Roundabout to Honor Sam Mendes at 2014 Spring Gala: IN HERE, LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL, Set for 3/10

Roundabout Theatre Company presents its annual 2014 Spring Gala "In Here, Life Is Beautiful" on Monday, March 10th, 2014 at the Hammerstein Ballroom (311 West 34th Street, NYC). The evening will be a celebration of Academy Award, Olivier and Golden Globe winner Sam Mendes, who will be presented with The Jason Robards Award for Excellence in Theatre.

Sam Mendes' association with Roundabout began by directing the Tony Award-winning Cabaret in 1998, and Roundabout is thrilled to welcome him back to Studio 54 to direct a stunning new revival of Cabaret starring Alan Cumming and Michelle Williams.

Roundabout Theatre Company's 2014 Spring Gala will begin at 7:00PM with dinner and a live auction, followed by an all-star tribute to Mr. Mendes. The tribute will feature performances by Ethan Hawke, Bernadette Peters, Marc Shaiman, Alan Cumming, Brian d'Arcy James, Aaron Krohn. Appearances will also be made by Helen Mirren, Jeremy Irons, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Cynthia Nixon, Kathy Bates, Dylan Baker, Richard Easton among others.

Underwriter ticket buyers and above are also invited to a private cocktail party with guest artists and VIPs at 6:00pm.

All proceeds from this event will benefit Roundabout Theatre Company's Musical Theatre Fund and Education programs. Award winning actress & Roundabout Board Member Cynthia Nixon will make an appearance on behalf of Education at Roundabout. Ms. Nixon will participate in a live auction to raise funds for the Roundabout extensive education programs, which serve over 6,000 students and teachers in schools throughout all five boroughs.

Gala Chairs Jeanne Hagerty and Johannes (Johs) Worsoe, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group

Vice Chairs The Alec Baldwin Foundation, Bill Borrelle & John Hearn, Barbara Broccoli & Michael G. Wilson, Michael T. Cohen, Colliers International NY LLC, Jodi & Dan Glucksman, Mary & Jay Goldberg, Sylvia Golden, Kiendl & John Gordon, Stephanie & Ron Kramer, Lisa & Gregg Rechler, Janet & Marvin Rosen, Diane & Tom Tuft

Auction Chair Sylvia Golden

Auction Vice Chair Janis Ing Strauss

Auction Journal Chairs Henry Cooperman and Steven Schroko

Wine and spirits are donated by Svedka Imported Vodka and Beaulieu Vineyard.

Ticket prices are:

**$5,000 Producer's Circle Single Ticket

(includes private cocktail party with Roundabout artists, seating at the dinner and tribute).

**$3,000 Underwriter Single Ticket

(includes private cocktail party with Roundabout artists, seating at the dinner and tribute).

**$1,500 Patron Single Ticket (includes dinner and tribute).

**10-person group table seating also available.

To purchase tickets to Roundabout's 2014 Spring Gala contact: Lane Hosmer, 212-719-9393 x312. For more information: www.roudabouttheatre.org/gala.

Roundabout Theatre Company is committed to producing the highest quality theatre with the finest artists, sharing stories that endure, and providing accessibility to all audiences. A not-for-profit company, Roundabout fulfills its mission each season through the production of classic plays and musicals; development and production of new works by established and emerging writers; educational initiatives that enrich the lives of children and adults; and a subscription model and audience outreach programs that cultivate and engage all audiences.

Roundabout Theatre Company presents a variety of plays, musicals, and new works on its five stages. Off-Broadway, the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, which houses the Laura Pels Theatre and Black Box Theatre, with its simple sophisticated design, is perfectly suited to showcasing new plays. The grandeur of its Broadway home on 42nd Street, American Airlines Theatre, sets the ideal stage for the classics. Roundabout's Studio 54 provides an exciting and intimate Broadway venue for its musical and special event productions. The Stephen Sondheim Theatre offers a state of the art LEED certified Broadway theatre in which to stage major large-scale musical revivals. Together these distinctive homes serve to enhance Roundabout's work on each of its stages.

American Airlines is the official airline of Roundabout Theatre Company. Roundabout productions are supported, in part, with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Roundabout's 2013-2014 season includes Sophie Treadwell's Machinal, starring Rebecca Hall and directed by Lyndsey Turner; Donald Margulies' Dinner with Friends, directed by Pam MacKinnon; Masteroff, Kander & Ebb's Cabaret, starring Alan Cumming, Michelle Williams, directed by Sam Mendes & Rob Marshall (co-director/choreographer); Tesori & Crawley's Violet, starring Sutton Foster, directed by Leigh Silverman; and Just Jim Dale, starring Jim Dale, directed by Richard Maltby Jr.

Roundabout's 2014-2015 season includes Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing starring Ewan McGregor & Maggie Gyllenhaal, directed by Sam Gold; Tom Stoppard's Indian Ink, directed by Carey Perloff; and Michael Frayn's Noises Off starring Andrea Martin, directed by Jeremy Herrin.

For more information, visit www.roundabouttheatre.org, or follow ROUNDABOUT THEATRE COMPANY on Twitter: @RTC_NYC and on Facebook.

Photo Credit: Tony Larkin/Dan Wooller//Rex