KCRep Announces Gala Featuring Broadway Star Shoshana Bean

Kansas City Repertory Theatre Executive Director Angela Lee Gieras has announced the organization's 2019 Gala, THE CAST PARTY. Featuring a performance by international recording artist and Broadway veteran Shoshana Bean, THE CAST PARTY promises an evening of Broadway-style glamour. Gala chairs Roshann Parris and Jeff Dobbs will host this annual fundraising event on Friday, May 10, at 5:30 PM at The Abbott, located at 1901 Cherry St. in Kansas City's Crossroads arts district.

Shoshana Bean, known for her powerhouse vocals, has sold out solo concerts around the globe, lent her voice to countless lms and TV shows, amassed millions of YouTube views, and performed with Ariana Grande, David Foster, Postmodern Jukebox, and Brian McKnight. A veteran of the Broadway stage, Shoshana made her debut in the original cast of Hairspray and starred as the very rst replacement for Elphaba in Wicked. Her first three independent solo releases have all topped the iTunes R&B and Blues charts in the US and UK, with her fourth and most recent project, SPECTRUM, debuting at #1 on the Billboard Jazz charts. Shoshana is currently starring as Jenna in Broadway's Waitress in a limited engagement, March 18 through May 12.

KCRep is thrilled to honor Ellen and Irv Hockaday at THE CAST PARTY as the recipients of our inaugural Mac Award, said Gieras. The award is named in honor of Dr. Patricia McIlrath, our theatre's pioneering founder. KCRep will present this award to Ellen, a very committed Kansas City philanthropist, and Irv, retired President/CEO of Hallmark Cards and Kansas City Southern Industries, with deep appreciation and gratitude for their advocacy and support.

Event chairs Roshann Parris and Jeff Dobbs are passionate serial philanthropists in Greater Kansas City. Roshann is the Founder and CEO of Parris Communications, a Kansas City-based public relations and strategic communications firm. Her expansive board service includes Children's Mercy Hospital, Boys & Girls Clubs of Kansas City, Starlight Theatre, and the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, to name a few. She was the 2013 United Way Adele Hall Spirit of Caring Award honoree.

Prior to his retirement in 2015, Jeff Dobbs was the global sector chair and US national sector leader for

industrial manufacturing for KPMG International. A board member of the National Association of Manufacturers, Starlight Theatre, Valparaiso University, and KCRep, Jeff advises nonprofit organizations on growth, innovation, finance, and more.

Roshann and Jeff are honored to chair THE CAST PARTY alongside gala vice-chairs Gisele and Brad Sprong and honorary gala chairs Geri and Dave Frantze, Deanna and Greg Graves, Mary and Mark Jorgenson, Jean and Tom McDonnell, Yvette and Leo Morton, and Beth and Bill Zollars.

Guests of THE CAST PARTY are invited to walk the red carpet in their best cocktail/Broadway attire. After enjoying delectable fare from Lon Lane's Inspired Occasions and bidding in the silent auction, guests will bid in a live auction and enjoy an unforgettable, one-night-only performance by Shoshana Bean. Proceeds from THE CAST PARTY support KCRep's nationally-acclaimed productions and the more than 13,000 Kansas City-area students served each season through their robust series of youth education programs.

KCRep's exciting 2019/20 season was recently announced by Interim Artistic Director Jason Chanos. Season productions include Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof; the Tony and Obie Award-winning For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf; Kansas City's holiday tradition, A Christmas Carol; winner of the 2015 Tony Award for Best Musical Fun Home; OriginKC: New Works Festival productions Frankenstein (a world premiere by Kyle Hatley) and Legacy Land (Stacey Rose); and Michael Frayn's Noises Off.

KCRep thanks its Celebration-level sponsors for THE CAST PARTY: Deanna and Greg Graves, Irv and Ellen Hockaday, The McDonnell Foundation, and Roshann Parris and Jeff Dobbs.

Financial assistance for the 2019/2020 season at KCRep is provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency, whose gift is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment of the Arts.

Sponsorships for THE CAST PARTY may be purchased now by visiting gala.kcrep.org or by calling Keri Noerrlinger, development operations manager, at 816.235.6106. Tickets will go on sale April 1.

Founded in 1964 by Dr. Patricia McIlrath, KCRep, the professional theatre in residence at UMKC, is led by Interim Artistic Director Jason Chanos and Executive Director Angela Lee Gieras. KCRep is known nationally as an incubator of new plays and a producer of innovative musicals and reimagined classics.

Together with an active board of directors; a year-round, part-time, and seasonal staff of 210; and over 300 volunteers, KCRep serves patrons from more than 40 states on their two stages: Spencer Theatre on the UMKC campus and Copaken Stage in downtown Kansas City. More than 13,000 educators and students (many of whom are experiencing theatre for the first time) see live productions at KCRep annually. The company dedicates itself to producing works that are compelling, passionate, and entertaining. Visit www.kcrep.org.

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