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Costa
Mesa
Costa Mesa is one of the fastest growing cultural, retail, and business
centers in the U.S. It's also the location of TOWN CENTER, universally
accepted as Orange County's cultural core. At first glance, the Town Center
complex resembles just another concrete-and-glass corridor of profes-sional
office buildings, a place one passes through on the way to somewhere else.
Take a closer look and you'll see that the facade of one of the buildings—Segerstrom
Hall—is graced with Richard Lippold's stunning steel-and-aluminum
Fire Bird. Segerstrom Hall and its companion tower, the more intimate
Founders Hall, compose the ORANGE COUNTY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER (OCPAC)
(600 Town Center Drive; 714/556-ARTS; www.ocpac.org). Segerstrom Hall,
with its 3,000-seat capacity, fantastic acoustics, and excellent sightlines,
hosts OPERA PACIFIC, the PACIFIC SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA, PACIFIC POPS, and
the
PACIFIC CHORALE, along with engagements by such world-renowned performers
as the AMERICAN BALLET THEATER and Sir Neville Marriner's ACADEMY OF ST.
MARTIN-IN-THE-FIELDS Orchestra. Founders Hall hosts the CHAMBER MUSIC
SERIES "A LITTLE LUNCH MUSIC" as well as a wide variety of concerts
offering jazz, blues, and other forms of popular music. Tours of both
halls are available Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. Adjacent to OCPAC
is the outdoor NOGUCHI SCULPTURE GARDEN. It parallels Anton Boulevard
(the intersection just east of Town Center Drive) and features Noguchi's
visually startling California Scenario, which simultaneously captures
the essence of the area's South-
western soul and the terror of the yawning San Andreas fault, all in the
tranquil setting of a Japanese rock garden. There are notable works by
HENRY MOORE, JOAN MIRO, and others as well. Costa Mesa's ascension to
the throne as the county's cultural crowned head began more than 35 years
ago, when SOUTH COAST REPERTORY (655 Town Center Drive; 714/708-5500)
opened its doors. Like Los Angeles's Mark Taper Forum, SCR mounts consistently
fine productions of wide appeal, often featuring big-name L.A. talent.
And, like the
Taper's, several of SCR's productions have gone on to the Great White
Way and have earned Tony awards there. Blessed with lovely tinkling fountains,
elegant courts, and an ornate and lovely children's carousel, SOUTH COAST
PLAZA (Bristol Street between Anton Boulevard and Sunflower Avenue, directly
across from OCPAC) and its adjacent partners—CRYSTAL COURT, SOUTH
COAST VILLAGE, and METRO SQUARE—compose one of the largest shopping
megalopolises in the world, where the best major department stores and
designer boutiques are only steps apart. Another nice stop to make in
this area is the ROBERT MONDAVI WINE & FOOD CENTER (1570 Scenic Avenue,
off S Harbor Boulevard; 714/979-4510) where, in a building set in a rose
garden and a sculpture garden, the Mondavi chefs share their secrets,
wine experts offer lectures, and there are various other wine and food
events. In amusing contrast to the ultra-modern, ultra-high-hat Town Center
and South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa is also the location of the ORANGE COUNTY
FAIR AND EXPOSITION CENTER (88 Fair Drive; 714/708-3247). The County Fair
runs annually in July, but almost every weekend of the year there's a
SWAP MEET—the best in the county—and admission is only a dollar.
In addition, there's a FARMERS MARKET each Thursday morning in the parking
lot, with incredibly fresh and delicious produce. In spring, summer, and
fall, enjoy hair-raising motorcycle racing at the SPEEDWAY, and tour CENTENNIAL
FARM, a genuine working farm, any time of the year.
Information on the above attractions is available by calling the fair
grounds (714/708-3247). The COSTA MESA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (1700 Adams
Avenue; 714/885-9090) offers further information on the town's attractions.
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