Theatre Of The Oppressed NYC To Host 2024 Fall Fundraising Event TONYC's Fight-Raiser

Theatre of the Oppressed NYC (TONYC) will host "TONYC's Fight-Raiser" on October 24 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. ET at The People's Forum. TONYC's Fight-Raiser is a night of creative activation in response to the systemic underfunding of NYC's communities. The event is part of the company's 2024 fall season, "Uppercuts to Budget Cuts," a fight-themed cycle of programming that encourages all of us to fight for justice and resources for arts and social service organizations across the city and beyond.

About the event: At TONYC's Fight-Raiser, rehearse creative interventions and connect with artists and organizers who are preparing New Yorkers to get the resources and policies we need. Come dressed to fight, impress, thrill, intimidate, or dazzle! Costumes welcome. The MC will be Obie-winning Broadway director Stevie Walker-Webb.

The evening will include:

• A sparring demonstration by members of Trans Boxing, including TONYC's Executive Director Sulu LeoNimm!

• Performances by Theatre of the Oppressed NYC and Radical Evolution

• Tabling by Broadway Cooks, NYCLU - Prop 1 / Equal Rights Amendment Ballot Proposal, Ring of Keys, The People's Budget, The Circle Keepers, New Yorkers for Culture and Arts, and Theater Workers for a Ceasefire

More to be announced.

An in-person raffle will feature tickets to the 2024-2025 seasons of Classic Stage Company, Rattlestick Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, and more, and memberships to select fitness studios including 305 Fitness and BKlyn Cycle. A simultaneous online auction, currently live, features tickets to the 2024-2025 seasons of Ars Nova and English at Roundabout Theatre Company, custom jewelry, a Manhattan Plaza Health Club package, and more. Event tickets start at $40.

This event will also feature catering by Just Soul Catering and conversation. Spanish interpretation will be sponsored and provided by Yei Tochtin. The People's Forum is ADA accessible and has gender-neutral restrooms.

Executive Director Sulu LeoNimm had this to say about the event: "At TONYC, our toolbox is connection, and each connection we make builds the potential to sustain and encourage each other, however we style our fight. TONYC's Fight-Raiser, our fall benefit will mark our first in-person benefit in four years. Our fundraising goal for this year is $100k. This is more than we've ever called on from our communities, but we - like many many other organizations - have seen reduced support across grant funding. We're calling on our supporters to contribute by buying tickets or signing on as event sponsors."

Note about tickets: All ticket purchases and donations support TONYC's work, paying for rehearsal and performance spaces, transportation, actor and Joker salaries, props and costumes, and so much more. Historically, TONYC has been primarily supported through grants. In the past four years, operational expenses have drastically increased, but TONYC's funding has not. While TONYC has an abundance of community enthusiasm for our work, the organization needs $252,000 of funding in 2024 and seeks to raise $100,000 this fall. A contribution of any amount will support this vital organization through a shifting funding landscape.