Vegas in Gotham Benefit, with Everett, Etc. Held 4/10

Vegas comes to Gotham when Gotham Stage Company & MS Hope for a Cure, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding a cure for Multiple Sclerosis, co-host "Vegas in Gotham-Playing for Hope," a benefit evening, April 10, at 8pm at The Players Club (16 Gramercy Park South). 

The event is an evening of casino gaming for prizes accompanied by cabaret performances by "The Women of Gotham" benefiting two charitable organizations.  

Attendees who purchase the tax-deductible tickets starting at $75 will receive $1,000 in gaming chips which can be cashed in for prizes at the end of the evening.  Prizes include (but are not limited to):

       Tickets to "The View," "Live with Regis and Kelly," "The Rachel Ray Show" & others

       NCAA Tickets

       Tickets to "David Letterman" and "Saturday Night Live"

       Tickets/backstage tours for Broadway shows

       Exclusive Vacation Packages

       Exquisite gift bags for all attendees

Throughout the evening women from Gotham Stage Company will provide the cabaret entertainment.  The "Women of Gotham" include: Bridget Everett (At Least It's Pink); Haubner Smith (Les Miserables); Betsy Werbel (Les Miserables), and Kimberly Stern (Becoming Adele).

Michael Barra, Producing Artistic Director of Gotham Stage Company offers, "Gotham is proud to team up with MS Hope for a Cure for this co-benefit.  It's not every day that you can serve such a broad and diverse segment of the community in one night.  With EJ Levy's long and successful history raising funds and awareness for MS we wanted to show our appreciation and support for her on behalf of the Off-Broadway community."

Founded by Michael Barra, Peter Smith, Julia Haubner Smith and Katie Dietz, Gotham Stage Company will present the world premiere of Randall David Cook's Fate's Imagination at The Players Theatre, with performances starting May 25th.  Cook penned Gotham's inaugural production Sake with the Haiku Geisha which received both critical and audience acclaim in 2006.  Hayley Finn (Kate Crackernuts) will direct. Casting to be announced.

MS Hope for a Cure, Inc was created by Elissa Levy in 2007 as a vehicle to raise funds that can make the biggest difference in the shortest amount of time in helping find a cure for Multiple Sclerosis.  After being diagnosed with MS over five years ago Elissa, better known to her friends as EJ, made a commitment to using her energy and resources to help end the devastating effects of Multiple Sclerosis.  In that time she has individually raised over $406,000 for the National MS Society and an additional $85,000 for the Columbia University and Mt. Sinai Hospital MS Care Centers.  As Captain of Team EJ, the number one National MS Society Walk Team in the country for the past three years, she has helped raise an additional $230,000.  MS Hope is uniquely positioned to make a significant impact in fighting this disease. Board members Dr. Fred Lublin and Dr. Mark Tullman have joined Elissa on her mission.  Dr. Lublin is widely considered one of the top experts on Multiple Sclerosis in the world and is presently the Director of The Corinne Goldsmith Dickinson Center for MS at Mount Sinai Medical Center.  Dr. Tullman is the Director of the new Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Care Center at Columbia University and is supervising Elissa's progress with an exciting experimental drug.

For tickets and more information on Gotham Stage Company, please visit www.GothamStage.org.