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Home , Marian Anderson, Marian Anderson Award, Maya Angelou, National Medal of Arts, Oprah Winfrey, Ossie Davis

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Laura Feragen, 215-793-0310| [email protected] Jesson Geipel, 215-893-3136| [email protected]

MARIAN ANDERSON AWARD GALA PERFORMANCE ASSEMBLES WORLD-RENOWNED TALENT TO HONOR Operatic Tenor and Rising Star Christian Eason to Join the Stage with The Orchestra

PHILADELPHIA (November 8, 2012) – The Award today announced that it has assembled world-renowned talent to honor this year’s recipient, James Earl Jones, at a Gala Concert on Monday, November 19, 2012, at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts at 8:30 p.m. The evening will include performances by international sensation Lawrence Brownlee and local rising star Christian Eason, as well as The under the baton of Assistant Conductor Cristian Macelaru. Performing a musical tribute will be international , pop and R & B recording artist Jean Carne, appearing with Emmy Award winning composer/ arranger/musical director and keyboardist Bill Jolly. The Concert will be hosted by celebrated actor and Screen Actors Guild Award-recipient , with a special appearance by critically acclaimed actress and Tony Award-winner Phylicia Rashad,

“This year’s performers are nothing short of extraordinary,” said J. Patrick Moran, executive director of the . “All possess a dedication to their art, which speaks to the life of Ms. Anderson and the mission of the Award.”

Lawrence Brownlee is one of the most consistently sought-after operatic tenors on the international scene. He is praised for the beauty of his voice, his seemingly effortless technical agility, and his engaging dramatic skills. He was named the ’s 2008 Artist of the Year, received the Opera Company of Philadelphia’s 2007 Alter Award for Artistic Excellence, and was the winner of both the 2006 Kennedy Center Marian Anderson Award and Richard Tucker Foundation Award, a feat never before achieved by any artist in the same year.

The Philadelphia Orchestra will be performing numerous works in tribute to Mr. Jones’s unparalleled theater and screen career with music from such films as Cry, the Country and Star Wars . Furthermore, under the direction of his cousin, Jason Ikeem Rodgers, Philadelphia-native and rising opera star Christian Eason will also be performing. A Marian Anderson Young Artist Study-Grant recipient, 18-year-old Eason is a testament to the power of the program as he is now thriving at Philadelphia’s Girard Academic Music Program. Created to support high school-age artists with financial challenges, the grant initiative is supported by funds raised through the annual Award Gala and the Lenfest Foundation.

Single tickets for the Gala Performance, which range from $25-$129, are available by calling Ticket Philadelphia at 215-893-1999 or by visiting The Philadelphia Orchestra’s website at www.philorch.org . Those interested in attending the Gala Dinner, which includes a premium ticket to the Gala Performance, can call the Marian Anderson Award office at 215-893-1837.

MARIAN ANDERSON AWARD The Marian Anderson Award honors artists whose leadership on behalf of a humanitarian cause(s) or issue benefits society. Previous recipients include Mia Farrow (2011), (2010), and (2008), Richard Gere (2007), (2006), and (2005), (2003), (2002), (2001), (2000), (1999), and , (1998). No Award was given in 2004 or 2009.

2012 Marian Anderson Award recipient James Earl Jones was selected for his superior acting talents on stage, film and television. A decorated performer with Tony, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Grammy awards, Mr. Jones has also been recognized with the , the John F. Kennedy Center Honor, a Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award, and a Lifetime Achievement Oscar from the National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Created in 1998, the Marian Anderson Award is named for the great Philadelphian and American singer Marian Anderson, and is produced and administered under the direction of J. Patrick Moran. Since its inception the Award program has provided more than $500,000 in free public programs, residencies, commissions, and grants to young artists.

For more information about the Marian Anderson Award, please visit www.marianandersonaward.org or find us on Facebook.com/MarianAndersonAward and @AndersonAward.

MARIAN ANDERSON Marian Anderson, the most celebrated of the 20th century, was born in Philadelphia on February 27, 1897, to an African-American family of modest means. Recognized for her extraordinary musical talent, as well as her generosity and commitment to others, Ms. Anderson was a master of repertoire across operatic, recital, and American traditional genres. Throughout her musical career, she played an incalculably vital role in the acceptance of African-American musicians in the classical musical.

In 1957, Ms. Anderson was appointed by the U.S. Department of State to serve as a Special Envoy to the Far East, and the following year President Dwight D. Eisenhower named her to the post of delegate to the General Assembly of the . She sang at President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration in 1961, and in 1963, President Lyndon B. Johnson bestowed the Presidential Medal of upon her. On her 77th birthday, in 1974, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution ordering a special gold medal minted in her honor. On , 1993, Marian Anderson died at the age of 96 in Portland, Oregon.

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