Julie Taymor to be Honored at Red Bull Theater Gala Benefit Hosted by Patrick Page

Julie Taymor will be honored with the Matador Award for Extraordinary Achievement in Classical Theater and the Axe-Houghton Foundation will receive the George Mayer Award for Extraordinary Service to Classical Theater at the Running of the Red Bulls Gala Benefit on Monday June 5th (6pm). This intimate soirée, celebrating Red Bull's 20th anniversary season, will be held on the expansive terrace of the chic Bowery Hotel (335 Bowery at East 3rd Street) and will feature an evening of live entertainment, fine dining, and great company,

"What a thrill to be capping our 19th year as a company with this joyful gathering! In addition to honoring the incredible artist Julie Taymor for her extraordinary achievements as a director and her work with the classics in particular-and recognizing the indispensable support of the Axe-Houghton Foundation-It will be an absolute joy to gather our community, to celebrate our robust return to live and in-person theater this year, and launch our 20th anniversary season!" said Mr. Berger.

Harry Lennix will present the Matador Award to Ms. Taymor. Foundation President Jeffrey Steinman will accept the Award for Axe-Houghton Foundation, to be presented by Tovah Feldshuh.

The evening will be hosted by Patrick Page and feature performances by Reeve Carney, Tom Hewitt, Luis Quintero, Derek Smith, Sarin Monae West, and more to be announced. Marc Vietor will also direct the evening’s entertainment.

In addition, special guests and presenters will include Arnie Burton, Robert Cuccioli, Kelley Curran, Paige Davis, Tovah Feldshuh, Enid Graham, Harry Lennix, Mark Linn-Baker, Teresa Avia Lim, Mark Martin, Dakin Matthews, Jacob Ming-Trent, Matthew Rauch, Cara Ricketts, Laila Robins, Jennifer Sánchez, Robert Sella, Miriam Silverman, Raphael Nash Thompson, and more, along with musicians Spiff Weigand and  Kevin Bernstein.

Matador Award for Extraordinary Achievement in Classical Theater to Julie Taymor

Julie Taymor is a director of theater, opera, and film. Films include The Glorias with Julianne Moore and Alicia Vikander, Oedipus Rex with Jessye Norman (Emmy Award), Titus starring Anthony Hopkins, the Academy-Award winning Frida starring Salma Hayek, Across the Universe (Golden Globe and Academy-Award nominations), The Tempest starring Helen Mirren, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Theater includes: The Lion King, which has played over 100 cities in 20 countries on every continent except Antarctica and its worldwide gross exceeds that of any entertainment title in box office history, and for which she won two Tony Awards; M Butterfly starring Clive Owen; and Grounded starring Anne Hathaway. Operas include The Magic Flute (Metropolitan Opera). Recipient of the MacArthur "Genius" Fellowship.

George Mayer Award for Extraordinary Service to Classical Theater to Axe-Houghton Foundation.

Founded almost 60 years ago by Emerson and Ruth Axe to foster and encourage an appreciation of the English language, the Axe-Houghton Foundation supports performing arts and educational organizations that promote the spoken word. With an emphasis on having work heard by an audience, the Foundation funds New York City-based programs primarily in theater but also in arts-related education, poetry, debate and public speaking, and the oral interpretation of literature. The Foundation is proud of its support of Red Bull and is pleased to accept this tribute.

Matador Awards for Extraordinary Achievement in Classical Theater

Begun in 2009, Matador Awards are given annually to recognize individuals or organizations that have demonstrated extraordinary talent, service, or significant achievements in the Classical Theater. The awards are presented each year at the Running of the Red Bulls, Red Bull Theater's annual gala benefit. Previous honorees have included F. Murray Abraham, Kate Burton, André De Shields, Olympia Dukakis, Richard Easton, Michael Kahn, Jack O'Brien, Patrick Page, Lynn Redgrave, Sir Patrick Stewart, Daniel Sullivan, Charlayne Woodard, and Theatre Development Fund. The Matador Award for Extraordinary Talent for Classical Theater has been awarded to Oscar Isaac, Hamish Linklater, Ismenia Mendes, Martha Plimpton, Lily Rabe, Condola Rashad, Matthew Rauch, Olivia Reis, Juliet Rylance, Liev Schreiber, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Michael Urie. Previous recipients of the George Mayer Award for Extraordinary Service to Classical Theater include Jim Bredeson, Theatre Development Fund, American Theatre Wing, Fund for the City of New York, The Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation, The Michael Tuch Foundation, Off-Broadway Angels, Alliance of Resident Theaters/New York, Arts In the Armed Forces, The Shakespeare Society, Katherine Hood, The Angelo Patri Middle School, Howard Owens, George Wm. Mayer Jr., and Heather Randall.
 

ABOUT RED BULL THEATER

Red Bull Theater, hailed as "the city's gutsiest classical theater" by Time Out New York, brings rarely seen classic plays to dynamic new life for contemporary audiences, uniting a respect for tradition with a modern sensibility. Named for the rowdy Jacobean playhouse that illegally performed plays in England during the years of Puritan rule, Red Bull Theater is New York City's home for dynamic performances of great plays that stand the test of time. With the Jacobean plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries as its cornerstone, the company also produces new works that are in conversation with the classics. A home for artists, scholars, and students, Red Bull Theater delights and engages the intellect and imagination of audiences, and strives to make its work accessible, diverse, and welcoming to all. We value and practice inclusiveness, equity, and diversity in all of our activities, and are committed to antiracist action. Red Bull Theater believes in the power of great classic stories and plays of heightened language to deepen our understanding of the human condition, in the special ability of live theater to create unique, collective experiences, and in the timeless capacity of classical theater to illuminate the events of our times. Variety agreed, hailing Red Bull's work as: "Proof that classical theater can still be surprising after hundreds of years."

Since its debut in 2003 with a production of Shakespeare's Pericles starring Daniel Breaker, Red Bull Theater has served adventurous theatergoers with Off-Broadway productions, Revelation Readings, and the annual Short New Play Festival. The company also offers outreach programs including Shakespeare in Schools bringing professional actors and teaching artists into public school classrooms; Bull Sessions, free post-play discussions with top scholars; and Classical Acting Intensives led by veteran theater professionals. During the pandemic, Red Bull created several new and ongoing programs to serve audiences and artists with our mission: RemarkaBULL Podversations, Online Readings, Seminars, and more.

"The classics-shaking Red Bull Theater," as Time Out NY has called it, has presented 20 Off-Broadway productions and nearly 200 Revelation Readings of rarely seen classics, serving a community of more than 5,000 artists and providing quality artistic programming to an audience of over 65,000. The company's unique programming has received ongoing critical acclaim and has been recognized with Lortel, Drama Desk, Drama League, Callaway, Off-Broadway Alliance, and OBIE nominations and Awards.

For more information about Red Bull's Gala Benefit, or any of Red Bull Theater's productions and programs, visit Redbulltheater.com or call 212/343-7394.

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