We turned on the light over the kitchen table and it appeared to arc. We turned it off and a few minutes later turned it on again. We now have no power to the dining area in the kitchen and to the dining room.

Did you check your fuse or breaker box? Blown fuse or tripped breaker is the likely cause.

Most likely is that your bulb shorted out and then took the breaker down.

Change the bulb in the fixture first, then reset the breaker or replace the fuse for this circuit.