WP Gala Will Honor Sutton Foster, LaChanze, and Anne Quart; Hosted by Eden Espinosa

The honorees have been revealed for the WP Theater 2024 Annual Gala, which include Sutton Foster, LaChanze, and Anne Quart. The event will be hosted by Eden Espinosa  at The Edison Ballroom (240 W 47th St, NYC) on Monday, May 20, 2024.

Lotus Productions Executive Producer and V-Day Campaigns Director Tony Montenieri will serve as gala chairperson and Disney Theatrical Group, Thomas Schumacher & Matthew White, The Shubert Organization, and Lisa Timmel & David Markus will serve as the gala vice chairs.

Each year, WP honors truly outstanding Women+ who have taken risks, pushed limits, and broken ground in a wide variety of fields, celebrating their unique accomplishments. Since its inception, the event has paid homage to luminaries such as Gloria Steinem, Whoopi Goldberg, Debra Messing, Audra McDonald, Vanessa Williams, Eve Ensler, Dame Judi Dench, Kerry Washington, Vanessa Redgrave, and Chita Rivera, to name just a few. WP Theater’s Annual Gala delivers an inspiring, entertaining, star-studded night - featuring performances and special messages from the brightest Broadway & Off-Broadway talent - in celebration of the accomplishments of vital Women+ across many disciplines in New York and beyond. 

Sponsorship and support of WP’s premier event supports WP Theater’s unwavering commitment to putting Women+ voices center stage. For information regarding tickets to the GALA, visit https://wptheater.org/gala-2024.

Biographies

Sutton Foster is a Tony Award-winning actress, singer, and dancer who can currently be seen starring as Mrs. Lovett in the Broadway revival of Sweeney Toddopposite Aaron Tveit at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Prior to that, Sutton led the New York City Center Encores! adaptation of Once Upon a Mattress in an acclaimed turn as Princess Winnifred.

The two-time Tony-winning actress starred as Marian Paroo in the 2022 Broadway Revival of The Music Man at the Winter Garden Theatre. Her performance earned her seventh Tony Award nomination as well as the coveted 2022 Drama League Distinguished Performance Award. 

In 2021, Foster reprised one of her most notable roles as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes at the Barbican Theatre in London in which she earned an Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. Her original performance in the Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre earned her a 2011 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. 

That same year Sutton also added author to her credits by releasing her memoir Hooked: How Crafting Saved My Life.The page turner is comprised of funny and intimate stories and reflections about how crafting has kept her sane while navigating the highs and lows of family, love, and show business.

On television, Sutton led the critically acclaimed Darren Star and TV Land series, “Younger” for seven seasons, making it the longest running original series in TV Land history. 

Previously, Foster has also appeared on Broadway in Violet, Anything Goes (Tony Award), Shrek, Young Frankenstein, The Drowsy Chaperone, Little Women, Thoroughly Modern Millie (Tony Award), Les Misérables, Annie, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and Grease. Off-Broadway, Sutton has been seen in Sweet Charity (The Pershing Square Signature Center),The Wild Party (City Center Encores!), Trust (Second Stage), and Anyone Can Whistle (City Center Encores!). She has toured all over the country with her solo albums, which include Take Me to the World, Wish and An Evening with Sutton Foster: Live at the Café Carlyle. Additionally, she has also appeared on television in “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “A Million Little Things,” “Instinct,” “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life,” “Mad Dogs,” “Elementary,” “Psych,” “Bunheads,” “Royal Pains,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Flight of the Conchords”and “Sesame Street.” She holds an honorary doctorate from Ball State University, where she also teaches. 

LaChanze: With a career that has spanned thirty-eight Broadway seasons, LaChanze consistently brings women of complexity and triumph into the cultural lexicon.

Last season, LaChanze made her debut as producer on two shows, the 20th anniversary revival of Suzan-Lori Parks’ acclaimed Pulitzer Prize-Winning play, Topdog/Underdog, as well as Kimberly Akimbo, a new musical by Tony Award-Winning Composer Jeanine Tesori and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Playwright David Lindsay-Abaire, earning a combined 11 Tony Award nominations and 6 Tony Award wins, including Best Revival of a Play and Best Musical, respectively. This season, she produced Kimberly Akimbo, Here Lies Love by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim and Jaja’s African Hair Braiding written by Jocelyn Bioh and directed by Whitney White. In Spring 2024, she will join the producing team of The Outsiders, a new musical based on S.E. Hinton’s beloved novel. In Fall 2024, she will make her New York City directorial debut with Alice Childress’ Wine in the Wilderness at Classic Stage Company.  

LaChanze won a Tony Award for her performance as Celie in The Color Purple, originated the role of Ti Moune in Once on This Island (Tony Award nomination), and upheld her commitment to artistic excellence as Wiletta in Alice Childress’ historic play, Trouble In Mind (Tony Award nomination). Other notable stage performances include roles in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical (Tony Award nomination), A Christmas Carol, The Secret Life of Bees, If/Then, The Wiz, Ragtime, Uptown... It’s Hot! And Dreamgirls.  

On screen, she has delivered memorable roles in both TV and film including: “East New York,” “The Blacklist,” “Handel’s Messiah Rocks: A Joyful Noise” (Emmy Award), “Melinda,” “The Help,” HBO’s “The Night Of,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “The Good Fight,” “Sex And The City,” and Disney animated feature film “Hercules” among other titles. 

She is the President of Black Theatre United, a community of creatives dedicated to awareness, accountability, and advocacy. Proud mother of Celia Rose and Zaya LaChanze. She resides in Westchester, New York with her three cats and gardening hats.

Anne Quart serves as the EVP, Producing and Development, Disney Theatrical Group (DTG) and as Executive Producer on the division’s current and future shows, overseeing the global slate of stage shows from inception to execution.

Over her 21 years, Quart previously served as Senior Vice President of Production and Co-Producer for DTG. Based in New York City, Quart began her career in Canada at the Stratford Festival at the age of 6. After several years as a child actor, she transitioned from the stage to work in costume construction as a wardrobe manager, followed by eight years as the head of a busy scene shop built for Broadway. She joined Disney Theatrical Productions in 2002 as Production Manager forThe Lion King and served as Associate Producer for all subsequent companies worldwide. Throughout her tenure, she came tohold her title, Co-Producer, for all DTP productions, including Newsies, Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, Hercules,and Aida. Quart is also the co-producer of Fathom’s record-breaking film capture of Newsies. Quart is married and has two beautiful daughters.  

Eden Espinosa (Host). Actress and singer, Eden Espinosa’s career, both on stage and screen, has spanned over two decades.  

Espinosa will next be seen on Broadway as Tamara De Lempicka in the highly anticipated new musical “Lempicka.” Directed by Rachel Chavkin, with music and lyrics by Matt Gould and Carson Kreitzer, the musical follows the story of Tamara De Lempicka, a Polish artist best known for her Art Deco portraits, as she flees the upheaval of the 1917 Russian Revolution to Paris. She has been with the show since its developmental stage at the Willamstown Theatre Festival and went on to star in it at The Jolla Playhouse.  She is thrilled to return to Broadway and originate her second titular role on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre opening on April 14th.  

Previously, Espinosa was seen on Broadway as Elphaba in "Wicked". She made her Broadway debut as Maureen in the closing company of "Rent." Espinosa was also seen as Brooklyn in “Brooklyn the Musical." She was most recently seen Off-Broadway in the role of Mami in "Gardens of Anuncia" at Lincoln Center. Espinosa has also portrayed Trina in "Falsettos" in the national tour. Her additional theatrical work encompasses performances in "Rain" at The Old Globe, "In the Heights" (as Daniela at the Kennedy Center), "Lizzie" (playing Emma Borden at Signature), and "Merrily We Roll Along" (as Mary at Huntington).   

In addition to her stage credits, Eden can be seen in Disney’s "Alice's Wonderland Bakery" as the voice of The Queen of Hearts, which earned her an Emmy Award nomination. Her voice can also be heard in “Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure," "Robot Chicken," "Mad TV," "Elena of Avalor," and "Titan Maximum." Eden's original music is available on all streaming platforms.