Redgrave's 'Magical Thinking' Benefit Performance Postponed

Entertainment Weekly is reporting exclusively that Vanessa Redgrave's performance of The Year of Magical Thinking, the one-woman stage show based on the loss of Joan Didion's husband and daughter has been postponed.

The play reports EW, which was scheduled to take place on April 27 at New York's Cathedral at St. John, will most likely be rescheduled by this Friday (the church's homepage will be updated accordingly), says a rep for St. John The Divine, who adds that they are all "deeply saddened" by the passing of Redgrave's daughter, Natasha Richardson.

The church it is said is also working very closely with the family to add a special memoriam for Richardson to the show.

The Year of Magical Thinking opened on March 29th, 2007 at Broadway's Booth Theatre. The one-woman production, written by acclaimed author Joan Didion and based on her best-selling memoir, starred Vanessa Redgrave (Oscar-winner for Julia).

The Year of Magical Thinking follows Didion, author of Democracy and Slouching Towards Bethlehem, reflecting on the sudden death of her husband of 40 years as her only child lay in a coma. "Capturing the compassion, humor, and bewilderment of a fiercely intelligent woman whose world lurches suddenly from the ordinary to the unimaginable, The Year of Magical Thinking is a love letter to a child and a tribute to an extraordinary, unconventional marriage told with raw candor and a storyteller's gift for the absurd," state press materials.

Joan Didion, David Hare and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Vanessa Redgrave were to come to the Cathedral for a special benefit performance of The Year of Magical Thinking. Funds raised will go to programs run by UNICEF, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and their partners to help provide much needed help to the children of Gaza and southern Israel.

The Year of Magical Thinking, written by Ms. Didion and directed by David Hare, is being performed by Tony-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave. This production was performed in 2007 on Broadway and at the National Theatre in London in 2008.

The decision to dedicate the performance and funds raised from it to the children of Gaza and southern Israel was made in recognition of the urgent need to provide the support necessary to reclaim their lives and contribute to the rebuilding of their communities after the recent violence. The prospects for long-term peace in the region will depend in part on providing critical assistance so that the children of today can be the peacemakers of tomorrow.

Donations to UNICEF will be used to provide for the special needs of Palestinian and IsraeLi Children affected by the recent conflict. UNICEF provides health, water, education and protection programs for children in Gaza. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports trauma counseling and psycho-social programs for children in southern Israel in partnership with local organizations. Since its inception following World War II, UNICEF has saved the lives of more children than any organization in history. Its work transcends race, religion, nationality, gender, politics and geography and is focused exclusively on helping all children achieve their full human potential.

In the Gaza Strip, UNRWA is a crucial lifeline. Its emergency services provide food, water, medicine, shelter and other necessities. During the recent violence, it was the only international organization that managed to continuously support the civilian population. In the aftermath, its focus is on helping children and their families rebuild their shattered lives, providing young people with an oasis of stability and normality, and responding to the widespread trauma they have suffered.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.