Last Monday, May 13, 2013, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, honored Ruth and Stephen Hendel and Ming Cho Lee with a Gala Evening at the Angel Orensanz Foundation (172 Norfolk Street) in New York City, cocktails started at 6pm and dinner started at 7pm. Jessica Hecht emceed the evening; the Gala co-chairs were playwright Lydia R. Diamond and interior designer Jasmine M. Keller. The Gala honorary chairs were Anne Kaufman, Obie award-winning director; Nelle Nugent, Broadway producer; Judith O. Rubin, chairman of the board of Playwrights Horizons; and Liz Smith, gossip columnist. The Honorary Gala Committee Included: Ryan Bryan, Philip Himberg, Heather Randall, Diane Rodriguez, Rohe Schulfer, and Anna Strasberg.
Joining them was a growing list of TCG-published playwrights to celebrate the over 30-year history of TCG books as an independent trade publisher of dramatic literature. The playwrights planning to attend included: Jon Robin Baitz, Eric Bogosian, Thomas Bradshaw, Ping Chong, Nilo Cruz, Will Eno, Melissa James Gibson, Jessica Hagedorn, Karen Hartman, Amy Herzog, Danny Hoch, Tina Howe, Quiara AlegrÃa Hudes, Samuel D. Hunter, Eduardo Machado, Emily Mann, Ellen McLaughlin, Marsha Norman, Richard Nelson, Lynn Nottage, Robert O’Hara, John O’Neal, Adam Rapp, José Rivera, Sarah Ruhl, Carl Hancock Rux, Alfred Uhry, Paul Vogel and Michael Weller. Meanwhile the guest list included Lydia Diamond, Teresa Eyring (TCG), Anna Kaufman, Willa Kim, Christine Lahti, Todd London, Iris Love, Judith O. Rubin, Liz Smith, and Anna Strasberg.
The evening’s entertainment included excerpts from TCG Member Theatre Productions including Venice (Center Theatre Group, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, The Public Theater). The three excerpts that performed were from Rapture from Sky-Pony, Willow from Venice, and Hallelujah from The Last Goodbye.
Photo credit: Jonathan Ziegler/PMC.
