Tag Archives: The Actors Fund

Ariana DeBose to Appear on Season Finale of Brian Stokes Mitchell’s On Demand Streaming Talk Show “Crossovers Live!”

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Ariana DeBose is preparing for a crossover…

The 30-year-old half-Afro-Puerto Rican actress, singer and dancer will be a guest on the season finale of Brian Stokes Mitchell’s on demand streaming talk show Crossovers Live!.

Ariana DeBose

DeBose will appear along side fellow Broadway star Audra McDonald.

Portions of ticket sales for the live show will benefit The Actors Fund.

The season holiday finale episode is set for Monday, December 20 at 8:00 pm ET.

A Stellar Original presentation in association with Atomic Focus Entertainment, Crossovers Live! was created and will be directed by Tom Wiggin, and is designed to showcase performers who have made the jump from stage to film, television or music.

Since the monthly series debuted last June, Crossovers Live!, hosted by Mitchell, has featured such guests as Vanessa Williams, Daniel J. Watts, Marc Shaiman, Megan Hilty, Bernadette Peters, Kristin Chenoweth and David Hyde Pierce.

Blending candid interviews, rare footage and various surprises, the series is livestreamed in New York City and also available on demand. Ticket info is available here, with a minimum of 10% of net proceeds benefiting The Actors Fund.

DeBose made her television debut competing on So You Think You Can Dance and her Broadway debut in the musical Bring It On. Other Broadway credits have included Motown: The Musical, the revival of Pippin, A Bronx Tale and as Donna Summer in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, which earned her a Tony Award nomination.

On film and television, she appeared in the filmed version of Hamilton, Ryan Murphy’s adaptation of Broadway musical The Prom, and most recently in Apple TV’s Schmigadoon!.

She’ll soon be seen on the big screen as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film adaptation of West Side Story.

Santino Fontana to Perform During Broadway “Show of Titles” Musical Event to Benefit The Actors Fund

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Santino Fontana is a title(s) act…

The 39-year-old part-Spanish America actor will perform at Show of Titles, a special livestreamed musical event next month benefiting The Actors Fund.

Santino Fontana

Fontana joins a lineup of nearly 30 stars – from Glenn Close, Patti LuPone, Darren Criss, Kelsey Grammar and David Alan Grier to Jake Gyllenhaal, Joshua Henry and Phillipa Soo – who will perform title songs from more than 20 musicals.

The event will feature title songs of Broadway musicals spanning nine decades, from “Lady Be Good” to “The Light in the Piazza.”

The line-up also includes Annaleigh Ashford, Len Cariou, Isabelle Huppert, Norm Lewis, Rob McClure, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Melba Moore, Jessie Mueller, Eva Noblezada, Kelli O’Hara, Laura Osnes, Steven Pasquale, Michael Rupert, Ernie Sabella, Lea Salonga, Will Swenson, Aaron Tveit, Leslie Uggams, Vanessa Williams and Patrick Wilson.

Making special appearances will be Broadway Inspirational Voices, Candice Bergen, Danny Burstein, Bryan Cranston, Sheldon Harnick, John Kander, Angela Lansbury, John Lithgow, Lindsay Mendez, Phylicia Rashad, Ben Vereen, BD Wong and Florian Zeller.

Conceived by Broadway’s Best Shows producer Jeffrey Richards, Show of Titles will be directed by Lonny Price, with music direction by Jason Howland, and livestreamed on June 8, 8:00 pm ET on Stellar for a limited time only.

Tickets went on sale May 17 for $29 ($39 starting May 21), with all sales donated to The Actor’s Fund.

Composers represented include Lee Adams, Maxwell Anderson, Burt Bacharach, Irving Berlin, Jerry Bock, Bertolt Brecht, Cy Coleman, Betty Comden, Joe Darion, Hal David, Fred Ebb, Gary Geld, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Adolph Green, Adam Guettel, Oscar Hammerstein, Sheldon Harnick, Jerry Herman, John Kander, Burton Lane, Mitch Leigh, Alan Jay Lerner, Frank Loesser, Frederick Loewe, Galt MacDermot, Cole Porter, James Rado, Gerome Ragni, Richard Rodgers, Charles Strouse, Jule Styne, Peter Udell and Kurt Weill.

Leiomy Maldonado to Take Part in ATX Television Festival’s First-Ever Virtual Event, “ATX TV….From The Couch!”

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Leiomy Maldonado is bringing something legendary to this year’s virtual edition of the ATX Television Festival.

The festival’s first ever virtual version, titled “ATX TV….From The Couch!,” will feature a special panel “Extravaganza” with the cast of HBO Max’s new reality voguing competition, Legemdary, including the 33-year-old Afro-Puerto Rican dancer, instructor, model and ballroom dancer, aka “Wonder Woman of Vogue.”

Leiomy Maldonado

Maldonado serves as a judge on the new reality competition series, alongside Megan Thee Stallion, Jameela Jamil and Law Roach.

Peacock will present a Psych panel with creators Steve Franks and Chris Henze, as well as cast members James Roday, Dulé Hill, Kirsten Nelson, Maggie Lawson and Corbin Bernsen ahead of the premiere of Peacock’s second Psych movie, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home.

Other panels include a conversation with PopTV’s One Day at a Time including showrunner/executive producer/director/actor Gloria Calderón Kellett as well as cast members Justina Machado, Rita Moreno, and Isabella Gomez. 

They’ll join viewers for an informal brunch conversation discussing the June 16 animated special, “The Politics Episode.”

There will also be a table read with the executive producers and cast of Search Party ahead of its debut on HBO Max.

The festival will feature the marquee panel conversation with the cast and creatives of HBO‘s reboot of Perry Mason. Audiences will get a first look at the new gritty drama ahead of its June 21 premiere date. 

Hulu will also bring their original series Little Fires Everywhere to the fest with a special panel featuring the shows producers and writers.

FX Networks will present a Justified reunion with the show’sbehind the scenes team and stars Timothy Olyphant and Joelle Carter.

The fest will highlight the ways women support one another in television with a special “Torchlighters” panel, led by Pacesetter principal and executive producer Jessica Rhoades (Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, Sharp Objects, Utopia) creator/showrunner/executive producer/director Marti Noxon (Sharp Objects, Dietland, To the Bone), creator/showrunner/executive producer/director Tanya Saracho (Vida), Francesca Orsi (Executive Vice President and Head of Drama at HBO), writer Lindsey Villarreal (Vida) and writer Erika L Johnson (The Village, The Good Lord Bird), with additional panelists to be announced soon.

ATX’s previously announced programming includes panels for Scrubs, Cougar Town, The Bold Type, Nancy Drew, New Amsterdam, P-Valley and more. The ATX Television Festival will stream for free on ATX’s official YouTube channel, with an option for viewers to donate to fundraising efforts for​ Direct Relief and​ The Actors Fund ​in an effort to benefit those affected by COVID-19.

The event will take place June 5-7. Click here for the complete schedule.

Krysta Rodriguez to Take Part in Special “Smash” Virtual Cast Reunion to Benefit Actors Fund

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Krysta Rodriguezis ready for a Smashing reunion…

The 35-year-old Latina actress/singer is expected to take part in a virtual Smash cast reunion.

Krysta Rodriguez,

Rodriguez, who portrayed Ana Vargas on NBC’s 2012-2013 musical series, will appear in the one-night-only Actors Fund benefit event alongside her Smashcastmates Jaime Cepero, Will Chase, Brian d’Arcy James, Jack Davenport, Ann Harada, Jeremy Jordan, Andy Mientus, Leslie Odom Jr. and Wesley Taylor.

The show’s stars Debra Messing, Katharine McPhee, Christian Borle, Megan Hilty and other cast members will virtually reunite on May 20 for a streaming of the 2015 Bombshell in Concert, with Renée Zellwegerintroducing the event and Julie Klausner hosting a live, virtual cast reunion.

The concert of the show-within-the-show about the life of Marilyn Monroewas taped at Broadway’s Minskoff Theateron June 8, 2015, an event that remains one of the most successful fundraisers ever for The Actors Fund. Bombshell– the creation of which formed the plot of Smash– features a score by Marc Shaimanand Scott Wittman, who also served as executive producers of Smash.

Rodriguez and her cast members will appear in a livestream reunion during the intermission. 

The concert and reunion will stream on Wednesday, May 20, at 8:00 pm ET on people.com, PeopleTV, and People social platforms.

Tony Awardwinner and Actors Fund chairman Brian Stokes Mitchell said, “Bombshell in Concertwill be a wonderful evening to share this benefit night with fans far and wide, and will raise much-needed funds to help The Actors Fund continue to help everyone in need in our entertainment community across the country.”

In the past seven weeks, The Actors Fund has distributed $10.1 million in emergency financial assistance to 8,558 people in need due to the current COVID-19pandemic, or more than five times the funds normally provided in a year.

Smashwas based on an original idea by Steven Spielberg, who was also executive producer of the series, and created by Theresa Rebeck.

Leguizamo Receives Lucille Lortel Award Nomination for His “Latin History for Morons” Play

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John Leguizamo is reaping the critical acclaim for his return to the theater…

The 52-year-old Colombian American actor, stand-up comedian and playwright – who has earned Drama Desk Awards for his plays Ghetto Klown and Freak, along with other theater prizes – has earned a nomination at this year’s Lucille Lortel Awards, which salute commercial and nonprofit off-Broadway productions.

John Leguizamo

Leguizamo, who earned a Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor back in 1993 for his one-man play Spic-O-Rama, is nominated in the Outstanding Solo Show category for his Latin History for Morons, which he wrote and stars in. It was produced by The Public Theater in a co-production with Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

Joel Perez earned a nomination in the Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical category for his performance in Sweet Charity, the New Group revival starring Sutton Foster.

The Latino actor’s theater work includes Fun Home (Broadway and The Public Theater), as well as national and international tours of In the Heights and Fame.

María Irene Fornés, a multiple Obie Award winner, has received a nomination in the Outstanding Revival category.

The 86-year-old Cuban-American avant garde playwright and director is nominated for penning Drowning, one of the three plays that make up the Signature Theatre-produced Signature Plays: Edward Albee’s The Sandbox, María Irene Fornés’ Drowning, and Adrienne Kennedy’s Funnyhouse of a Negro.

Montana Blanco picked up a nod in the Outstanding Costume Design category for his work on The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World AKA the Negro Book of the Dead.

The awards will be presented on May 7 at an event hosted by ex-SNL company member Taran Killam to benefit The Actors Fund.

The complete list of nominations follows:

Outstanding Play
Indecent
Produced by Vineyard Theatre in association with La Jolla Playhouse and Yale Repertory Theatre
Written by Paula Vogel, Created by Paula Vogel & Rebecca Taichman

Oslo
Produced by Lincoln Center Theater
Written by J.T. Rogers

Underground Railroad Game
Produced by Ars Nova
Written by Jennifer Kidwell and Scott R. Sheppard

Vietgone
Produced by Manhattan Theatre Club in association with South Coast Repertory
Written by Qui Nguyen

The Wolves
Produced by The Playwrights Realm in association with New York Stage and Film and Vassar’s Powerhouse Theatre Season
Written by Sarah DeLappe

Outstanding Musical
The Band’s Visit
Produced by Atlantic Theater Company
Music and Lyrics by David Yazbek, Book by Itamar Moses, Based on the screenplay by Eran Kolirin

Dear Evan Hansen
Produced by Second Stage Theatre in association with Stacey Mindich Productions
Book by Steven Levenson, Music and Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

Hadestown
Produced by New York Theatre Workshop
Written by Anaïs Mitchell

Ride the Cyclone
Produced by MCC Theater
Book, Music, and Lyrics by Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond

The Total Bent
Produced by The Public Theater
Text by Stew, Music by Stew and Heidi Rodewald

Outstanding Revival
The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World AKA the Negro Book of the Dead
Produced by Signature Theatre
Written by Suzan-Lori Parks

Othello
Produced by New York Theatre Workshop
Written by William Shakespeare

Signature Plays: Edward Albee’s The Sandbox, María Irene Fornés’ Drowning, and Adrienne Kennedy’s Funnyhouse of a Negro
Produced by Signature Theatre
Written by Edward Albee, María Irene Fornés, and Adrienne Kennedy

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Produced by Rachel Edwards, Jenny Gersten, Seaview Productions, Nate Koch, Fiona Rudin, Barrow Street Theatre, Jean Doumanian, Rebecca Gold, and Tooting Arts Club
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by Hugh Wheeler, Adaptation by Christopher Bond

Sweet Charity
Produced by The New Group in association with Kevin McCollum
Book by Neil Simon, Music by Cy Coleman, Lyrics by Dorothy Fields

Outstanding Solo Show
Chris Gethard: Career Suicide
Produced by Judd Apatow, Mike Berkowitz, Brian Stern, Mike Lavoie, and Carlee Briglia
Written and Performed by Chris Gethard

Latin History for Morons
Produced by The Public Theater in a co-production with Berkeley Repertory Theatre
Written and Performed by John Leguizamo

Notes From The Field
Produced by Second Stage Theatre and American Repertory Theater
Created, Written, and Performed by Anna Deavere Smith

The Outer Space
Produced by The Public Theater
Book and Lyrics by Ethan Lipton, Music by Ethan Lipton, Vito Dieterle, Eben Levy, and Ian M. Riggs
Performed by Ethan Lipton

Sell/Buy/Date
Produced by Manhattan Theatre Club
Written and Performed by Sarah Jones

Outstanding Director
Will Davis, Men On Boats
Anne Kauffman, A Life
Lila Neugebauer, The Wolves
Bartlett Sher, Oslo
Rebecca Taichman, Indecent

Outstanding Choreographer
Joshua Bergasse, Sweet Charity
David Dorfman, Indecent
Georgina Lamb, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
David Neumann, Hadestown
David Neumann, The Total Bent 

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play
Reed Birney, Man From Nebraska
Michael Emerson, Wakey, Wakey
Lucas Hedges, YEN
Joe Morton, Turn Me Loose
David Hyde Pierce, A Life

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play
Johanna Day, Sweat
Jennifer Ehle, Oslo
Jennifer Kidwell, Underground Railroad Game
Kecia Lewis, Marie and Rosetta
Maryann Plunkett, Women of a Certain Age

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Michael Aronov, Oslo
Charlie Cox, Incognito
Matthew Maher, Othello
Justice Smith, YEN
Paco Tolson, Vietgone

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Jocelyn Bioh, Everybody
Hannah Cabell, The Moors
Randy Graff, The Babylon Line
Ari Graynor, YEN
Nana Mensah, Man From Nebraska

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical
Ato Blankson-Wood, The Total Bent
Shuler Hensley, Sweet Charity
Patrick Page, Hadestown
Ben Platt, Dear Evan Hansen
Jeremy Secomb, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical
Sutton Foster, Sweet Charity
Amber Gray, Hadestown
Jo Lampert, Joan of Arc: Into the Fire
Katrina Lenk, The Band’s Visit
Siobhan McCarthy, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Nathan Lee Graham, The View UpStairs
Gus Halper, Ride the Cyclone
Joel Perez, Sweet Charity
Ari’el Stachel, The Band’s Visit
Chris Sullivan, Hadestown

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Asmeret Ghebremichael, Sweet Charity
Rachel Bay Jones, Dear Evan Hansen
Betsy Morgan, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Emily Rohm, Ride the Cyclone
Karen Ziemba, Kid Victory

Outstanding Scenic Design
Scott Davis, Ride the Cyclone
Rachel Hauck, Hadestown
Laura Jellinek, A Life
Mimi Lien, Signature Plays: Edward Albee’s The Sandbox, María Irene Fornés’ Drowning, and Adrienne Kennedy’s Funnyhouse of a Negro
Jason Sherwood, The View UpStairs

Outstanding Costume Design
Montana Blanco, The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World AKA the Negro Book of the Dead
Tilly Grimes, Underground Railroad Game
Susan Hilferty, Love, Love, Love
Sarah Laux, The Band’s Visit
Emily Rebholz, Indecent

Outstanding Lighting Design
Mark Barton, Signature Plays: Edward Albee’s The Sandbox, María Irene Fornés’ Drowning, and Adrienne Kennedy’s Funnyhouse of a Negro
Jane Cox, Othello
Greg Hofmann, Ride the Cyclone
Amy Mae, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Ben Stanton, YEN

Outstanding Sound Design
Mikhail Fiksel, A Life
Robert Kaplowitz, Hadestown
Stowe Nelson, Small Mouth Sounds
Nevin Steinberg, Wakey, Wakey
Matt Stine, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street 

Outstanding Projection Design
Elaine McCarthy, Notes From The Field
Duncan McLean, Privacy
Jared Mezzochi, Vietgone
Peter Nigrini, Dear Evan Hansen
Peter Nigrini, Wakey, Wakey

HONORARY AWARDS
Lifetime Achievement Award
William Ivey Long

Playwrights’ Sidewalk Inductee
Lynn Nottage

Edith Oliver Service to Off-Broadway Award
Harold Wolpert