Top Things to Do in O.C.: January 8th through 14th
THROUGH JAN. 12
“SHOWOFF! INTERNATIONAL PLAYWRITING FESTIVAL 2025”
The first-place winners from the last seven years will comprise the plays competing against one another in this year’s festival. Each play is 10 minutes long, and the night will feature a captivating mix of comedy and drama. The audience takes part in the voting process to choose the best performance in this winner-takes-all competition. Camino Real Playhouse, 31776 El Camino Real, San Juan Capistrano, 949-489-8082, caminorealplayhouse.org
Photograph courtesy Segerstrom Center for the Arts
JAN. 9 THROUGH 11
“FOUR SEASONS & STRAUSS”
Led by the Pacific Symphony’s music director Carl St.Clair, the show will feature Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in its entirety and a performance of Strauss’ Alpine Symphony. The former captures the essence of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Strauss’ tone poem will feature incredible visuals transforming the experience into an immersive cinematic performance of a hike through Alpine peaks with the use of big screens. Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, 714-556-2787, scfta.org
Image courtesy South Coast Repertory
OPENS JAN. 12
“WISH YOU WERE HERE”
Five girlfriends must navigate through their tumultuous young lives in 1978 Iran as protests break out across the country and a revolution takes shape. The young women are still living their lives as normally as possible, planning weddings and exchanging jokes, but their uncertain future is becoming an imminent problem. They must decide whether to stay in Iran or leave. The comedy was written by Pulitzer Prize winner and Orange County native Sanaz Toossi. Julianne Argyros Stage, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, 714-708-5555, scr.org
THROUGH JAN. 12
JAY DEFEO: TREES
DeFeo derived much of her inspiration from nature, which she brought into her Berkeley studio. On view is a collection of drawings and black-and-white photographs of trees that she was inspired to create after spending over a year in Europe and North Africa in 1953. The exhibition also includes photographs DeFeo took in the Bay Area in the 1970s. Laguna Art Museum, 307 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach, 949-494-8971, lagunaartmuseum.org
