John Kander, the renowned, Tony Award-winning composer of such beloved musicals as CHICAGO, CABARET, KISS OF THE SPIDERWOMAN and many others, will be honored by Vineyard Theatre at the company's annual Gala on Monday, March 8th beginning at 6 PM at the Hudson Theater in Manhattan, it has been announced by Douglas Aibel, Artistic Director of Vineyard Theatre. David Hyde Pierce - Tony Award-winner for his appearance in the musical CURTAINS by John Kander and his collaborator, the late Fred Ebb - will host.
A host of top-name theatre artists are expected to perform and pay tribute to Mr. Kander and the work of Kander and Ebb at the March 8th Gala, a benefit for the Vineyard Theatre. That roster of participants will be announced at a later date.
Vineyard Theatre recently announced that the new musical THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS - written by composer John Kander and lyricist Fred Ebb - will be given it's world premiere production at The Vineyard, with previews beginning February 12th prior to an official opening March 10th. Tony Award-winner Susan Stroman will direct and choreograph the musical with a book by David Thompson. THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS marks the second time Vineyard Theatre has produced a Kander and Ebb musical; their FLORA, THE RED MENACE was given a critically acclaimed production during The Vineyard's 1987-1988 season.
Vineyard Theatre - the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning theatre company - is one of the nation's leading theatres dedicated to developing and presenting new plays and musicals.
Previous Vineyard Theatre Gala honorees include luminaries such as Tony Award winner Marian Seldes (who appeared at The Vineyard in THREE TALL WOMEN); playwrights Edward Albee and Paula Vogel (each who won Pulitzer Prizes for their plays at The Vineyard, THREE TALL WOMEN in 1993 and HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE in 1998 respectively); Tony nominee Kathleen Chalfant (a member of the theatre's Board of Directors, and has previously appeared in The Vineyard's productions of TRUE HISTORY & REAL ADVENTURES and THE PARTY) and Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon. The Vineyard's past Galas have also featured performances and special appearances by stars such as Eartha Kitt, Lewis Black, Penny Fuller, John Guare, Julianne Moore, Bart Freundlich, Lili Taylor, Anna Paquin, S. Epatha Merkerson, Judy Kuhn, Cheyenne Jackson, Michael Berresse, Joe Morton, Paul Rudd, Patricia Clarkson, Betty Buckley and the cast of [title of show], among others.
