California Arts Council Awards $328,892 to 11 Groups : Funding: South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa receives largest amount. O.C. Philharmonic Society gets less than last year.

The California Arts Council on Thursday awarded $328,892 to 11 Orange County arts organizations.

Most grants were slightly higher than last year, but subsidies to three groups declined. The Orange County Philharmonic Society, one of the county’s oldest and most prominent cultural institutions, had the biggest decline.

The society, which presents touring orchestras and other performing arts groups from around the world, was awarded $20,687, down from $33,005 last year. An official for the society, which successfully appealed a council grant reduction two years ago, said Thursday that the group will decide whether to appeal this year’s award after it finds out why the amount was reduced.

The total to Orange County arts groups was up nearly 50% from what the same number of organizations received last year. A CAC official said that statewide, fewer arts groups applied for grants, leaving a larger pool to be shared by those that did.

Meanwhile, South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa won the year’s highest grant of $83,390. Opera Pacific, also in Costa Mesa, came in second with $53,273.

The Santa Ana-based Pacific Symphony took third place with $52,868 and won an additional $55,000 Challenge grant to support its commission of a symphonic-choral work commemorating the Vietnam War. The work, by New York composer Elliot Goldenthal, is slated to be premiered by the orchestra in 1995.

SCR’s top ranking of 4 (on the CAC’s scale of 1 to 4) was up from last year’s 4-. Pacific Symphony’s ranking rose from 3+ to 4-.

St. Joseph Ballet, which received $8,350, nearly doubled what it won last year. The Santa Ana-based company, which teaches dance to inner-city youths, saw its rank rise from 3+ to 4.

The Orange County Philharmonic Society’s ranking dropped from 4- to 3+ this year. Scott Wm. Heckes, a council program manager, said comments from CAC panelists that were used to determine grant amounts contained “nothing to suggest that artistically (the society had) any major deficits.”

However, Heckes said, “there appears to be concern that the society’s board lacks multicultural diversity,” and questions about the board’s degree of involvement in outreach efforts.

Further, Heckes said, according to the group’s application, dated March 21, fees paid to artists decreased from $764,000 to $544,000 from 1992-93 to 1993-94, while the society’s administrative salaries rose from $301,000 to $408,000.

“So it looks like artists’ salaries are going down and staff salaries are going up,” Heckes said, “and there are no notes in the application to explain those line items.”

The society’s executive director, Dean Corey, was out of town Thursday and could not be reached for comment. In June, when the group first learned its CAC ranking had been reduced, Corey said, “We’ll wait and see what they say. If we can appeal it, we certainly will.”

Maria Falcone, the society’s development associate for corporate and foundation grants, said Thursday that the group will reserve comment until it receives the CAC panelists’ written comments.

Last year, 11 county arts groups were awarded a total of $221,768. The council awarded a total of $5,262,700 to about 600 arts groups statewide.

Grant Recipients

The California Arts Council on Thursday awarded grants to 11 Orange County institutions. How this year’s awards compare to those last year:

Organization 1993-94 1994-95 % change Bowers Museum of Cultural Art * $13,093 -- Fullerton Civic Light Opera $4,705 6,514 +38 Laguna Art Museum 12,325 10,202 -17 Laguna Playhouse 5,984 8,376 +40 Master Chorale of Orange County 2,280 3,289 +44 Opera Pacific 53,928 53,273 -1 Orange County Philharmonic Society 33,005 20,687 -37 Pacific Chorale 7,571 13,850 +83 Pacific Symphony 38,641 52,868** +37 South Coast Repertory 57,765 83,390 +44 St. Joseph Ballet 3,426 8,350 +144

* Did not apply in 1993-94

** Also received a $55,000 Challenge grant

Source: California Arts Council; Researched by ZAN DUBIN / Los Angeles Times