‘On Screen' With MCASD’s 36th Annual Monte Carlo

The 36th annual Monte Carlo fundraiser for the was held Saturday night at the museum’s La Jolla location. With a Hollywood theme of "On Screen," over 260 dinner patrons arrived in cocktail attire for the fundraiser.

Guests walked the red carpet to the cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception. The reception was quite over-the-top with a caviar bar underwritten by Joan Jacobs.

Jacobs was part of the chairing Honorary Committee. She was joined by Nancy Browar, Valerie Cooper, David Copley, Gail Knox, Laurie Mitchell, Colette Carson Royston, Iris Strauss and Sheryl White.

Among the guests there were Linda Amamouche and Andrew Shelton, Rusti Bartell and Steven Rosenberg, Lee Clark and Jerry Pikolysky, Jennifer and Richard Greenfield, Blair Harris, Judith Harris and Dr. Robert Singer, Lynda and Richard Kerr, Robin and Gerry Parsky, Margo Schwab and Scott Johnston, Linda and Don Swortwood, May and Dr. Emad Zawaideh, and Emma and Leo Zuckerman.

Dinner by the Hyatt Regency La Jolla offered a beef filet, a grilled shrimp, and lamb chops with bountiful pours of Veuve Clicquot at the VIP tables.

Live on screen performances included Miwa Matreyek during dinner. Matreyek incorporated animation on screen animation with behind the screen live art performance.

After dinner with the late night arrivals offered artist Zefrey Throwell’s I’ll Raise You One strip poker performance. That one had quite a few jaws dropping.

A later performance featured Joey Arias, a NYC icon, enthralled guests with his mélange of drag artist wit combined with stellar cabaret. The party continued with DJ Victor Rodriquez mixing up dance tunes until curfew at 1 a.m. 

And it was all for a great cause. The annual Monte Carlo gala with varying themes is MCASD’s primary annual fundraiser. Over $5 million has been raised by this annual event thus far enabling crucial funding for the museum’s exhibitions and education programs.