Great Park launches “Flights & Sounds Summer Festival”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 2, 2010
CONTACT: JENN STARNES, 949-724-6574

Great Park Launches “Flights & Sounds Summer Festival”

Eight-week line-up of free Friday night dances and Saturday night concerts begin Friday, August 6th

IRVINE – Sizzling summer nights heat up with dance parties and concerts under the glow of the Orange County Great Park Balloon when Flights & Sounds Summer Festival returns to the Orange County Great Park. Flights & Sounds Summer Festival is an exciting and diverse eight-week line-up of music and dance parties on Friday and Saturday nights beginning August 6th and continuing through September 25th. The festival also includes live stand-up comedy and art exhibitions.

On Friday, August 6th, swing into the Great Park with Swingtown, the 11-piece band filled with brilliant horns, trumpets, trombones, saxophones and vocals galore as they launch Friday Night Dance Parties. The big band dance sounds of Swingtown will perform in front of historic World War II Hangar 244 beginning at 8:00 p.m. Don’t know how to boogie-woogie? Dance instructors will get you up and on your feet starting at 7:30 p.m.

Then on Saturday, August 7th, come back and enjoy the dynamic expression and intensity of Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles, the first all-woman professional mariachi ensemble in the United States as they kick off this season of Great Park Saturday Night Concerts. The Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles will instill an exceptional taste of mariachi with passion at 8:00 p.m. The evening kicks off at 7:00 p.m., with local comedians Patrick Keane, Eddie Barojas and Tim Chizmar.

“We are proud to present Flights & Sounds Summer Festival exceptional music and dance concerts including proven favorites and new discoveries,” said Larry Agran, Chair of the Orange County Great Park Corporation. “More than 25,000 people enjoyed last year’s concert and dance series and we look forward to welcoming even more people this year.”

Upcoming 2010 summer performers include a wide variety of first-rate artists, featuring a return engagement from Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, one of last year’s most popular performers. Other upcoming performers include the five-time Grammy Award-winning Blind Boys of Alabama, local surfing champion and artist Donavon Frankenreiter, ScrapArtsMusic, Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys, and BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet with Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and the Mardi Gras Indians.

Flights & Sounds Summer Festival is presented by the Orange County Great Park Corporation in partnership with Irvine Barclay Theatre. Concertgoers can watch the show from chairs provided in a temporary concert pavilion or bring their own chairs to listen to the music from the Great Park Lawn.

Before each performance, Hangar 244 is transformed into the Hangar Café, a lounge-like dining area serving up everything from snacks to full dinners, along with refreshments. The menu features themed items inspired by the global mix of musicians, and visitors can choose to also pre-order their picnics by visiting www.ocgp.org

The Orange County Great Park is located off the 405 or 5 Freeways at Sand Canyon and Marine Way in Irvine. Admission to Flights & Sounds Summer Festival dance and concert series is free, and parking is just $10.

The Orange County Great Park and its 1,347-acre master plan is the focal point of the redevelopment of the 4,700-acre former Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro. The Great Park is currently built out to 27.5 acres and includes an iconic tethered helium balloon that rises 400 feet in the air, providing an aerial view of Park development. A $65.5 million development plan to expand the Park to 200 acres is currently underway. The plan will build out a core section of the Park for the most immediate and wide-ranging public benefit, including a sports park, agricultural area and an art and culture exhibition space.

For the entire festival line-up and more information, go to www.ocgp.org.

####