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Billy Crystal to Host NYU Tisch Gala on December 4th

By: Nov. 17, 2006
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New York University's Tisch School of the Arts (TSOA) will honor three of its most distinguished graduates as well as pay tribute to two distinguished members of the Broadway theatre community at its annual Gala Benefit on Monday, December 4, 2006 at Broadway's St. James Theatre (246 West 44th Street). Hosted by Billy Crystal '70, the evening will honor TSOA alumni Felicity Huffman '88, Tony Kushner '84, and George C. Wolfe '84 for their achievements in the performing arts. Gerald Schoenfeld, Chairman of The Shubert Organization, and Floria Lasky, President of The Frederick Loewe Foundation, will also be saluted for their generosity and contributions to Broadway and the American Theatre.

Event co-chairs are Margo Lion, producer (Hairspray, Wedding Singer) and TSOA Dean's Council member; Amanda Lipitz '02, producer (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Legally Blonde), TSOA Dean's Council member, and alumna; Jordan Roth, Resident Producer of Jujamcyn Theaters and producer (The Rocky Horror Show, The Donkey Show); and Brett Ratner '90, film director (X-Men: The Last Stand, Red Dragon), TSOA Dean's Council member, and alumnus. Bernie Brillstein, TSOA Dean's Council member, serves as Executive Producer.

Entitled Tisch on Broadway, this year's gala celebrating Broadway and the performing arts will include a pre-performance champagne reception, a live stage performance featuring well-known alumni (cast in formation) and directed by Artie Masella with musical direction by Seth Rudetsky, an awards and tribute presentation, and an after party at Blue Fin Restaurant to close out the evening.

Other celebrated alumni scheduled to appear include Alec Baldwin, Kevin Cahoon, Billy Crudup, Manoel Felciano, Jenn Gambatese, Jordan Gelber, Marcia Gay Harden, Steve Kazee, Katherine Kellner, John Lavelle, Michael Longoria, Jesse L. Martin, Matthew Morrison, Jennifer Naimo, Jerry O'Connell, Matthew Salidivar, Abigail Rose Solomon, Sean Patrick Thomas, Victor Williams, and Chandra Wilson. "This year's gala is especially exciting as we're raising funds not only for scholarships but for the rehabilitation of our original home, 111 Second Avenue, and the design and construction of a new performing arts facility. The list of alums from the theater community who are giving their time and energy in support of this event is truly humbling. We put out a call to our most distinguished theater alums, and the response was overwhelming. They've come back for one night only to lend a hand in support of the next generation of theater artists," said Dean Mary Schmidt Campbell. From a small theatre conservatory program in 1965, the Tisch School of the Arts has evolved into three dynamic institutes offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs at the bachelor, master and doctoral level across fourteen disciplines. Its 3,000 undergraduates and 700 graduate students come from every state and many foreign countries, and its faculty members have won virtually every prize awarded in the arts, including Tonys, Oscars, Bessies, and Grammies

Founded in 1965, NYU's Tisch School of the Arts enrolls 3,700 students in fourteen programs and departments, offering BFA, MFA, MA, MPS, and PhD degrees through the Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film and Television, the Skirball Center for New Media, the Institute of Performing Arts, and the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music.

The School's list of alumni comprise many of today's most celebrated artists, including: Pulitzer Prize winners Tony Kushner, ChAng Lee, and Doug Wright; Academy Award winners Marcia Gay Harden, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Charlie Kaufman, Ang Lee, Oliver Stone, and Jim Taylor; Tony Award winners Billy Crystal, idina menzel, Rachel Sheinkin, Jeff Whitty, Frank Wood, and George C. Wolfe; Emmy Award winners Kristen Johnston, John Leguizamo, Camryn Manheim, and Debra Messing; as well as acclaimed filmmakers Chris Columbus, Amy Heckerling, Jim Jarmusch, Martin Scorsese, and M. Night Shyamalan.

Ticket prices range from $500 to $250,000. For Gala ticket information, contact XA/STAMP Event Management at 877-519-7904.







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