Beth Leavel, Paulo Szot & More To Perform At New 42nd St Follies Benefit 5/11

The New 42nd Street announced today that its 3rd Annual New 42 Follies benefit will be hosted this year by Tony Award® winner Bill Irwin. The May 11 gala will honor Marian S. Heiskell, founding Chairman of The New 42nd Street Board of Directors and long-time arts advocate for the City and State of New York.

The New 42 Follies, taking place at The New Victory Theater, will feature performances from some of the hottest musicals currently on and off Broadway, including the 2009 Tony-nominated productions Billy Elliot, Guys and Dolls and Shrek the Musical, 2008 Tony winner South Pacific, Minsky's, and Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. Specific numbers and performers will include (in order of appearance):

"This Nearly Was Mine" from South Pacific, performed by Paulo Szot (Tony Winner) and accompanied by Fred Lassen

The Ballad of Farquaad" from Shrek the Musical, performed by Christopher Sieber (Tony Nominee) and accompanied by Jeanine Tesori (Tony Nominee)

"Home" from Minsky's, performed by Beth Leavel (Tony Winner) and accompanied by Larry Goldberg (piano) and Perry Cavari (drums)

"Electricity" from Billy Elliot, performed by one of the Billys
"Sit Down You're Rockin' The Boat" from Guys and Dolls, performed by Tituss Burgess

"An excerpt from "Le Grand Pas de Quatre" by Les Ballet Trockadero de Monte Carlo, performed by RoBert Carter, Fernando Medina Gallego, Joseph Jefferies and Raffaele Morra. Music by Cesare Pugni, Choreography by Jules Perrot, Costumes by Mike Gonzales and Lighting by Kip Marsh

Ticket Information

Individual tickets for New 42 Follies only start at $50 (limited availability). Individual tickets for just the cocktail reception and Follies program are available for $250. Individual Gala tickets start at $1,000. Gala tables start at $10,000.

Gala proceeds will benefit the projects of The New 42nd Street: The New Victory Theater, New 42nd Street Studios and The Duke on 42nd Street.
Co-chairs of the New 42 Follies include John Guare, Jennifer Gundlach, Fiona Howe Rudin and Meryl Poster. Committee members include Emily Blavatnik, Tory Burch, Adele Chatfield-Taylor, Robin Dubin Avram, Nathalie Gerschel Kaplan, Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, Monica Halpert, Margaret Munzer Loeb, Veronique Pittman, Jacqueline Sackler, Jessica Seinfeld and Claude Wasserstein.
About Gala Honoree, Marian Sulzberger Heiskell

This special performance honors Marian Sulzberger Heiskell for her exemplary commitment to the arts, most clearly evidenced by her work as the founding Chairman of The New 42nd Street, a position for which she was chosen in 1990 by the governor and mayor of New York. Under Marian's keen leadership, and guided by her boldness, intelligence and aspiration, The New 42nd Street has revitalized seven theaters on this historic block and created two unique projects: The New Victory Theater, New York's first theater for kids and families, and New 42nd Street Studios, prime rehearsal space dedicated to "the performing artists of the 20th and 21st centuries and to the spells they cast."
Marian's connection to the Times Square area runs deep - a former Director of The New York Times Company, she has been a proud granddaughter, daughter, wife, sister and aunt of the Publisher of The New York Times. Her accomplishments and influence, however, extend to all corners of New York City. She was the first woman to be elected to the boards of Ford Motor Company, Merck & Co., and Consolidated Edison Company of New York. She is also a dedicated environmentalist and an advocate for maintaining and preserving green spaces who has served as Honorary Chairman of the Council on the Environment of New York City, Chairman of the National Parks of New York Harbor Conservancy, and as a board member of Audubon New York, 42nd Street Development Corporation, The New York Botanical Garden, New Yorkers for Parks, and the Community Service Society of New York.

In September 1997, in recognition of her efforts to make New York City's neighborhoods green, vital and more humane, the Marian S. Heiskell Garden was opened on West 48th Street. Additionally, Marian and her late husband Andrew Heiskell have been jointly honored with The New York State Governor's Arts Award for their significant contributions to the artistic life in New York State, and as Living Landmarks by The New York Landmarks Conservancy for their ongoing preservation efforts.

To order tickets online and for further information, go to www.new42gala.org