McDonald, O'Hare, Crudup Part of Actors' Congress Jan 7-8

Audra McDonald, Denis O'Hare, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Billy Crudup, Kathleen Chalfant and Olympia Dukakis will be among the noted actors taking part in the first annual Congress of Actors and Acting Teachers, presented by the Actors Center at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts' Dorothy & Lewis B. Cullman on January 7th and 8th.

The Congress, which will feature the insights of 150 actors and 25 acting teachers, will be conducted by Daniel Okrent, a former New York Times editor. Other journalists and critics taking part in the proceedings include Charles Isherwood of The New York Times, Elysa Gardner of USA Today, Michael Feingold of The Village Voice, and Richard Schickel of Time Magazine.  The Congress will focus on the actor's role in art and society.

"The Actors Center was created in response to the needs of many of our most accomplished actors. It is the base where these established actors pursue artistic growth at peer level, guided by Master Teachers from around the world. It is an artistic haven, nurturing the development of the actor and advancing the art form itself," according to the organization's website.

The event is by invitation only.  For more information, visit www.theactorscenter.org.