MCC's MISCAST Honors Tomei, Schreiber, Busch et al. 3/14; Bravo's Andy Cohen Hosts

MCC Theater (Robert LuPone, Bernard Telsey, Artistic Directors; William Cantler, Associate Artistic Director; Blake West, Executive Director) will celebrate the company's 25th anniversary by honoring a host of MCC artists past and present at Miscast 2011. This highly anticipated annual gala will take place on Monday, March 14, 2011 at The Hammerstein Ballroom (311 West 34th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues). Andy Cohen (Host of Bravo TV's "Watch What Happens Live") will host the evening. David Duchovny (star of the recent MCC Theater hit, The Break of Noon), Téa Leoni, Hugh Dancy (star of yet another recent MCC hit, The Pride) and Claire Danes are this year's honorary chairs. Funds raised from Miscast help MCC Theater produce some of the most talked-about new work Off Broadway and support their Youth Company and in-school partnerships that serve New York City public high school students, as well as their literary development work with emerging playwrights.

Complementing the glittering Miscast will be Christian Borle (Angels In America, Legally Blonde), Justin Guarini ("American Idol," American Idiot, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown) and Josh Henry (Scottsboro Boys, American Idiot).

"We are doing something completely different to celebrate our 25th Anniversary," explained Artistic Director Bernard Telsey. "This year we are not honoring one person, but rather a group of superb artists, all alumni of MCC, who inspire us by their willingness to take big leaps and risks and, in doing so, have helped make MCC an Off Broadway leader."

Miscast 2011 will honor:

Jo Bonney Director, Fat Pig 2005, The Break of Noon 2010 and more
Patrick Breen Founding member, actor/playwright, Fast Eddie 1987 and more
Charles Busch Actor/playwright, The Third Story 2009
Norbert Leo Butz Actor, Fifty Words 2008
Kathleen Chalfant Actor, Wit 1998, Family Week 2010
Veanne Cox Actor, The Wooden Breeks 2006, Spain 2007
Rosemarie DeWitt Actor, Family Week 2010
David Greenspan Actor/playwright, Coraline 2009
Michael Greif Director, The Distance From Here 2004, A Very Common Procedure 2007 and more
Peter Hedges Playwright, CLASS1ACTS, Good as New 1993 and more
T.R. Knight Actor, Scattergood 2003
Swoosie Kurtz Actor, Frozen 2004
Neil LaBute Playwright, Fat Pig 2005, Reasons to Be Pretty 2008 and more
Melissa Leo Actor, The Distance From Here 2004
Judith Light Actor, Wit 1999, Colder Than Here 2005
Joe Mantello Director, The Pride 2010, The Other Place 2011
Elizabeth Marvel Actor, Fifty Words 2008
Brían F. O'Byrne Actor, Frozen 2004
Sarah Paulson Actor, Colder Than Here 2005, Still Life 2010
Amanda Peet Actor, The Break of Noon 2010
Piper Perabo Actor, Reasons to Be Pretty 2008
Adina Porter Actor, Girl Gone 1994
Connie Ray Actor, Fast Eddie 1987, Forgetting Frankie 1990 and more
Thomas Sadoski Actor, Reasons to Be Pretty 2008
Liev Schreiber Actor, The Mercy Seat 2002
Leigh Silverman Director, Coraline 2009
Lucy Thurber Playwright, MCC Youth Company Playlab director
Marisa Tomei Actor, Beirut 1986, Sharon and Billy 1988
Frederick Weller Actor, In a Dark Dark House 2007, Still Life 2010
Michael Weller Playwright, Fifty Words 2008, Side Effects 2011

Miscast 2011 is a musical spectacular featuring Broadway's hottest stars performing songs from roles in which they would never be cast. This year's roster of performers for this one-of-a-kind theatrical evening includes Tony Award Winner Norbert Leo Butz (Catch Me If You Can), Brian d'Arcy James (next to normal, Shrek), Ana Gasteyer ("SNL," Wicked), Laura Osnes (Anything Goes), Nicole Parker ("MadTV," Wicked), Steven Pasquale (On A Clear Day...) with many more favorites to be announced. Musical Director for the evening is Phil Reno.

To inquire about purchasing tickets or tables, or for more information, contact Glenn Grieves at (212) 727-7722 ext. 233 or ggrieves@mcctheater.org or visit www.mcctheater.org/galamiscast. Show-only tickets will go on-sale at least three weeks prior to the event.

The schedule for the evening is as follows:
6:30 p.m. Cocktails and Silent Auction
7:30 p.m. Dinner and Honoree Celebration
8:45 p.m. Miscast 2011 Revue

This year's auction will be hosted online with CharityBuzz and will be live from March 1 - 24th. Please visit www.charitybuzz.com/auctions/miscast for more information.

MCC Theater's production of Sharr White' The Other Place, directed by Joe Mantello and starring Laurie Metcalf begins performances March 10, 2011. Later in the season, MCC's 25th Anniversary season will conclude with Michael Weller's Side Effects, directed by David Auburn.

MCC Theater is currently celebrating its 25th anniversary season as one of New York City's leading Off Broadway theater companies, committed to presenting New York and world premieres each season. When MCC Theater was founded in 1986, its mission was simple: to bring new theatrical voices to theater-going audiences. MCC Theater continues to accomplish this yearly through three programmatic areas: its mainstage works; its Playwrights' Coalition, which actively seeks and develops new and emerging writers; and its Education & Outreach Programs, including the Youth Company, which allow more than 1,200 students yearly to experience theater, increase literacy and discover their own voices through the creation of original theater pieces. Notable MCC Theater highlights include: the 2008 Tony Award-nominated reasons to be pretty by Neil LaBute, last season's The Pride, Fifty Words, the 2004 Tony-winning production of Bryony Lavery's Frozen; Neil LaBute's Fat Pig; Rebecca Gilman's The Glory of Living; Marsha Norman's Trudy Blue; Margaret Edson's Pulitzer Prize-winning Wit; Tim Blake Nelson's The Grey Zone and Alan Bowne's Beirut. Over the years, the dedication to the work of new and emerging artists has earned MCC Theater a variety of awards.

For more information about Miscast 2011 and MCC Theater, visit www.mcctheater.org.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos