening's special events is available at any gallery.

"I encourage everyone to experience the Art Walk and be instantly immersed in the cultural art scene of Laguna Beach," said First Thursdays Art Walk president Rebecca Barber. "It's the New Year, why not start it out with new art."

Art patrons are encouraged to visit all the featured galleries from Downtown to Gallery Row to Bluebird to Laguna Canyon Road, enhanced by performances by local musicians and gallery hospitality. Enjoy music and refreshments at SKYLAB Modern Art and the magical sounds of singer-songwriter Sam Curo at The Cottage Gallery.

Laguna Art Museum currently features the work of John Paul Jones, Megan Hart Jones, Edwin Roscoe Shrader and Sean Duffy, or enjoy a yogurt tasting while viewing photography by Stillman F. Sawyer, from the Festival of Arts permanent art collection, at FOASouth.

Additional featured artists include: New works by renowned painter Nancy Bush at Dawson Cole; David Limirite and Gerald Basil Stripling at JoAnne Artman Gallery; Walli Schauer at Quorum Art Gallery; European artist Claudia Meyer at Marion Meyer Contemporary Art; and Andriy Halaashyn and Luis Cornejo at saltfineart.

For more information, including a full listing of First Thursdays Art Walk galleries and featured artists, visit http://www.firstthursdaysartwalk.com.

*

Maestro comes to the Playhouse

Actor, musician and playwright Hershey Felder will return to The Laguna Playhouse Tuesday through Thursday in his latest production of "Maestro: The Art of Leonard Bernstein," a new work from the creator of "George Gershwin Alone," "Monsieur Chopin" and "Beethoven."