The Civilians' Share Details of CIVILIAN DISOBEDIENCE 2019 Spring Benefit

On April 1, the celebrated Off-Broadway theater company The Civilians will host Civilian Disobedience, their annual spring benefit, which honors their Civilians of the Year: Emmy nominated, award-winning documentary filmmakers Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg (Reversing Roe, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work) as well as Marion Friedman Young for her longstanding support of The Civilians and her recent work as The Civilians partners for the Michael Friedman Legacy Fund. Alongside dinner and cocktails, the musical evening will feature new, original songs by Nick Blaemire, The Bengsons, Maggie-Kate Coleman, and Erato Kremmyda with beloved songs by the late Michael Friedman. With an appearance by Rachel Dratch, this one-night-only celebration features performances by Daphne Rubin-Vega, Clifton Duncan, Ashley Pérez Flanagan, Jo Lampert, and the original cast of This Beautiful City: Emily Ackerman, Marsha Stephanie Blake, Stephen Plunkett and Alison Weller. Musical direction is by Wiley Deweese.

"Civilians Disobedience embraces all those who speak (or sing) truth to power," said The Civilians' Founding Artistic Director Steve Cosson. "I believe wholeheartedly that the vital stories that Ricki Stern, Annie Sundberg, and Marion Friedman Young have brought into the world have deepened our humanity and enlightened our understanding of society. I'm humbled that such an amazing group of artists have come together to help us see the present moment more clearly."

Civilian Disobedience will take place at The Cutting Room (44 E. 32nd Street, Manhattan) at 6:30pm on Monday, April 1, 2019. Individual tickets start at $500 with tables available starting at $5,000. Tickets can be purchased online at thecivilians.org, by calling 718-230-3330 or by emailing margaret@thecivilians.org.

TheCivilian Disobedience: Spring 2019 Benefit committee includes Nina Beattie and Michael Eberstadt, Dan Barber, David Beach and Russell Granet, David Binder, William Carry, Nikki Columbus & Claire Bishop, Hesu Coue-Wilson and Edward Wilson, Trip Cullman, Rachel and Kurt Deutsch, Rachel Dratch, Laurie and Oskar Eustis, Carolyn and John Friedman, Anne Kauffman, Megan Kingery, Anna Kramarsky and Jeanne Bergman, Amy Larocca and Will Frears, Eva Longoria, Julianna Margulies, Luba Mason and Rubén Blades, Liz Mayer and Jason Cooper, Daphne Rubin-Vega , Rebecca Traister and Darius Wadia, Bronson Van Wyck, Wes Wang and Derek Zasky.

About the Honorees
Emmy nominated, award-winning filmmakers Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg are the leading creative forces behind Break Thru Film's productions and are known for crafting deft and cinematic journeys through unexpected territory. Each project tracks new landscape - from criminal injustice in the American South, to Darfur, to stand-up comedy and celebrity culture - but all are centered on unforgettable people and their defining experiences.

Their films include Joan Rivers - A Piece of Work which premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival where it won the US Documentary Prize for Best Editing; the 2008 Emmy nominated documentary feature The Devil Came On Horseback; and the 2007 Emmy nominated feature The Trials of Darryl Hunt. Their latest film Reversing Roe (a Netflix Original documentary) premiered at the 2018 Telluride Film Festival. The film offers an illuminating look of the state of abortion and women's rights in America through candid interviews with key figures from both sides of the divide.

They have been recognized with the Alfred I. duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, the Best Female Filmmakers Award-San Diego Film Festival, the Adrienne Shelly Excellence in Filmmaking Award and Lena Sharpe/Women in Cinema Persistence of Vision Award-Seattle International Film Festival.

Marion Friedman Young is the sister of Michael Friedman and the executor of his estate. She is the Executive Director of the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University. Previously, she was the Executive Director of Art-Reach, an arts outreach organization in Philadelphia. Young was the Managing Director of The Civilians from 2008 to 2012. Prior to her work in arts administration, Young was a production stage manager working off-Broadway and at regional theaters across the country. Much of her stage management career was devoted to the work of August Wilson, including the world premiere of his final play Radio Golfand the Century Cycle festival at the Kennedy Center in DC, where all ten plays were produced in rep. She continues to work with the August Wilson Monologue Competition each year as the National Competition Producer.

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