A.C.T. to Host SPOOKED AT THE STRAND, 10/26

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) and Event Chairs Holly and Chris Hollenbeck are proud to announce Spooked at The Strand, A.C.T.'s Halloween costume party, on Monday, October 26, 6-11 p.m., at The Strand Theater (1127 Market Street, San Francisco). Proceeds from the evening, which feature special performances by A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) Program students, will support A.C.T.'s actor training and education and community programs. Individual tickets range in price from $50 to $500. Premiere $750 tickets are sold out! For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit act-sf.org/spooked or contact A.C.T. Director of Special Events Luz Perez at 415.439.2470 or lperez@act-sf.org.

The bewitching soirée begins at 6 p.m. with a cocktail reception at A.C.T.'s Strand Theater. At 8 p.m. guests will make their way into the Toni Rembe Theater, where they will be treated to special cabaret performances by A.C.T. M.F.A. Program students. At 9 p.m., guests will return to the lobby of The Strand Theater for an after-party featuring cocktails, a dessert bar, and dancing with music by DJ Flaxo. Guests are encouraged to come in costume.

"San Francisco has always been a magnet for leadership and talent . . . musical, technical, social, theatrical," said Event Chairs Holly and Chris Hollenbeck. "We can't think of a better way to honor and celebrate this legacy than supporting A.C.T.'s groundbreaking M.F.A. Program."

"We are honored to support American Conservatory Theater and their world-renowned Master of Fine Arts Program," adds Michael Walker, Northern California Regional Executive for City National Bank. "We understand that the arts reflect and enhance the best in who we are and we commend A.C.T.'s commitment to the arts and education."

SPOOKED AT THE STRAND TICKET LEVELS

FRONT ORCHESTRA with CABARET SEATING ($750)

• SOLD OUT!

ORCHESTRA with THEATER SEATING ($500)

• VIP Cocktail Reception in The Rueff

• Orchestra Theater Seating

• Valet Parking

• Premiere Trick or Treat Gift Bag

• Coat Check

• Optional A.C.T. Costume Rental

• VIP After-Party in The Rueff

REAR ORCHESTRA with THEATER SEATING ($250)

• Cocktail Reception

• Rear Orchestra Theater Seating

• Trick or Treat Gift Bag

• Coat Check

• After Party

MEZZANINE with THEATER SEATING ($150)

• Cocktail Reception

• Mezzanine Theater Seating

• After-Party

AFTER PARTY ONLY TICKETS - 9 PM ($50)

• After-Party

• Dessert Bar and Drinks

The presenting sponsor for Spooked at The Strand is City National Bank. Additional sponsors include Bespoke Winery, Blueprint Studios, Campari, Coupar Consulting, DZINE, Grace Street Catering, Nespresso, and Palmeri Vineyard.

The host committee for Spooked at The Strand includes Shirley and Steve Cookston, Daisy and Kerry Damskey, Carlotta and Bob Dathe, Linda Jo Fitz, Austin Forbord, Eve Forbord, Arnie and Shelly Glassberg, Michelle and Jodi Goodman, Prerna Gupta and Parag Chordia, Nancy and Kirke Hasson, Holly and Chris Hollenbeck, Luba Kipnis and David Russel, Melanni and Paul Leary, Nancy Livingston and Fred M. Levin, Toni and Don Miller, Julie and Joseph Ratner, Laura Rockwell and Ed Leon, Patti and Rusty Rueff, Abby and Gene Schnair, Tiffanie DeBartolo and Scott Schumaker, Anne and Michelle Shonk, Tasha and Jeff Snow, Patrick S. Thompson, Adriana and Aaron Vermut, and Jeannie Yang.

American Conservatory Theater is a Tony Award-winning theater and educational institution dedicated to nurturing the art of live theater through dynamic productions, intensive actor training in its Conservatory, and an ongoing engagement with its community. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Carey Perloff, A.C.T. embraces its responsibility to conserve, renew, and reinvent our relationship to the rich theatrical traditions and literatures that are our collective legacy, while exploring new artistic forms and communities. A commitment to the highest standards informs every aspect of A.C.T.'s creative work. The company opened its first San Francisco season in 1967. Since then, A.C.T. has performed more than 350 productions to a combined audience of more than seven million people and reaches more than 250,000 people through its productions and programs every year.

The A.C.T. Conservatory serves 3,000 students each year through its acclaimed actor training programs and represents an integral part of A.C.T.'s mission. Ranked as one of the top programs in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, the A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) Program functions as the cornerstone of the A.C.T. Conservatory, which also includes the Young Conservatory, the Summer Training Congress, Studio A.C.T., San Francisco Semester, and the brand-new American Musical Theater Conservatory. Elizabeth Banks, Benjamin Bratt, Annette Bening, Darren Criss, Danny Glover, Elizabeth McGovern, Anika Noni Rose, and Denzel Washington are among A.C.T.'s distinguished former students. With its commitment to artistic excellence and to the relationship between training, performance, and audience, the A.C.T. Conservatory has moved to the forefront of America's actor training programs, while serving as the creative engine of the company at large. For more information, please visit act-sf.org/conservatory.

Each year A.C.T.'s multifaceted Education & Community Programs provide more than 12,000 students from the San Francisco Bay Area, many from low-income households, with access to live theatrical experiences through low- to no-cost Student Matinee (SMAT) performances of mainstage and M.F.A. Program productions, Will on Wheels touring productions of Shakespeare classics, stimulating in-depth study guides developed for the classroom, and customized workshops led by master teaching artists. The ACTsmart Partnership Program offers free student matinee tickets and theater-based pre- and post show workshops at no cost to more than 40 public schools (including all San Francisco public high schools) and community-based organizations (CBOs) in the Bay Area serving low-income students who otherwise would have little exposure to the arts. A.C.T. has established year-long intensive residencies in three San Francisco continuation schools serving high percentages of socioeconomically disadvantaged youth (SDY) who have not experienced success in traditional comprehensive public schools: Downtown High School (76.4% SDY), Ida B. Wells High School (81.1% SDY), and Hilltop Special Services Center for pregnant and parenting teens (88.3% SDY). A.C.T. also has residencies at Bessie Carmichael Elementary School (85.2% SDY), the Tenderloin Boys & Girls Club, and Access SFUSD: The Arc (serving developmentally disabled transition-age youth and adults). More than 50 percent of all students attending schools participating in the ACTsmart Partnership Program receive free or reduced-cost lunches. In 2014, A.C.T. launched Stage Coach, a new community-based, participatory theater program aimed at engaging San Franciscans in sharing undertold stories by supporting multigenerational audiences in the creation of theater Programming includes stand-alone theatrical experiences at street fairs and festivals throughout the city, as well as ongoing residencies with partners in three San Francisco neighborhoods: Central Market/Tenderloin, Bayview-Hunters Point, and Mission/Excelsior. These partnerships allow us to re-center the stories and experiences of marginalized communities and provide multiple entry points into creative participation and expression at all ages. Over the past year, Stage Coach has reached more than 47,000 people. For more information, visit act-sf.org/education.

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