Joe Imel/Daily NewsA fundraiser to benefit the Public Theater of Kentucky will be held at the home of Barbara and Rick Ball on Sept. 18 at 510 Briggs Hill Road. The home over overlooks Bowling Green.

Public Theatre of Kentucky is getting inspiration from the Golden State for its upcoming annual fall art auction and benefit.

“Public Theatre of Kentucky Goes California” will be at 5 p.m. Sept. 19 at the California-style home of Rick and Barbara Ball. For more information and location directions, call 781-6233.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. We’re excited to have it here,” Barbara Ball said. “It’s about being a part of the community. We want to do something to help support it.”

The fundraiser will feature a California theme, complete with a California wine tasting overseen by wine expert Blake Layne of Chuck Evans Liquors, cocktails, a California-inspired buffet, West Coast tunes and a viewing of Peridot Pictures historic film “Beauty of the Southland” and clips of PTK’s past productions.

The evening will also include silent and live auctions of two works of art signed by internationally acclaimed Kentucky artist Joe Downing, artwork by a variety of local artists, Tennessee Titans tickets, jewelry, trip packages, a box at Churchill Downs and more.

Subscriptions to PTK’s 2010-11 season will be available at the benefit. The season will include “Death of a Salesman,” “Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” “Romeo and Juliet,” Sunburst Youth Theatre’s “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and “Driving Miss Daisy.”

Proceeds benefit PTK and its Sunburst Youth Theatre.

“This benefit helps us carry on through the whole year. It helps us with our overhead,” said PTK producing director Delia Brown Osborne. “We’ve had the pleasure of having several people in the community host this event for us. We hope we continue to get the support from the community we have gotten in the past.”

While PTK’s shows often have sponsors, they and the box office sales don’t always cover the cost of the show, Osborne said.

“We try to keep ticket prices as low as possible,” she said. “The benefit helps us keep the lights on, the insurance paid and makes the show go on. It pays for whatever needs to be paid for.”

Event chairwoman Regina Newell agreed.

“Every arts group needs additional funding, and this is how we’re doing ours,” she said. “We do it with the generous help of our community.”

The Balls, who are California natives, worked with a Western Kentucky University architecture professor, who made the home a class project. Rick Ball supervised the design and construction of the house and created furniture and architectural elements. They are opening their home for the first time to PTK guests.

“Our home is contemporary. Rick did a lot of the work himself,” Barbara Ball said. “Our home was under construction for over a year, and we moved in in May.”