Orange County Music & Dance has announced the acquisition of a second building in the city of Irvine that will accommodate an expansions of the nonprofit’s resources and programs.
Representatives of the after-school pre-K to 12 performing arts school, dedicated to “cultivating the whole child through a rigorous and programmatic path to mastery,” estimate the increased space will allow the institution to grow it enrollment by 400 students.
“This new campus will open up significant new opportunities for OCMD to expand its capabilities for serving the Orange County community with programs that span early childhood through adult arts education,” Ralph Opacic, the school’s chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Orange County Music & Dance was founded by Charlie Zhang, a musician-turned-entrepreneur who established the Chinese food takeout eatery Pick Up Stix after joining the restaurant industry when he could no longer afford music school.
While serving as a board member for the Pacific Symphony, Zhang met fellow member Doug Freeman, and the two created OCMD in 2016 with the goal of ensuring local children could follow their dreams of studying music despite financial hardships.
Today, the performing arts school remains steadfast in its mission to “nurture, inspire, and empower Orange County’s youth to pursue their artistic dreams through outstanding instrumental and dance education” and continues to be a place for community members of all ages to gather for artistic opportunities.
For those aged 5 to 18, OCMD offers lessons, classes, ensembles and performance opportunities, while the Music and Dance conservatories provide pre-professional training for students in grades 9 to 12.
Additional resources, like recording services and Operation Gig, a program for U.S. military veterans, are just some of the ways the school brings the arts to the wider community.
A rendering of the future home of Orange County Music & Dance at the Cultural Terrace in Irvine.
(Courtesy of the city of Irvine)
The purchase of the 25,000-square-foot new building, near the intersection of the 55 and 405 freeways in Irvine, will double the school’s instructional space to a total of 50,000 square feet.
“It will provide the resources to truly be the premier performing arts program accessible to people of all ages. We are deeply grateful for the support we’ve received from our generous donors and our board for making this new facility and program expansion possible,” Opacic said.
The new building is also located near OCMD’s Fitch Campus in Irvine, located at 17620 Fitch Ave. The new Cowan Campus, at 17872 Cowan Ave., is a less than a five-minute walk from the current campus.
The new grounds will accommodate five large dance and rehearsal studios, 10 smaller teaching/rehearsal studios, six music rehearsal rooms, a state-of-the-art keyboard lab, advanced music production studio and open areas for recitals.
The expansion will also allow for additional early childhood music and dance programs as well as conservatory and and pre-conservatory programs. New world music and global sounds program and more offerings for adults are also in the works.
Prior to announcing the recent expansion OCMD backed out of plans to build a proposed 85,000-square-foot facility at the Great Park Cultural Terrace at Irvine’s Great Park. Board members cited “unforeseen delays” and other practical and financial considerations as reasons for the nonprofit’s departure from the project.
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