Alan Cumming Leads Lineup As NIGHT OF A THOUSAND JUDYS Broadcasts Virtually June 24th

Alan Cumming, Karen Mason, Sam Harris, Mary Testa,

Nathan Lee Graham, Vivian Reed, Jose Llana, Grace McLean, Jane Monheit,

Nadia Quinn, Margo Seibert, Kevin Smith Kirkwood,

Gabrielle Stravelli, DUCHESS TRIO AND MORE

WILL HEADLINE THE NINTH ANNUAL

"NIGHT OF A THOUSAND JUDYS"

ONLINE CONCERT EVENT HONORING JUDY GARLAND

TO BENEFIT THE ALI FORNEY CENTER

WRITTEN AND HOSTED BY Justin Sayre

MUSIC DIRECTION BY Tracy Stark

THURSDAY, JUNE 24 at 8:00 PM ET

The ninth annual "Night of A Thousand Judys" - the Pride concert to benefit The Ali Forney Center written and hosted by Justin Sayre - will be presented as a streaming online event on Thursday, June 24 at 8:00 PM Eastern. Performers will include Alan Cumming (Cabaret, "The Good Wife"), Vivian Reed (two-time Tony nominee), Sam Harris (The Life, Grease), Mary Testa (three-time Tony nominee), Karen Mason (Netflix's "Halston," Sunset Boulevard), Nathan Lee Graham (Zoolander, CW's "Katy Keene") Jose Llana (The King & I, Here Lies Love), Margo Seibert (Rocky, Octet), Jane Monheit (two-time Grammy-nominated vocalist), Grace McLean (The Great Comet of 1812, Alice by Heart), Kevin Smith Kirkwood (Kinky Boots, The Wiz), Nadia Quinn (Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, The Robber Bridegroom), Duchess Trio ("Vocal Group of the Year" - Jazz Journalists Association), and Gabrielle Stravelli (award-winning vocalist), with others to be added. The Ali Forney Center is the nation's largest agency dedicated to helping LGBTQ homeless youth. Watch the concert - which will be broadcast live and then available online for a month after the show - and donate to the cause at ThousandJudys.com.

Called "a rambunctious, uproarious, unpredictable all-star concert" by The Wall Street Journal, "Night of a Thousand Judys" will honor the iconic Judy Garland with tributes and songs from her legendary career as movie star, recording artist and stage performer. The virtual event is written and hosted by Justin Sayre, featuring Tracy Stark as music director. "Night of a Thousand Judys" is produced by Dan Fortune and Adam J. Rosen, with Dan Fortune serving as executive producer.

"We're all getting back to normal, but maybe we can make a new normal," says Justin. "A normal where LGBTQIA kids don't experience homelessness at such a larger rate than most. Maybe our new normal can be better, for these kids. Maybe we can insist that it is. We all had to stay at home this year to be safe. We all deserve a home where they can be safe. That's what the work, that's the new normal that the Ali Forney Center is fighting for. We're all honored to help them creating this new normal."

The first eight annual events featured the talents of R&B legends Martha Wash and Sarah Dash; jazz vocalists Madeleine Peyroux, Cyrille Aimée, and Ann Hampton Callaway; singer/songwriters Bright Light Bright Light, Nellie McKay, Erin McKeown; Broadway divas Lena Hall, Tonya Pinkins, and Liz Callaway; leading men Adam Pascal, Daniel Reichard, and Telly Leung; downtown stars Justin Vivian Bond, Bridget Everett, and Lady Rizo; nightlife fixtures Maude Maggart, Karen Akers, and Natalie Douglas; and New York personalities Michael Musto, Austin Scarlett, and Frank DeCaro, among many others.

The Ali Forney Center is the nation's largest and most comprehensive agency dedicated to LGBTQ homeless youths-assisting nearly 1,400 youths per year through a 24-hour Drop-In Center which provides over 65,000 meals annually, medical and mental health services through an on-site clinic, and a scattered site housing program. AFC's goal is to provide them with the support and services they need to escape the streets and begin to live healthy and independent lives.

Biographies:

JUSTIN ELIZABETH SAYRE is a writer and performer who Michael Musto called, "Oscar Wilde meets Whoopi Goldberg." Sayre is a fixture of the downtown cabaret scene in New York, first with their long-running monthly show, "The Meeting of The International Order of Sodomites" (Bistro Award and two MAC Award nominations), and now with new shows at Joe's Pub/The Public Theatre like Peaches, Eggplants, and Tears and The gAyBC's, a five-part series which will soon be released as a book. As a playwright, Sayre's work has appeared at Dixon Place, The Wild Project, The Celebration Theatre, Dynasty Typewriter, and La MaMa Experimental Theatre. Most recently with the 12-part-epic Ravenswood Manor, a Camp-Horror-Soap-Opera, which was called "a sharply written and well-acted exemplar of the horror-comedy genre" by the Los Angeles Times. The project is currently being developed with Sony Television. Sayre has written a series of YA Novels - Husky, Pretty, and Mean - released by Penguin Books. They have also written for television, working with Michael Patrick King on his hit CBS comedy, "2 Broke Girls" and most recently on Fox's "The Cool Kids." Sayre also appeared on HBO's "The Comeback" with Lisa Kudrow. They live in a world in a world of their own and they have been blocked by Meghan McCain on Twitter.

Tracy Stark - the pianist, arranger, conductor and singer/songwriter - is a 10-time MAC Award winner, in the categories of Music Director, Piano Bar Entertainer, and Song of the Year. She is also a Bistro Award winner for Musical Direction, and winner of the Dottie Burman Songwriter of the Year Award. Tracy has worked with Lesley Gore, Phoebe Snow, Karen Black, Randy Jones of The Village People, Jimmy Osmond, Tovah Feldshuh, Eric Millegan, Tonya Pinkins, Ann Crumb, Marni Nixon, and hundreds of other rock, jazz, and Broadway vocalists. She has conducted, played, and sung at all the finest and the sleaziest venues all over the world, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. She has played and conducted on numerous television shows, including The Today Show. Her songs are included on at least 20 different compilations, and have been winning accolades in songwriting competitions for the past two decades. She has three CDs of original music, the latest of which is on the Miranda Music label, with special guests including Lesley Gore, Jane Monheit, Nona Hendryx, Karen Black, Ann Hampton Callaway, and Barb Jungr.

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