Baldwin, Lippa & More Lead Westport's Gala Salute to Stephen Schwartz 9/13

Some of Broadway's best and brightest talents will perform in a one-night-only salute to theater and film composer Stephen Schwartz at Westport Country Playhouse's 2010 Annual Gala on Monday, September 13.

Taking the stage in "The Magical Music of Stephen Schwartz" will be, in alphabetical order, Kate Baldwin, Darius de Haas, Andrew Lippa, Julia Murney, Christiane Noll, Steven Pasquale, Max Von Essen and Ben Vereen. In addition, Schwartz himself will perform. More artists will be announced soon. Many of the performers have a close affiliation with The Playhouse and are alumni of previous productions or galas there.

Kate Baldwin starred on Broadway in "Finian's Rainbow," for which she received nominations for Tony and Outer Critics Circle awards. She currently appears in Westport Country Playhouse's musical, "I Do! I Do!," through September 4. Darius de Haas has appeared on Broadway in "Kiss of the Spiderwoman," "Carousel," "Rent," among others, and regionally in Schwartz's "Children of Eden."

Andrew Lippa is a performer and composer, who most recently wrote the music and lyrics for "The Addams Family," now playing on Broadway. Julia Murney last appeared on Broadway as Elphaba in Schwartz's "Wicked" after playing the role on the national tour for which she received an Acclaim Award. She was in Schwartz's "Snapshots" at Westport Country Playhouse in 1996.

Christiane Noll starred on Broadway in the Kennedy Center Revival of "Ragtime," for which she earned Tony and Drama Desk award nominations and a Helen Hayes Award. Steven Pasquale created the role of Fabrizio in the Tony Award-winning "The Light in the Piazza" and is best known for his starring role as fireman Sean Garrity on FX TV's "Rescue Me."

Max Von Essen was most recently in the national tour of "Xanadu" and on Broadway in the revival of "Les Misérables." Ben Vereen won a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Stephen Schwartz's "Pippin," and also starred in Schwartz's "Wicked" as the Wizard of Oz.

Honoree Stephen Schwartz has contributed music and/or lyrics to "Godspell," "Pippin," "The Magic Show," "The Baker's Wife," "Working (which he also adapted and directed), "Rags," "Children of Eden" and the current Broadway hit, "Wicked." For films, Schwartz collaborated with Alan Menken on the songs for Disney's "Enchanted," as well as the animated features "Pocahontas" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." He also penned the songs for the DreamWorks animated feature "The Prince of Egypt."

A book about Schwartz's career, "Defying Gravity," has recently been released by Applause Books. He was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Other awards include three Academy Awards, four Grammy Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, and a tiny handful of tennis trophies. http://www.stephenschwartz.com

Acclaimed director Joe Calarco will helm the 2010 Gala production, "The Magical Music of Stephen Schwartz." Calarco directed "Footlights and Film: A Celebration of the Great Musicals from Stage and Screen" for The Playhouse's 2008 Gala.

Music director Mary-Mitchell Campbell was the recipient of the Drama Desk Award in Outstanding Orchestrations for her work in Stephen Sondheim's Broadway musical "Company."

The fundraising evening, beginning at 6 p.m., will include pre-show cocktails and sumptuous fare in The Playhouse garden to the sounds of Brazilian Jazz by the Joe Carter Quartet, performance and post-show champagne and dessert celebration. In addition, there will be a silent auction of unique and one-of-a-kind items throughout the evening.

Honorary gala chairs are Kate and Bob Devlin of Southport; gala chairs are Kim and Niv Harizman of Westport. Gala lead corporate sponsors are Virgin Atlantic Airways, Westport Resources, and NewAlliance Bank. Additional corporate support includes Bank of NY Mellon and Catamount Wealth Management.
Patron level gala tickets are $1,000 per person. Corporate sponsorship packages are available. For more information or ticket purchases, call Kathryn Gloor at (203) 227-5137, ext. 122, or kgloor@westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to The Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse) and/or follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse).

About The Playhouse

Westport Country Playhouse, a not-for-profit theater, serves as a treasured home for the performing arts and is a cultural landmark for Connecticut. Under the artistic direction of Mark Lamos and management direction of Michael Ross, The Playhouse creates quality productions of new and classic plays that enlighten, enrich and engage a diverse community of theater lovers, artists and students. The Playhouse's rich history dates back to 1931, when New York theater producer Lawrence Langner created a Broadway-quality stage within an 1830s tannery. The Playhouse quickly became an established stop on the New England "straw hat circuit" of summer stock theaters. Now celebrating its 80th season, Westport Country Playhouse has produced more than 700 plays, 36 of which later transferred to Broadway, most recently the world premiere of "Thurgood" and a revival of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" with Paul Newman, and in earlier years "Come Back, Little Sheba" with Shirley Booth, "The Trip to Bountiful" with Lillian Gish, and "Butterflies Are Free" with Keir Dullea and Blythe Danner. For its artistic excellence, The Playhouse received a 2005 Governor's Arts Award and a 2000 "Connecticut Treasure" recognition. It was also designated as an Official Project of Save America's Treasures by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is entered on the Connecticut State Register of Historic Places. Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, The Playhouse transformed into a year-round, state-of-the-art producing theater, which has preserved its original charm and character. In addition to a full season of theatrical productions, The Playhouse serves as a community resource, presenting educational programming and workshops; a children's theater series; symposiums; music; films; and readings.

Westport Country Playhouse's five-play 2010 season: "She Loves Me," a romantic musical comedy, with book by Joe Masteroff, music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, directed by Mark Lamos, April 20 - May 15; "Dinner with Friends," a comic drama by Donald Margulies, directed by David Kennedy, Playhouse associate artistic director, June 1 through 19; "Happy Days" by Samuel Beckett, a play of luminous beauty and rare power, directed by Mark Lamos, July 6 through July 24; "I Do! I Do," an endearing musical, with book and lyrics are by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt, directed by Susan H. Schulman, August 10 through September 4; and "The Diary of Anne Frank," a timeless and powerful classic, by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, adapted by Wendy Kesselman, directed by Gerald Freedman, September 28 through October 30.

Westport Country Playhouse is located at 25 Powers Court, Westport, CT. www.westportplayhouse.org. Stay connected to The Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse) and/or follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse).