Oakwood Schools Foundation (OSF) is excited to invite friends, families, alumni, and all art lovers and supporters to a one-of-a-kind community event taking place this Saturday, March 1, from 6 to 8 pm in the Oakwood High School Auditorium. The Oakwood Arts Gala, presented by Arzola Urology, brings together awardees from OSF’s recent Oakwood Student Arts Gala Contest as well as professional performers from the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance’s (DPAA).
Students with visual art to be featured include kindergarten through third graders, Gigi Gillis, Harriet Thorley, Ellie Fei, Katy Benjamin, Sweet Caroline Box, Judah Denton, Belle Garcia, Ella Maciup, Lillian Landers Miner, and Krosby Ball. Fourth through sixth graders, Alex Deibel, August Denton, and Emilia Power. Junior High students include Yusei Shibata and Zoe Long, and High School students include Stella Kulka, Izabella Bridgewaters, Kate Arzola, Gwen Marcello, Willow Staley, Meryl Wittmer, Violet Meehan, Matilda Prizler, Isabelle Fuqua, Anna Newman, Lili Kiewitz, Dustin Tatar, Ruxandra Paslaru, Hudson Perez Johnson, Riley Gengo, Tyler Cahill, and Eden Zonin.
The gala will also feature musical performances on The Whalen Family Stage by Elliott Fairfax (K-3rd), Noah Levinson (4th-6th), Max Kirschman (Jr. High), and Evelynn Buck (Sr. High).
DPAA performers include String Quintet members Youjin Na, Aurelian Oprea, Colleen Braid, Ellen Nettleton, and Jon Pascolini,as well as Opera Artists-In-Residence Soprano Gabrielle Flannery, Mezzo-soprano Isabel Randall, Tenor, Carl Rosenthal, and Baritone Randell McGee.
In addition to showcasing student art and highlighting local professional performers, guests to this ticketed ($5) event will enjoy hors d’oeuvres, mocktails, and a silent auction—all in support of upcoming enhancements to the Oakwood Auditorium as part of OSF’s Flourish Phase 2 initiative. Nearing completion, this phase of the Flourish Campaign for Oakwood’s Performing and Visual Arts includes planned improvements such as new theatrical rigging, increased electrical capacity, a state-of-the-art soundboard, as well as audio and lighting upgrades. These enhancements are designed to ensure the Oakwood Auditorium continues to meet the needs of future generations of Oakwood students and theatre guests.
Oakwood Schools Foundation remains grateful to the community for their continued support of this three-phase campaign, the first of which culminated in the February 2024 opening of the The Rick and Jane Schwartz Performing Arts Wing, now a beloved part of the building and critical to the increasingly popular band, orchestra, and choral programs at the Junior and Senior High. More details on the third phase of this campaign are expected over the summer as the second phase comes to a close.
For more information about the Oakwood Arts Gala presented by Arzola Urology, to purchase tickets, also available at the door, or to learn more about the ongoing seat renaming campaign, please visit www.givebutter.com/auditorium, email [email protected], or call 937-637-9104.