On Monday, April 4, 2022, Theatre Ahead, a non-profit arts group based mostly in New York Metropolis, will maintain its annual gala on the Edison Ballroom, 240 West forty seventh Avenue, New York Metropolis to honor Tony and Obie Award profitable director, Kenny Leon, and world monetary providers supplier, Prudential Monetary. Kenny Leon will obtain the Theatre Ahead Artist Award offered by Phylicia Rashad, and Chief Advertising and marketing Officer, Susan Somersille Johnson, will settle for the Company Management Award on behalf of Prudential Monetary.
“On behalf of theatres throughout America, we’re proud to acknowledge Prudential Monetary’s dedication to the humanities, notably throughout a time when folks have a renewed appreciation for the consolation and inspiration they discover in arts and theater,” says Gretchen Shugart, Government Director of Theatre Ahead. “We applaud Prudential’s govt staff for offering significant assist for nonprofit theatre, recognizing that these cultural establishments are very important to our high quality of life and the well being of our communities.
“Kenny Leon is an award-winning artist, director, producer, and actor, who has been acknowledged for his work on Broadway, in movie and tv, and on so many regional theatre levels.” Shugart continued. “His work has created lasting impression on audiences nationwide, and continues to encourage and have interaction. We have a good time him for his huge contributions to the sphere.”
The star-studded night contains cocktails at 6:30 p.m., dinner at 7:30 pm, adopted by awards and leisure with performances that may mild up the stage in a celebration of Theatre Ahead to assist the return of theatre throughout the nation and the function theatres play in vibrant communities throughout America. Performers and particular friends embody Tony and Emmy Award profitable singer and actress, Kristin Chenoweth; Tony Award nominated singer and actor, Norm Lewis; Tony Award profitable actress, Phylicia Rashad; Alexander Bello; and DeWitt Fleming Jr.
Gala Chairs: Audra McDonald and Richard Okay. Greene (Citi)
For tickets and tables, please go to our web site theatreforward.org/2022gala/ or name us at 212-750-6895.
THEATRE FORWARD is a non-profit arts group that helps a community of 19 outstanding regional theatres of their efforts to counterpoint communities and make theatre accessible to all. By connecting these theatres to funding and assets on a nationwide stage, Theatre Ahead champions the creation of thought-provoking performances for numerous audiences and helps drive training and neighborhood applications that gasoline constructive social change and significant engagement. Theatre Ahead goals to extend entry and alternative for all to expertise theatre. For extra info, please go to www.theatreforward.org.
ABOUT THE HONOREES & PRESENTERS
HONOREE: KENNY LEON is a Tony and Obie Award-winning; Emmy-nominated; Broadway and Tv director. Most lately, he directed Lifetime’s Emmy-nominated Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia. Final 12 months, he directed the Tony Award-winning Broadway premiere of Charles Fuller’s Pulitzer Prize profitable masterpiece, A Soldier’s Play, for which he additionally acquired a nomination for Greatest Director. At present on Netflix, he has directed episodes of Colin in Black & White and Amend: The Combat for America. He additionally directed The Underlying Chris at Second Stage Theatre Firm and the acclaimed manufacturing of A lot Ado About Nothing on the Delacorte/Shakespeare within the Park. Broadway: A Soldier’s Play; American Son; Kids of a Lesser God; Holler If Ya Hear Me; A Raisin within the Solar (Tony Award; 2014); The Mountaintop; Stick Fly; August Wilson’s Fences, Gem of the Ocean and Radio Golf. Off-Broadway: Everyone’s Ruby, Emergence-See! (The Public); Good Folks (Second Stage). Tv: Colin in Black & White; 4400; Amend: The Combat for America; American Son (tailored for Netflix); Hairspray Dwell!; The Wiz Dwell!; Metal Magnolias; Dynasty; In My Desires. Creator: Take You Wherever You Go. Inventive Director Emeritus, Kenny Leon’s True Colours Theatre Firm. Senior Resident Director: Roundabout Theatre Firm.
HONOREE: PRUDENTIAL FINANCIAL is a world monetary providers firm and premier lively funding supervisor serving to to make lives higher by fixing the monetary challenges of our altering world. Our imaginative and prescient is to be a world chief in increasing entry to investing, insurance coverage, and retirement safety. Prudential has operations in the US, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential’s iconic Rock image has stood for power, resilience, experience, and innovation for greater than a century.
Prudential has been a supporter of the humanities and the theater neighborhood. Most lately in 2021, in partnership with Playbill, The Broadway League and Instances Sq. Alliance, Prudential was the title sponsor of Curtain Up, an electrifying musical pageant that celebrated the return of Broadway in New York Metropolis. Prudential additionally donated to Black Theatre Coalition and The Actors Fund.
Over the previous decade, Prudential has invested greater than $1 billion to assist revitalize and develop Newark with a deal with arts, actual property, and faculty applications. The corporate’s dedication contains over $29 million in direction of New Jersey Performing Arts Middle (NJPAC), one of many nation’s largest arts facilities, serving to to draw main artists to Newark and supply arts training to 70,000 college students in New Jersey.
ACCEPTING ON BEHALF of Prudential Monetary: SUSAN SOMERSILLE JOHNSON is chief advertising officer for Prudential Monetary, Inc. On this function, she is accountable for main the corporate’s world advertising and model technique to assist drive worthwhile progress for Prudential. Johnson will leverage her background in expertise to spearhead new advertising innovation and bridge conventional advertising with rising digital instruments and analytics.
Beforehand, Johnson was company govt vp and chief advertising officer of Truist Monetary, the financial institution holding firm shaped in 2019 following the merger of SunTrust Financial institution and BB&T. Whereas at Truist, Johnson led the post-merger enterprise rebranding for the brand new group, which had over $504 billion in belongings. She additionally championed the launch of onUp, a cultural motion empowering monetary confidence for over 6.1 million individuals throughout America.
Johnson started her profession as an engineer at Apple earlier than taking up a collection of high-profile world advertising management roles at organizations together with NCR Company and Nokia. Whereas at Nokia, she developed and deployed focused initiatives that drove buyer demand, setting report ranges of efficiency for Nokia channel companions world wide. She served as vp of International Advertising and marketing at NCR Company, overseeing the corporate’s worldwide advertising, communications and enterprise intelligence applications to drive elevated consciousness and consideration of NCR services and products throughout 180 international locations.
Johnson serves on the board of administrators of Constellation Manufacturers and Nationwide Imaginative and prescient. Keen about philanthropy and volunteerism, she is also a board member of United Approach U.S.A., and HOPE International Boards. She was named “Marketer of the Yr” by Goal Advertising and marketing (2018), among the many “50 Most Highly effective Girls in Company America” by Black Enterprise (2016 and 2017) and “Prime Influential Girls in Company America” by Savoy Journal (2016).
She holds a bachelor’s diploma in engineering sciences from Harvard College and an MBA in finance from The Wharton College.
PRESENTER to Kenny Leon: PHYLICIA RASHAD, an completed actress and stage director, grew to become a family title when she portrayed ‘Claire Huxtable’ on The Cosby Present, a personality whose enduring attraction has earned quite a few awards and honors for over twenty years. Her movie and tv credit embody: A Fall From Grace, Creed and Creed II, For Coloured Ladies, Soul, Jingle Jangle, and Black Field; That is Us (three Emmy nominations), David Makes Man, and Empire.
Inducted into the Theatre Corridor of Fame in 2016, Ms. Rashad acquired Tony and Drama Desk Awards for her efficiency as ‘Lena Youthful’ in A Raisin within the Solar, the Lucille Lortel Award for her efficiency as ‘Shelah’ in Head of Passes, and a Tony nomination for her portrayal of ‘Aunt Ester’ in August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean. Ms. Rashad has directed performs by August Wilson (Gem of the Ocean, Fences, Ma Rainey’s Black Backside, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), Stephen Adly Guirgis, (Our Woman of 121st Avenue) and Paul Oakley Stovall (Quick Household) at prestigious regional and 0ff-Broadway Theaters. Rashad, who serves as Co-Chair of the Advisory Council for the African American Cultural Heritage Fund, is presently Dean of the Chadwick A. Boseman Faculty of Wonderful Arts at Howard College.
ABOUT THE PERFORMERS
KRISTIN CHENOWETH TONY® and EMMY® Award-winning actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth’s profession spans movie, tv, voiceover and stage. Stage, (You are a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Depraved, On the Twentieth Century), movie (Rio 2, My Little Pony: The Film, 4 Christmases) and tv (Trial & Error, The West Wing, Pushing Daisies, Glee, Descendants, Hairspray and American Gods).
Chenoweth lately launched her newest Vacation/Christmas album “HAPPINESS is…Christmas!.” Beforehand in 2019, she launched “For The Ladies,” a heartfelt tribute to the nice feminine singers all through historical past. To have a good time the discharge of “For The Ladies,” Chenoweth returned to the Broadway stage in November 2019 for an eight-performance live performance engagement on the Nederlander Theatre. She was lately seen starring within the STX movies sports activities drama Nationwide Champions. Chenoweth additionally co-starred in Apple TV+’s acclaimed musical-comedy collection Schmigadoon!. In 2020, Chenoweth starred within the Netflix movie Holidate, voiced the character Daisy within the HBO Max movie The Witches, and hosted the Meals Community competitors collection Sweet Land. In 2019, Chenoweth starred alongside Scott Wolf within the vacation movie A Christmas Love Story, which premiered on Hallmark Channel. Together with the vacation season, Chenoweth launched a stand-alone Vacation e-single titled “White Christmas.” Additionally in 2019, Chenoweth carried out with iconic The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra of their annual Christmas live performance. In 2009, Chenoweth wrote an upliftingly candid, comedic chronicle of her life up to now, A Little Bit Depraved, which debuted on the New York Instances Hardcover Non-Fiction Greatest Vendor Record. Chenoweth will quickly launch her first image e-book What Will I Do with My Love At present?. The heartwarming story, obtainable for buy March 8, 2022 is a candy story a couple of younger woman named Kristi Daybreak, who shares her love via acts of generosity round New York Metropolis. Kristin has joined Kathy Najimy, Linda Perry, Chely Wright and Lauren Blitzer as an editor of My Second: 106 Girls on Combating for Themselves, a e-book that features essays from figures together with Cynthia Erivo, Carol Burnett, Brooke Baldwin, Brandi Carlile and Debra Messing. The e-book will likely be launched on April 26, 2022.
Chenoweth acquired a coveted star on The Hollywood Stroll of Fame within the class of Dwell Efficiency, Stage/Theatre in 2015. Chenoweth is a graduate of Oklahoma Metropolis College with a Grasp’s diploma in Opera Efficiency. She shaped a charity partnership with the Damaged Arrow Performing Arts Middle (BAPAC) Basis in her dwelling state of Oklahoma. Chenoweth’s accomplishments had been honored by her hometown with BAPAC naming “The Kristin Chenoweth Theatre” in 2012. Partnering with the BAPAC, she launched an annual Broadway Bootcamp in 2015. Chenoweth is an inductee into the Oklahoma Corridor of Fame, in addition to the Oklahoma Music Corridor of Fame.
NORM LEWIS is an Emmy, Tony, and SAG-nominated performer with a profession spanning movie, tv, and theater. He most lately starred within the hit Broadway comedy Hen & Biscuits, which marked Lewis’ first flip in a Broadway play. The play was one among seven new performs within the 2021 season written by Black playwrights (Douglas Lyons); it was additionally directed by the youngest Black director in Broadway historical past (Zhailon Levingston). Most lately, Lewis made his solo debut on the iconic Carnegie Corridor on March 4, 2022 with the New York Pops.
Lewis’ Broadway credit embody The Phantom of the Opera – making historical past in 2014 as Broadway’s first African American Phantom – the Tony Award-winning revival of As soon as on This Island, The Gershwins’ Porgy & Bess, Sondheim on Sondheim, The Little Mermaid, and Les Misérables. He additionally starred within the 2017 Off-Broadway manufacturing of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Avenue, receiving the AUDELCO Award for his efficiency. Lewis’ display credit embody Spike Lee’s critically acclaimed movie, Da 5 Bloods, FX’s Pose, Hulu’s Mrs. America, NBC’s Jesus Christ Famous person Dwell in Live performance!,
ABC’s Scandal, Lifetime’s Christmas in Tune, six PBS specials, and most lately, ABC’s Girls of The Motion.
Lewis can be a proud founding member of Black Theatre United, a corporation which stands collectively to assist defend Black folks, Black expertise and Black lives of all shapes and orientations in theater and communities throughout the nation.
ALEXANDER BELLO is that uncommon quadruple risk: actor, singer, dancer and full-time eighth grader. On the age of eight Alexander made his skilled performing debut within the Off-Off-Broadway play A Actual Boy after itemizing “an audition” third on his Christmas listing. Lower than two years later he made his Broadway debut within the 2019 revival of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons. Two extra roles on Broadway quickly adopted: the 2019 revival of Tennessee Williams’ The Rose Tattoo and the critically acclaimed 2021 revival of Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s Caroline, or Change.
However Alexander’s favourite function so far is that of Willie Sheridan-the title character in New York Metropolis Middle’s 2022 Encores! manufacturing of The Faucet Dance Child. Underneath the considerate path of Tony Award-winning director Kenny Leon, Alexander was ready to make use of Lydia Diamond’s shrewdly revised e-book to problem his performing in new methods and Jared Grimes’ dazzling choreography to take his tapping expertise to new heights.
On the small display Alexander could also be seen in And Simply Like That on HBO, Rise Up, Sing Out on Disney Jr. (voice of Kingston) and John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch on Netflix singing and dancing reverse Tony Award winner Annaleigh Ashford.
Alexander is overjoyed to affix Theatre Ahead as they honor Kenny Leon for his sensible and very important contributions to the American theatre and Prudential Monetary for his or her dedication to the humanities. (IG: thealexanderbello)
DEWITT FLEMING JR. is a world famend Faucet Dancer. He has toured the world as a featured faucet dancer with Riverdance, Cirque Du Soleil, danced with Grammy award profitable artist Alicia Keys, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin, and was featured on the HBO Emmy Award profitable present Boardwalk Empire. A few of his favourite theater productions are NY Metropolis Middle’s The Faucet Dance Child (Daddy Bates), Signature Theater’s Scottsboro Boys (Ozie/Robie), Nationwide Black Theater Competition’s Jelly’s Final Jam (Jelly), and Alpine Theater Mission’s Jesus Christ Famous person (Simon). He was awarded the Dancer of the Decade Award from Broadway World, and was honored with the NYC Flo Bert award. DeWitt additionally made historical past by releasing the primary jazz album recorded reside at Dizzy’s Membership Jazz at Lincoln Middle with faucet dancing on it; Sax and Faucets INTERSPLOSION! (Dwell at Dizzy’s Membership). For more information please go to www.dewittflemingjr.com social media @dewittflemingjr
