The Santa Clarita Performing Arts Center (PAC) at College of the Canyons fulfills an important civic function in providing 187,000 community residents with a venue in which to nurture a wide variety of performing arts. Last year, more than 60,000 visitors came through the PAC's doors to attend concerts, plays, special events, community engagements and educational programs in the  spectacular 926-seat proscenium theater. The PAC's mission is to build a loyal audience by developing multicultural performances and corresponding educational workshops.

The PAC opened its doors in the summer of 2004 and the 47,000-square-foot facility quickly emerged as the cultural center of the community. As the only large performing arts venue within the Santa Clarita Valley, PAC staff and college administrators work closely with the City of Santa Clarita's Arts & Events Office, local arts organizations, community members and school districts to ensure that the facility is doing all that it can to support arts development in the area. The PAC annually books diverse, world-class artists and also serves as a performance venue for the college's Music, Theatre and Dance departments as well as for many local arts groups. The PAC also spearheads a valley-wide effort to bring arts education outreach to a broad cross section of the community.

In 2007, the PAC identified a need to expand programming to reach broader audiences and more diverse populations as well as to provide more opportunities for its community's youth. To further these efforts, the college hired new Managing Director, Adam Philipson, whose experience includes the creation of the 541-seat Broad Stage in Santa Monica, the production of several new works, and the creation of an opera camp in partnership with the Los Angeles Opera. Under Philipson's direction, the PAC has greatly expanded its outreach programs and looked for innovative ways to

cultivate appreciation of the performing arts, and make the performing arts a vital and integral part of Santa Clarita life, for all residents.

To broaden and diversify audiences by offering relevant programming, the PAC received a grant from the James Irvine Foundation to support an expanded outreach effort to attract Latinos and Spanish-speaking populations in Santa Clarita, both within the PAC and through community partnerships. In 2009, the PAC presented a performance by three-time Grammy Award-winning Latin roots rock band, Los Lobos, preceded by a free workshop at the Santa Clarita

Community Center. The public was invited to learn about 'son jarocho' music. That partnership with the City of Santa Clarita also included the presentation of In The Ring, which last year presented 'Alma de Mexico' and this year's In the Ring II, which will bring the talents of Jose Luis Orozco

to the Center.

This year the PAC has continued to present diverse performers, staging Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano during the Christmas holidays; the Peking Acrobats; and, in May of 2011, will be welcoming Ballet Folklórico 'Quetzalli' de Veracruz. This professional dance company is celebrating its 25th anniversary and is helping to inspire multicultural awareness within the north Los Angeles County community while fostering an appreciation for its members' Mexican heritage.

"What we want to do at the PAC is to continue to make it the cultural address of the Santa Clarita Valley," said Philipson. "We are creating connections between artists and their art, the community, and education. We want the Santa Clarita Valley to see the PAC as its cultural arts home."

For more information or to purchase tickets visit the Santa Clarita Performing Arts Center website at www.canyonsPAC.com