RSVP / ORANGE COUNTY : Winter Gives Off a Warm Feeling : For those who attended last year’s traditional ball, the campy theme for the Opera Pacific gala is like a change of seasons.

A make-believe ice rink, skaters and several inches of artificial snow transformed the Hyatt Regency Irvine into a “Winter Wonderland Fantasy” for the 11th annual Opera Ball.

Attending the Saturday night gala for Opera Pacific were 450 guests; the women in sparkling gowns of winter white and the men in black tuxedos. The $175-per-person benefit was expected to net about $100,000 for Opera Pacific, Orange County’s professional opera company.

Strauss Goes Hollywood

For those who attended last year’s ball--a more traditional Strauss waltz gala--the campy winter wonderland theme was like a change of seasons.

“There’s this connotation that, ‘Oh, it’s an opera ball. It’s going to be very stuffy and staid.’ They’re in for a big surprise. We’re going to knock their socks off,” said event co-chairwoman Barbara Venezia. Floss Schumacher, chairman emeritus of Opera Pacific, praised the wonderland theme. “I think it’s darling. It’s a change from our regular format, which was due,” she said.

Guests were greeted at the door by a large polar bear and a half-dozen real-life snowflakes--women dressed in white fur-trimmed skating skirts with towering bouffant hair and their faces painted a sparkling blue.

“They’re supposed to guess my (last) name. So far one of them guessed ‘snow,’ ” said John Flake, an Opera Pacific supporter who had a ready response to those who teased him about his last name: “There are a lot of flakes around,” he quipped.

Polar Setting

While many women wore gowns of glittering white beads and sequins in keeping with the winter theme, a few turned heads with more colorful attire. Opera buff Karen Hardin dressed in a red taffeta gown with a full skirt and a long cape.

“I already had 35 yards of red taffeta on the line when they announced the dress was winter white,” she said.

Guests sat at tables adorned with ice skates balanced on mirrors. Small stuffed polar bears were at each place setting. Dinner included avocado filled with crab and shrimp, bundles of baby romaine with bleu cheese dressing, filet mignon and roasted vegetables and a formal presentation of Baked Alaska for dessert--an appropriate choice for a wintry setting.

Venezia and co-chairwoman Donna Crean kicked off the entertainment by arriving on stage in a sleigh driven by two body builders.

The festivities began with roller skaters spinning around on a white dance floor that was decorated to look like an ice pond, complete with vintage lamp posts and park benches. Later, dancers and soloists gave a musical revue of tunes from the ‘30s and ‘40s, with students from the Music School for the Performing Arts in Orange and the Fred Astaire Dancers performing to “Tuxedo Junction” and other favorites. In between the performances, guests took their turns on the floor.

Faces in the crowd included David DiChiera, general director of Opera Pacific; celebrities Buddy Ebsen, Stan Freberg, Anne Jeffries and Jane Withers; fashion critic Mr. Blackwell; Chris Dickson; Ruth Ding and Lock Gee; Ann Dozier-Rutherford; Bob and LaDorna Eichenberg; Richard and Jolene Engel; Gerald and Petrina Friede; Niles Gates and Andrea Hacecky; Scott and Mary Lou Hornsby; Jim and Nora Johnson; Lorre Mehlinger; Wally and Gerry Schroeder; Hal and Jeanette Segerstrom; Lon and Mary Ann Wells, and Herb and Milli Wieseneck.