Laura Linney Will Be Honored with William Shakespeare Award in D.C.

To acknowledge her outstanding contribution to classical theatre in America, Actress Laura Linney will be awarded the Shakespeare Theatre Company's prestigious William Shakespeare Award for Classical Theatre (Will Award) at the Harman Center for the Arts 10th Anniversary Gala on Sunday, October 15, 2017, at Sidney Harman Hall.

Linney, who most recently appeared on Netflix's new show Ozark, has been nominated three times for an Academy Award, four times for a Tony Award, once for a BAFTA Award, and five times for a Golden Globe. She has won a SAG Award, one National Board of Review Award, two Golden Globes and four Emmy Awards. While studying at The Juilliard School, Linney was a student of Michael Kahn, Artistic Director of the Shakespeare Theatre Company.

She joins an impressive group of classical theatre actors who have previously received the award, including: Charles Dance, Julie Taymor, Sir John Hurt, Stacey Keach, Dame Diana Rigg, Annette Bening, Sir Ian McKellen, Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Dame Judi Dench, Fiona Shaw, Ralph Fiennes, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Dame Maggie Smith, Sir Patrick Stewart, Sam Waterston, Christopher Walken, Morgan Freeman, Sir Kenneth Branagh, Christopher Plummer, Kevin Kline, the late Joseph Papp and Shakespeare Theatre Company Artistic Director Michael Kahn.

The gala will be held under the Honorary Patronage of His Excellency the British Ambassador and Lady Darroch. The Honorable Jane Harman and Barbara Harman will serve as Honorary Co-Chairs. Gala Chairs Landon and Carol Butler will lead a Committee of dedicated STC Trustees and supporters in the effort to raise vital funds for STC's arts education and community engagement programs.

More than 600 influential arts, business, political and philanthropic leaders attend this annual event, now in its tenth year. The evening will begin at Sidney Harman Hall with a champagne and wine reception, followed by the award ceremony and a world-class performance of musical theatre, opera, comedy, tragedy, modern dance and ballet; and it may feature some surprises. Guests will then enjoy a three-course dinner and dancing at the spectacular National Building Museum.

For more information or to purchase tickets, contact STC's Special Events Manager, Amanda Herman, at HCAGala@ShakespeareTheatre.org or at 202.547.3230 ext. 2330. For tickets and sponsorships visit www.shakespearetheatre.org/support/special-events/hca-gala.

Laura Linney is an American actress who works in film, television and theatre. Linney returned to Broadway in the Manhattan Theatre Club's spring revival of Lillian Hellman's hit, The Little Foxes, for which she received a Tony Nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play. The Little Foxes, directed by Tony winner Daniel Sullivan, alternates Laura and Cynthia Nixon in the lead roles of Regina Hubbard Giddens and Birdie Hubbard. In Ozark, a Netflix original series that debuted on July 21, 2017, Linney plays Wendy Byrde opposite Jason Bateman and Julia Garner. She was most recently seen in The Dinner, directed by Oren Moverman with Richard Gere, Steve Coogan and Rebecca Hall. The film premiered on May 5, 2017. Other recent film work includes Tom Ford's Nocturnal Animals, where she played Anne Sutton - Amy Adams' mother. While Linney's performance lasts only three minutes and 15 seconds, it was deemed "a one-scene wonder" by Entertainment Weekly. Other recent film credits include Sully, Genius, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of The Shadows, You Can Count On Me, Kinsey, The Savages, The Fifth Estate, Hyde Park On Hudson, The Squid And The Whale, Mystic River, Absolute Power, The Truman Show, Primal Fear, The Mothman Prophecies, Love Actually, P.S., The House Of Mirth, The Details and Congo, among many others. For four seasons Linney starred in, produced, and won several awards for the Showtime Series The Big C. She also won multiple awards for her portrayal of AbiGail Adams in the HBO miniseries John Adams directed by Tom Hooper. Early in her career, she starred as Mary Ann Singleton in Armistead Maupin's Tales Of The City series, a role she continues to be most proud of and grateful for. She appeared as Kelsey Grammer's final girlfriend in the last six episodes of Fraiser; was directed by Stanley Donen in Love Letters, and starred opposite JoAnne Woodward in Blind Spot. She has also appeared in many Broadway productions, most notably Time Stands Still and Sight Unseen, both directed by Daniel Sullivan and written by Donald Margulies. Additional credits include Arthur Miller's The Crucible, directed by Richard Eyre opposite Liam Neeson, Six Degrees of Separation, Honour, Uncle Vanya, Les Liaisons, Dangereuses, Holiday and The Seagull. Linney has been nominated three times for an Academy Award, four times for a Tony Award, once for a BAFTA Award, and five times for a Golden Globe. She has won a SAG Award, one National Board of Review Award, two Golden Globes and four Emmy Awards. She holds two honorary Doctorates from her alma maters, Brown University and The Juilliard School.

Recipient of the 2012 Regional Theatre Tony Award, the Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC) is the nation's leading premier classical theatre company. Today, STC is synonymous with artistic excellence and with making classical theatre more accessible to audiences in and around the nation's capital. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Kahn and Executive Director Chris Jennings, STC's innovative productions inspire dialogue that connects classic works to the modern human experience. In order to preserve and promote classic theatre for all audiences-ambitious, enduring plays with universal subjects-the Company focuses on works with profound themes, complex characters, and poetic language written by Shakespeare, his contemporaries, and the playwrights he influenced. A leader in arts education, STC has a suite of initiatives ­- from school programs and adult acting classes to accessible community programming like play-relevant discussion series and the Free For All - that teach and excite learners of all ages. For the past 25 years the Free For All program has offered an annual remount of a popular production completely free of charge to all audience members. Located in downtown Washington, D.C., STC performs in two theatres, the 451-seat Lansburgh Theatre and the 774-seat Sidney Harman Hall. In addition to STC productions that appear year-round, these spaces also accommodate presentations from outstanding local performing arts groups and nationally renowned organizations. The Company has been a fixture in the vibrant Penn Quarter neighborhood since 1992.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride