Bay Street Theater Announces New Information About 23rd Annual Gala, Including Special Guests, 7/12

Bay Street Theater is pleased to announce its Honoree Presenters for its 23rd Bay Street Annual Summer Gala which will take place in Sag Harbor at the Long Wharf on July 12, 2014 to benefit Bay Street's educational and theatrical programs. Just added to the program are actor, author, producer and director BOB BALABAN, who will introduce Honoree APRIL GORNIK during the Honors Presentation at the Pre-Gala VIP Cocktail Reception at The Theater. Balaban's credits for film include "The Grand Budapest Hotel," "Waiting for Guffman" and "Best in Show;" television including "Girls," "The Good Wife," and "Seinfeld;" and Broadway ("8"). He directed "Bernard and Doris" and "Georgia O'Keeffe," among others, and he is the author of a series of children's novels. Playwright, screenwriter and novelist MARSHA NORMAN, who received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play "night, Mother," will present a tribute to Honoree SHELDON HARNICK. Norman is the author of book and lyrics for such Broadway musicals as "The Secret Garden," for which she won a Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical, the book for the musical "The Color Purple," and the book for the musical "The Bridges of Madison County." She was honored at the 2011 William Inge Festival for Distinguished Achievement in the American Theatre.

Bay Street is also delighted to announce that gala guests will be able to dance to the music of "Hamptons Hometown Favorite" NANCY ATLAS BAND, which will perform after dinner at the tent. Local legend Nancy Atlas, who has opened for performers including Lucinda Williams, Paul Simon, Jimmy Buffet, Bon Jovi, Leon Russell, Taj Majhal, Kris Kristofferson, and The Roots, to name a few, is working on the band's sixth album, Cut and Run. Atlas describes her music and style as "American Rock with a touch of Southern Comfort."

Honorees

The gala will honor Arts visionaries Kate Burton, April Gornik, and Sheldon Harnick. Burton is an acclaimed Broadway, film & TV actress, whose credits include Broadway ("Hedda Gabler"), film ("The First Wives Club") and television ("Scandal," "Grey's Anatomy," "Grimm"). She is the daughter of the actor, Richard Burton, and the late Sybil Christopher, Bay Street's co-founder with Emma Walton Hamilton & Stephen Hamilton. American artist April Gornik, known for her landscapes, will be honored for her contributions to fine art and to the village of Sag Harbor at the Pre-Gala VIP cocktail party at The TheaterApril's artwork is exhibited at the Danese/Corey Gallery in New York, and is included in collections at the Metropolitan Museum of art, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among many others. Tony award-winning Broadway lyricist Sheldon Harnick, who will be honored at the Pre-Gala VIP cocktail reception at the Theater byplaywright, screenwriter and novelist Marsha Norman, is renowned for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on hitmusicals such as "Fiddler on the Roof,". Harnick's other credits include "Fiorello," "The Apple Tree," and "Cyrano: The Musical."

This year's benefit will feature a farm-to-table dinner prepared by Hamptons Chef Peter Ambrose, dancing with the Nancy Atlas Band, live entertainment by Broadway stars, Tony award-winning actress and singer Patina Miller, and Obie award winner and actress and singer, Tovah Feldshuh, who will also act as celebrity auctioneer," and exciting live and silent auctions. New this year is a Pre-Gala VIP Cocktail Reception featuring a meet-and-greet and performances by Broadway stars and the Honoree Awards Presentation at the Theater at 6 pm for VIP guests. VIP tables begin at $10,000, with VIP tickets at $1,000. General admission tickets are $550, $395 for Young Professionals 40 and under. The gala's cocktail party and silent auction will begin at The Tent at 7 pm, and dinner will be served at 8 pm.

The chairs of the event are longstanding patrons of the theater and the arts, Christine Wächter-Campbell & Bill Campbell, and Pia & Jimmy Zankel.

Special Performances

Patina Miller won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the revival of "Pippin." Known for originating the role of disco diva wannabe Deloris Van Cartier in the 2009 West End and 2011 Broadway productions of "Sister Act," Miller has been signed to play the role of Commander Paylor in upcoming movies, "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2."Tovah Feldshuh is well known for her Broadway role as Golda Meir in "Golda's Balcony," the film "Kissing Jessica Stein," and from "Law & Order." Scott Schwartz directed "Golda's Balcony," which set a record as the longest-running one-woman play in Broadway history.

Items in this year's live and silent auctions include VIP tickets to IF/THEN with a backstage tour and meet & greet with Idina Menzel, a 3-day 2-night stay at the Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo, a week-long stay for 4 at a luxury Wimco Villa in St. Bart's, 18 holes of golf for two with Richard Kind at The Bridge, tickets to some of the hottest Broadway shows with exclusive backstage tours, and much more!

This year's sponsors (list in progress) include: The Bridge Golf Course, Bridgehampton Florist, Channing Daughters Winery, East End Limousine, Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica, The Golden Pear, David Lawenda/Facebook, Merrill DataSite, Peconic Landing, Peter Ambrose Events & Catering, Pierre's Restaurant, Searles Graphics, Soho Grand Hotel, Southampton Publick House, Suffolk County National Bank, The Port of Egypt, Wimco Villas, Worth New York, and media sponsors include Dan's Papers, Edible East End and Hamptons Magazine.

Past attendees include Broadway and film luminaries, business leaders and some of the most influential people in our community: Alan Alda, Julie Andrews, Lauren Bacall, Alec Baldwin, Chris Bauer, Joy Behar, Mel Brooks, Kim Cattrall, Chevy Chase, Blythe Danner, Kelsey Grammer, Anne Jackson, Billy Joel, Star Jones, Richard Kind, Nathan Lane, Susan Lucci, Terrence McNally, Rosie O'Donnell, Mercedes Ruehl, Liev Schreiber, B. Smith, Eli Wallach, Naomi Watts and Robert Zimmerman, to name a few.

VIP Tables and tickets are available by calling Diana Aceti at 631-725-0818 ext. 112, diana@baystreet.org. General admissions tickets are available 631-725-0818, at www.baystreet.org or events@baystreet.org.

Mission

Bay Street Theater is a year-round, not-for-profit professional theater and community cultural center which endeavors to innovate, educate, and entertain a diverse community through the practice of the performing arts. We serve as a social and cultural gathering place, an educational resource, and a home for a community of artists. Bay Street is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization and all donations are tax-deductible according to IRS regulations.

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