Broadway's Nick Scandalios Returning to Boston College for 18th Annual Arts Festival, 4/29-30

Boston College's 18th annual Arts Festival, on Thursday, April 28 through Saturday, April 30, 2016, showcases and celebrates campus arts, and highlights the achievements of accomplished alumni arts professionals, students, faculty and other BC community members.

Returning to campus as a special guest is 1987 alumnus Nick Scandalios, Executive Vice President of the renowned Nederlander Organization, one of the largest privately owned operators of theaters and music venues based in the United States-including many of Broadway's best-known sites. He is among Broadway's most influential people and in recognition of his distinguished career and commitment to promoting excellence in professional theater, he will honored by Boston College at the festival.

(Media note: Jpg of Nick Scandalios is attached. More information below.)

"Nick embodies everything that is great about a Boston College education," said BC Theatre Department Associate Professor Crystal Tiala, Chair of Boston College's Arts Council, which organizes the festival. "As an undergraduate in the Carroll School of Management, he was also playing leading roles in the Theatre productions-combining his passions for art, creativity and leadership. Now that he has achieved one of the most influential positions in Broadway, Nick continues to be a leader for humanitarian causes. Nick is a true leader setting a shining example of what is possible for all our students."

Scandalios will be presented with an alumni arts achievement award at a reception, and will participate in special Festival programming, which is open to the public, on April 28 and 29 in the Stokes Art Tent located on BC's Middle Campus by Stokes Hall.

Scandalios graduated from BC's Carroll School of Management, joined the Nederlander Organization as assistant to the Chairman and has since risen to become Executive Vice President of the century-old company. In that position, he is integral to its production choices; under his guidance, such blockbuster shows as The Lion King, Wicked, Rent, Beauty and the Beast, Hairspray and many others have played and continue to play in Nederlander theaters. The Nederlander Organization currently is home to some of Broadway's newest hits, including the groundbreaking Hamilton, ON YOUR FEET, and Waitress.

In 2008 Scandalios received the Robert Whitehead Award, given to graduates of the Commercial Theater Institute for "outstanding achievement in commercial theater production." His impact in the theater world extends beyond his professional position. He is Immediate Past Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Broadway League, the trade association that represents the entire commercial theater industry on Broadway and across North America, and he has served as Immediate Past Chair, and now as Treasurer, of the Family Equality Council. He also is committed to humanitarian causes through service on the Board of Trustees for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

During the Arts Festival, he will participate in a career-related interview program titled "Inside the BC Studio," modeled after Bravo's Inside the Actor's Studio (April 28, 3 p.m.), at which he will be interviewed by 1987 alumnus Paul Daigneault, founder and artistic director of Boston's renowned SpeakEasy Stage Company, and a previous Arts Festival alumni honoree.

At an "Insider Industry Panel" (April 29, noon)-on the state of the theater industry and related careers-Scandalios will be joined by other accomplished BC alumni theater professionals: Sean Flahaven (Class of 1995), Senior Vice President of Theatre & Catalog Development, Warner/Chappell Music, who was associate producer for the 2016 Grammy-winning soundtrack to Hamilton, which won Best Musical Theatre Album; and Patricia Noonan (Class of 2007), a NYC-based actor, singer and writer.

Scandalios will receive the annual Boston College Arts Council Alumni Award for Distinguished Achievement at an award presentation and reception on April 29 at 3 p.m., in the Stokes Art Tent. All are invited to join BC Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley, BC Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Dean Gregory A. Kalscheur, S.J., and Chair of the BC Hellenic Alumni Network and University Trustee Drake Behrakis '86, in recognizing the artistic accomplishments of Scandalios. A reception will follow; please register for this free event, which will run from 3-5 p.m., at www.bc.edu/artsawards or 617-552-4700.

Awards will also be presented to recognize artistic accomplishments and contributions of seven BC students and faculty member T. Frank Kennedy, S.J. The Canisius Professor in BC's Music Department, where he also served as longtime chair, Fr. Kennedy is a specialist in the early Baroque period and has produced five Jesuit operas which have been performed all over the world.

The Servant of Two Masters: Thursday, April 28-Sunday, May 1

A featured event during the Arts Festival is the performance of Carlo Goldoni's The Servant of Two Masters. The setting is 18th century Venice, where Truffaldino, the central figure of the play, is a servant whose first priority is to fill his stomach--which he complains is always empty, despite eating everything in sight. Presented with the opportunity to become a servant to a second master, his single-minded quest for food sees it as a chance for additional food. Accepting the position, he spends the rest of the play fumbling to fulfill the needs of both masters--who unbeknownst to him are a pair of star-crossed lovers whose warring families have forbidden their marriage.

Presented April 28 through May 1 by the Boston College Theatre Department, the production is directed by BC Associate Professor of Theatre Luke Jorgensen. A Robsham Theater Arts Center main stage production. Admission: $15, $10 for seniors or with BC ID. Additional fees apply. Tickets available online at www.bc.edu/tickets or at (617) 552-4002.

For event locations and updates, the public may visit www.bc.edu/artsfestival or call (617) 552-ARTS (2787).

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