At the annual awards ceremony for the Orange County Press Club held on June 13, the writing team at Culture OC took home 14 awards, including five first place honors. Awards were received in every category entered by this publication. Because our team was writing for Voice of OC during the first half of 2023, we have also included those honors on this list.
In addition to accolades given for work written for Culture OC/Voice of OC, contributors Richard Chang, Jessica Peralta and Paul Rodriguez – and one of our board members, Christopher Trela – also received awards for work written for other publications.
All of our contributors’ honors are listed below. For the full list of awards, visit the OC Press Club website.
Best Arts/Culture Review
1st PLACE Timothy Mangan, “Alexander Shelley Vies for Pacific Symphony Conducting Job“
2nd PLACE Eric Marchese, “SCR’s ‘Quixote Nuevo’ is an Enjoyable Feast Marred Only by Too Many Thematic Ingredients“
HONORABLE MENTION Paul Hodgins, “Orange County Gets a Big Dose of Muti Magic“
Best Arts/Culture Story
1st PLACE Paul Hodgins, “How Has the Pandemic Hangover Affected O.C.’s Arts Scene?“
2nd PLACE Eric Marchese, “Stage Door Closes Its Doors, For Now,” written for Voice of OC
3rd PLACE Paul Hodgins, “Behaving Badly and Other Lamentable Public Trends: Is It Happening in OC Too?“
HONORABLE MENTION Christopher Trela, “Maestro for a Day: My Conducting Debut with Pacific Symphony,” written for the Newport Beach Independent
Best Arts/Culture Story or Review, Sponsored Content
1st PLACE Richard Chang, “Rarely seen Lee Krasner paintings underscore Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum’s value to the community,” written for Cal State Long Beach
HONORABLE MENTION Richard Chang, “More than Just a Phase: L.A. Gallery Helps UCI Art Students and Alumni,” written for UC Irvine
Best FEATURE STORY, Sponsored Content
HONORABLE MENTION Richard Chang, “Formerly incarcerated women find a second chance through Project Rebound,” written for Cal State Long Beach
Best Food/Restaurant Story
2nd PLACE Anne Valdespino, “CBD Power Lunch at Knife Pleat“
3rd PLACE Anne Marie Panoringan, “Panoringan: Santa Ana’s Culinary Scene Is Trending,” written for Voice of OC
Best Music/Entertainment Review
1st PLACE Timothy Mangan, “Kluxen’s Debut Impresses, Launching Pacific Symphony’s Conductor Tryouts“
Best NEWS FEATURE STORY, Sponsored Content
1st PLACE Richard Chang, “CSULB students aim to help alleviate housing crisis with sustainable tiny house,” written for Cal State Long Beach
Best NEWS photo
HONORABLE MENTION Paul Rodriguez, for The Orange County Register
Best Profile
1st PLACE Anne Valdespino, “Feliz Navidad! It’s Bilingual Santa’s Busiest Time of Year“
3rd PLACE Eric Marchese, “Jazz Legend Monty Alexander Brings His Swingin’ Musical Talents to the Barclay“
Best Round-Up or Best Of
1st PLACE Anne Valdespino, “Great Places for Cocktails in Orange County, Part 1: New Classics” and “Great Places for Cocktails in Orange County, Part 2: More New Classics“
2nd PLACE Christopher Trela, “Favorite Dining Experiences of 2023,” written for the Newport Beach Independent
3rd PLACE Richard Chang, Kristina Garcia, Timothy Mangan, Eric Marchese, Anne Marie Panoringan and Kaitlin Wright, “What’s Coming Up in Arts & Culture for 2023?,” written for Voice of OC
Best SPORTS photo
2nd PLACE Paul Rodriguez, for The Orange County Register
Best Travel Story
1st PLACE Christopher Trela, “California’s Central Coast Offers Wonderful Wines and Unique Experiences,” written for the Newport Beach Independent
Best USE OF MULTIMEDIA
1st PLACE Jessica Peralta (with her colleagues Emily Reyes, George O’ Connor and Shawn Price), “Creepmas is Trending,” written for the Halloween Every Night
3rd PLACE Jessica Peralta (with her colleagues Kitae (Thomas) Kim and Shawn Price), “The Hotel Who? Returns for Spring with ‘A Love Story’,” written for the Halloween Every Night
The Real O.C. Award
3rd PLACE Anne Valdespino, “CBD Power Lunch at Knife Pleat“
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