Howard County Arts Council Announces 2015 Rising Star Finalists

The 18th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County will be held on Saturday, March 28, 2015 at the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center at Howard Community College (HCC) in Columbia. Lee and Steven Sachs, long-time residents of Howard County who support a number of worthy causes in the community and are strong advocates for the arts, will serve as Honorary Chairs for the Celebration. Richard W. Story, Senior Vice President, Community Relations and Government Affairs, and Business Development Liaison for Howard Bank, will serve as Event Emcee.

The Celebration is a multi-faceted event showcasing and promoting the arts and raising funds in support of the arts, artists and arts organizations in Howard County. A highlight of the gala is the Rising Star Emerging Performing Artist Award Competition, in which up to ten finalists compete for a cash prize of $5,000. In December, individual performing artists — aged 18 to 35 years and currently or recently living, working, performing regularly, or receiving training in Howard County — auditioned before a panel of professionals in their discipline. The winner of the Rising Star Competition will be selected by the Celebration audience of artists, arts patrons, business and political representatives and community members, with the award presented live on stage that evening!

The nine finalists performing at the Celebration are:

Kayleigh Decker, Classical Voice
Sola Fadiran, Musical Theatre
Chih-Jung Hsu, Violin
Thomas Hunter, Piano
Brittany Proia, Pop
Madeline Rodrigue, Contemporary Dance
Kirsten Salpini, Pop
Robin Steitz, Classical Voice
Madelyn Wanner, Classical Voice

Tickets to the 18th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County are available online at www.hocoarts.org or by phone to the Howard County Arts Council, 410-313-2787.