Howard County Arts Council Announces 2016 Rising Star Finalists

The Howard County Arts Council will celebrate 35 years of fostering the arts at the 19th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County on Saturday, March 19, 2016 at the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center at Howard Community College (HCC) in Columbia. Elizabeth and Kenneth Lundeen, long-time patrons of the arts in Howard County, 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 November, 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 ten finalists performing at the Celebration are:

Monica Albizo, Musical Theatre
Mark Edwards, Classical Guitar
Crystal Freeman, Musical Theatre
Joshua Hughes, Musical Theatre
Jenny Lehtonen, Flute
Esther Oh, Classical Voice
Cody Quattlebaum , Classical Voice
Elizabeth Rayca, Musical Theatre
Luke Spence, Classical Trumpet
Shing Ann Yeh, Cello

Tickets to the 19th Annual Celebration of the Arts in Howard County are available online beginning January 15 at hocoarts.org or by phone to the Howard County Arts Council, 410-313-2787.

For photographs of the finalists or for more information, call 410-313-ARTS (2787) or send requests to deputydirector@hocoarts.org.

Image (Lee Waxman): Sola Fadiran is presented with the 2015 Rising Star award at the Celebration of the Arts