Matt Emma
Helping the youth explore their creativity can be a meaningful way to support a community’s future. When young people get the chance to play instruments, learn choreography, and perform in front of others, they can build confidence and skills that go far beyond the stage. That’s the heart of Orange County Music & Dance (OCMD), a community-based school that works to make the arts more accessible.
As a nonprofit home for musicians and dancers across the region, OCMD offers a place where private instruction, group training, and performance opportunities come together under one roof. The organization’s mission is to nurture artistic curiosity at every level while creating pathways for students who wish to pursue more advanced study. Its programs span introductory experiences designed to spark interest, structured classes that teach technique and musical literacy, and ensemble and performance settings that allow students to apply what they learn in community contexts.
OCMD’s educational approach is rooted in classical training that treats music as a universal language. Students learn to interpret and communicate through sound and movement, gaining a foundation that can support any artistic style or discipline they choose to pursue. This approach is supported by research suggesting that music education can enhance executive functions like working memory and cognitive flexibility. Similarly, dance-based movement supports mental imagery, multimodal sensory-motor integration, and visuospatial orientation.
Instruction is structured across three pillars: entry-level exploration for young learners, pre-professional training for aspiring artists, and multicultural programs that connect Orange County’s diverse communities. The organization embraces the idea of the arts as an essential part of educating the whole child. By including it alongside core competencies, such as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), the organization’s philosophy champions the STEAM model (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) as a reflection of how human ingenuity flourishes at the intersection of these disciplines. By positioning the arts alongside science and technology, OCMD affirms that creativity can fuel innovation and cultivate the kind of holistic thinking essential for the challenges of tomorrow.
The story behind OCMD is rooted in lived experience. Its founder, Charlie Zhang, came to the United States after facing hardship during his youth in China, finding comfort and hope through music. Those early moments inspired him to create a place where children could pursue artistic dreams regardless of financial or resource barriers. “Music was the small thing that let me remember who I wanted to be,” Zhang shares. “Creating a space where a child’s first encounter with an instrument is met with encouragement rather than cost felt like my calling.” His belief in the transformative power of the arts continues to shape OCMD’s mission.
Zhang’s vision found strength in collaboration with Doug Freeman, a longtime civic leader and philanthropist. Freeman’s experience in nonprofit strategy and community building helped translate the dream into a sustainable organization. “Philanthropy asks us to listen closely to the needs of our neighbors and then to respond with heart and planning,” Freeman says, emphasizing the arts’ ability to bind communities together.
More recently, Ralph Opacic, known for his decades of leadership in arts education and as founder of the Orange County School of the Arts, joined as interim CEO. “This is the moment to take careful, well-considered steps so that growth strengthens access rather than complicates it,” he states. Drawing on his experience guiding arts institutions through periods of growth, Opacic now leads OCMD through a pivotal expansion.
The school’s next chapter is already taking shape with a planned move to the Great Park in Irvine, envisioned as a cultural and community centerpiece for the region. The future facility will include dedicated rehearsal and performance spaces alongside athletic and recreational areas, inviting families to see creativity as an integral part of daily life. The OCMD Campus building will be an integral part of the Great Park’s Cultural Terrace vision. For OCMD, the relocation represents an evolution in how the arts can be experienced within a shared public space.
Through each phase of its growth, Orange County Music & Dance has remained grounded in its belief that arts education creates belonging. Guided by Zhang’s dream of access for all, Freeman’s passion for community, and Opacic’s vision for thoughtful expansion, the organization continues to shape young artists and a more connected, creative future.