The City of Santa Clarita and the Santa Clarita Valley Education Foundation are inviting community members to the fifth annual Literacy and Arts Festival at Newhall Park on Saturday, December 3, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  The event will showcase theater groups, authors, and creative activities to promote the importance of literacy and arts for residents of all ages.

The Literacy and Arts Festival features different types of attractions including stage entertainment, interactive and hands-on activities, and roaming fictional characters.  Through an interactive activity called “Read a Painting,” attendees learn how to develop a deeper appreciation of fine arts.  Other activities in this category include giant ice sculpting and a pop-up town display that incorporates arts education with lessons in math and architecture.

In preparation for the event, the SCV Education Foundation and City hosted an art and writing contest among four grade divisions at participating Santa Clarita schools.   The event will spotlight submissions from the contests, which center on this year’s theme – “the art of saving.”

The festival also welcomes the return of the popular theater group Once Upon An Opera, who will perform a rendition of the childhood classic Little Red Riding Hood.  Also performing at the event are members of the Placerita Junior High School Drama Department, who will present Suessical the Musical.  The event will feature international storyteller Michael McCarty, who will share stories about cultures from around the world.

Several local schools will participate in the event by providing a variety of hands-on activities to promote the fine arts, mathematics and music.  The College of the Canyons TEACH club will host a puppet making station for children to design their favorite storybook characters.  Valencia High School, Arroyo Seco Junior High, Sequoia Charter School and the Castaic and Newhall School Districts are sponsoring mask making, math projects, art block painting and more.

For more information about the Literacy and Arts Festival, please contact City Community Service Coordinator Donna Avila at 661-250-3785 or visit scveducationfoundation.org.