Michael Riedel to Open New Curran Series GROUNDBREAKERS WITH KEVIN SESSUMS

Carole Shorenstein Hays announced today that for the inaugural installment of Groundbreakers, the Curran's Editor-at-Large Kevin Sessums will sit down with Broadway's most notorious commentator, the New York Post's Michael Riedel, to discuss the state of the theater and his new book, Razzle Dazzle: The Battle For Broadway. This event, taking place on stage at the Curran (445 Geary Street) at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, October 19, is free. Mr. Riedel will sign copies of the book immediately following the discussion. Groundbreakers with Kevin Sessums is Curran: Under Construction's recently announced occasional on-stage series of conversation and performance featuring today's most compelling thought leaders and artists.

"How fitting that our modern day Addison DeWitt will be kicking off our new Groundbreakers series right here at the Curran, where All About Eve was filmed," Shorenstein Hays said. "Michael has written a marvelous tome about the history of Broadway, and I know that it's going to be a fabulously dishy evening."

Tickets for this first installment of Groundbreakers with Kevin Sessums are free and people are encouraged to reserve early via Eventbrite by visiting SFCURRAN.COM.

Razzle Dazzle is a provocative, no-holds-barred narrative account of the people and the money and the power that re-invented an iconic quarter of New York City, turning its gritty back alleys and sex-shops into the glitzy, dazzling Great White Way-and bringing a crippled New York from the brink of bankruptcy to its glittering glory.

In the mid-1970s Times Square was the seedy symbol of New York's economic decline. Its once shining star, the renowned Shubert Organization, was losing theaters to make way for parking lots. Bernard Jacobs and Jerry Schoenfeld, two ambitious board members, saw the crumbling company was ripe for takeover and staged a coup amidst corporate intrigue, personal betrayals, and criminal investigations. Once Jacobs and Schoenfeld solidified their power, they turned a collapsed theater-owning holding company into one of the most successful entertainment empires in the world, ultimately backing many of Broadway's biggest hits, including A Chorus Line, Cats, Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, and Mamma Mia! They also sparked the revitalization of Broadway and the renewal of Times Square. Now Michael Riedel tells the stories of the Shubert Organization and the shows that re-built a city in grand style, revealing the backstage drama that often rivaled what transpired onstage, exposing bitter rivalries, unlikely alliances, and-of course-scintillating gossip. This is a great story, told with wit and passion.

Michael Riedel has been a theater columnist for the New York Post since 1998. He worked at the Daily News (New York) for five years before returning to the Post and has written for The Guardian, Harper's Bazaar, Mirabella, Departures, and Commentary. Riedel is the cohost of Theater Talk with PBS, is a contributor to the BBC, and has appeared on Larry King Live, The Today show, Good Morning America, and many other news programs. He lives in New York City. Razzle Dazzle is his first book.

Kevin Sessums began his career as Executive Editor for Andy Warhol's Interview magazine before serving as contributing editor at Vanity Fair for fourteen years where he was also the Fanfair Editor. He has been a contributing editor for Allure and Parade magazines and his work has appeared in Marie Claire, Elle, Playboy, Out, and Travel+Leisure. For several years, he was a regular contributor to The Daily Beast. His Facebook page has a large and loyal following. Sessums's two memoirs, Mississippi Sissy and I Left It on the Mountain, have both been New York Times bestsellers. He lives at the top of Telegraph Hill in San Francisco with his dogs, Archie and Teddy.

Built in 1922, the Curran has housed some of the most important productions in theater history and has maintained a reputation over the course of its life as one of the most prestigious live entertainment venues in North America. Now, nearly 100 years after it welcomed its first Bay Area audiences, the Curran is undergoing a major restoration and renovation. Under the curation of eight-time Tony Award winner Carole Shorenstein Hays, the Curran will reopen as a 1,600 seat venue in late 2016 with the new mission. Inspired by the unique entrepreneurial spirit of the Bay Area, as well as Ms. Shorenstein Hays's lifelong passion for creatively daring, cutting-edge material, the Curran will provide a home for a handpicked selection of the most exciting stage works being conceived and created anywhere in the world.

"Curran: Under Construction" features an array of wildly inventive and diverse works, each with ties to the Bay Area. This ground-breaking festival began last with The Events (September 23 - 26) and also includes The Object Lesson (October 14-18), Ghost Quartet (October 22-25 & 28-31), Steve Cuiffo is Lenny Bruce (November 19-21), Stew - Notes of a Native Song (December 3-5), Story Pirates' Greatest Hits Show (December 12-13 & 19-20) and Taylor Mac's 24-Decade History of Popular Music (January 17-31). Tickets for "Curran: Under Construction" offerings are priced from $25 to $50 and can be purchased by exclusively via Eventbrite by visiting SFCURRAN.COM, where you can also find all the latest information about "Curran: Under Construction" and plans for the new Curran theatre.

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