Thank you to everyone who supported the 8th Annual Masquerade Ball presented by General Mills!

This year’s event was a record-breaking one: 400 hundred attendees helped raise over $140,000 for arts education in Northwest Arkansas.

The evening began with a cocktail hour, complete with entertainment provided by the local acoustic quartet group Hogtown Hot Club, our silent auction, and the always popular Celebrate Arkansas Mask Competition. Quixotic kicked off the program with a mesmerizing performance. Event Chairs, James Beck (Coca-Cola) and Todd Hanus (Advantage Solutions) thanked event sponsors: Advantage Solutions, Kimberly-Clark, SAS Retail Services, Coca-Cola, Saatchi & Saatchi X, and Walmart.

Walton Arts Center President & CEO Peter B. Lane and Honorary Chair Judith McKenna (Walmart) gave inspiring remarks on why arts education is important and how Walton Arts Center impacts the Northwest Arkansas community. Grammy award-winning Fayetteville High School teacher Nathan Strayhorn told the attendees about his personal experience with integrating arts into his English class using skills he learned by participating in Walton Arts Center’s ARTeacher Fellowship program. Bentonville High School junior, Liam O’Dell gave a dynamic jazz performance with Fayetteville Jazz Collective member Ben Harris. O’Dell is a member of the NWA Jazz All-Star Youth Orchestra and has performed at Carnegie Hall’s High School Honors Performance Series.  The live auction was followed by music by Lagniappe, dancing, and dessert provided by the Walmart Museum’s Soda Shop Experience.

Thank you again to all who supported and attended Masquerade Ball! We hope to see you all next year!

For information about next year's Masquerade Ball, please contact Amy Freeman at afreeman@waltonartscenter.org.