Ali Stroker to Take Part in Philadelphia Theatre Company One-Night-Only Benefit Event

Groundbreaking Broadway star and Tony Award Winner Ali Stroker will return to Philadelphia Theatre Company for a one-night only event recorded live from the Suzanne Roberts Theatre stage. Stroker, returns to PTC 10 years after her Barrymore Award-nominated performance in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee to perform a live concert from PTC's home stage to help the company raise funds as it continues to recover from the pandemic and raise funds for the 2021-22 season. An Evening with Ali Stroker is Wednesday, May 26 at 7:00pm. Audiences can view the event online, through a dedicated streaming link. Tickets start at $25. More information can be found at philatheatreco.org or by calling the company's virtual box office at 215-985-0420.

"It has been over a year since we canceled our last live event and the fact that we're still here, like the old Sondheim song, is a testament to our resilience and dedication to bringing our brand of theatre to Philadelphia," said PTC Producing Artistic Director Paige Price. "We like to entertain our supporters. We're aware that as the weather gets nicer it's becoming more of a challenge to attract people to digital events, but we're offering a Tony Award-winning dynamo to entertain us with a set of uplifting tunes and who is also showing off our space again! We hope to attract multiple audiences - those who are simply excited about seeing Ali Stroker appear (on a stage, not in her living room!) will come to hear her gorgeous voice, and we hope others who cherish PTC will show up in solidarity and support."

Broadway's groundbreaking Tony Award® Winner Ali Stroker filmed a virtual concert on the stage of The Suzanne Roberts Theatre to raise funds for the company. Stroker returns

to PTC ten years after her Barrymore Award-nominated performance as Olive in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The evening will also feature highlights from PTC's 2020-21 season and a tease of a trailer from the company's mini documentary, The Tattooed Lady: Make Your Mark, about the development of the company's 2022 World Premiere musical The Tattooed Lady.

"I loved working at PTC in 2010!," said Stroker. "Being back on stage at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre felt amazing. I even used the same dressing room! I'm so grateful to PTC for the opportunity to perform here again and I'm thrilled to support them this year."

Stroker won the 2019 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role as 'Ado Annie' in Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma! She most recently starred in the Lifetime holiday film, Christmas Ever After. She made history as the first actor in a wheelchair to appear on Broadway in Deaf West's acclaimed 2015 revival of Spring Awakening. She starred in 12 episodes of The Glee Project, winning a guest role on Fox's Glee. She recurred in the ABC series, Ten Days in the Valley and guest starred on CBS' Blue Bloods, Freeform's The Bold Type, Fox's Lethal Weapon, CBS' Instinct, The CW's Charmed and Comedy Central's Drunk History. She's performed her cabaret act at Green Room 42 and solo'ed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, New York's Town Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and Carnegie Hall. Her mission to improve the lives of others through the arts, disabled or not, is captured in her motto: "Turning Your Limitations Into Your Opportunities." Stroker and her co-author, Stacy Davidowitz, recently released a heartfelt middle grade novel about a musical-loving girl who fights for representation, pursues her passion, and turns her limitations into opportunities.

"Ali is one of the most engaging, warm performers to hit the Broadway scene in some time," said Price. "What really excites us is that she appeared on OUR stage first - a woman who made history by being the first actor in a wheelchair on Broadway and then the first to also win a Tony Award was also the first person in a wheelchair to appear on the stage of the new Suzanne Roberts Theatre. We're really proud that our building is fully accessible. There are great stories from Ali's time here, when she was really moved by the way the theatre was literally built with her in mind."

Stroker has been a co-chair of Women Who Care, which supports the United Cerebral Palsy of New York City. She co-founded Be More Heroic, an anti-bullying campaign that tours the country connecting with thousands of students each year. She's led theater workshops for South African women and children affected by HIV and AIDS with ARTS InsideOut.

"What I think is really special about this event is that our audiences will see Ali performing live on our own stage," said Price. "Even though they can't actually be there in person, they will have the opportunity to become reacquainted with an old friend - the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, which will figure prominently as our 'set.' Hopefully it will strike an emotional chord that will make them excited to get back into our space as soon as we're open again!"

Tickets for An Evening With Ali Stroker start at $25 and are available online at www.philatheatreco.org.

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