It was the last Saturday of August, also the most anticipated event of Pageant of the Masters Festival of Arts in Laguna Beach, CA. Art connoisseurs and regular visitors were waiting this moment where they witness a triple treat – an annual celebrity event, concert sponsored by Acura and Kost 103.5, and the theatrical celebration of the “living pictures”. The event was headlined by Grammy Award Winner Artist Christopher Cross and hosted by Academy Award Winner Marcia Gay Harden.
The POTM’s world-famous theatrical recreation of memorable artworks theme was “The Genius” which showcased the lives and the extraordinary works of some of the greatest artists of all time – Michaelangelo, Vincent Van Gogh and the Dutch Masters to name a few.
It was indeed a night with “stars” under the stars. The ambience was perfect. The entrance to POTM was festive with a huge theme poster of “The Genius”. Nearby, the red carpet was rolled out with the backdrop of logos of Acura Advance, KOST 103.5, University of Redlands and Pageant of the Masters Festival of Arts was a hint that the event is about to start.
Despite the traffic at Laguna Canyon Road, everyone was enjoying the magic of the festival. Passersby and visitors wondered who would be walking on the red carpet aside from Christopher Cross and Marcia Gay Harden. The excitement of the crowd was palpable.
The first celeb that walked on the red carpet was Robert David-Hall from CSI followed by Academy Award Best Supporting Actress, Marcia Gay Harden. The other celebs were Gloria Allred – famous attorney, Barry Bostwick from Spin City, Annika Dries – 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist for water polo, Al Joyner – 1984 Gold Medalist for track and field, Richard Karn from Home Improvement, Christopher Knight as Peter Brady from The Brady Bunch, Jerry Mathers as Beaver Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver, Donna Mills from Knots Landing, Karen Sharp from KOST 103.5, Hal Linden from Barney Miller and Christopher Cross, Grammy Award Winner and the biggest new star of 1980.
At 6 pm, Christopher Cross and his band started to serenade the audience with his feathery voice. The crowd cheered with great enthusiasm. He was a great hit with every type of crowd – Baby Boomers, Generation X and Y. Cross’ performance was a perfect blend of pop and rock music. The music icon sang all his notable hits from the ’80s and the songs from his most recent album Doctor Faith. When he started to sing Sailing and Arthur’s theme Best That You Can Do the audience started singing and some of them waved their hands to the tune. Towards the end, the audience got up and danced and enjoyed themselves to the song Ride Like The Wind the highlight of Cross’ performance that evening. His voice has not aged a day and still expressed unblemished tone and managed to shine. Marites Calagday, a Christopher Cross fan said, “I was so star struck. He looked and sounded just the same as I remember. This is perfect….listening to Christopher Cross sing Sailing and Arthur’s theme Best That You Can Do under the stars with the stars in beautiful Laguna Beach.”
Overall, the Pageant of the Master celebrity event was a memorable experience. It exceeded my expectations and I am sure that the crowd is still raving about it.
Special thanks to Meghan Perez.
Sailing will forever be my favorite song to listen to while watching the waves crash against the shore. The song is timeless.
Thanks 90Domer. I grew up listening to CC song’s