PRESS CONTACTS: Anna Mills Russell, 240.644.1386 [email protected]
Sarah Randall, 240.644.1387 [email protected]
ROUND HOUSE THEATRE ANNOUNCES 2019 GALA FEATURING TONY, GRAMMY, AND EMMY AWARD-WINNER AUDRA McDONALD Saturday, April 6, 2019
Bethesda, Md. (January 22, 2019) – Round House Theatre’s annual “Broadway in Bethesda” gala relocates to Washington, DC this spring while its facility undergoes renovations as part of its comprehensive Full Circle capital campaign. This year’s event, Broadway Near Bethesda: An Evening with Audra McDonald, features a headlining performance by the record- breaking six-time Tony Award-winner at The Hamilton Live (600 14th Street NW) on Saturday, April 6, 2019. The program also includes a seated dinner and live auction. Proceeds from Round House Theatre’s 2019 Gala will benefit the theatre’s artistic programming and educational initiatives. See below for full details.
In addition to her six Tony Awards—distinguishing her as the most decorated performer in American theater—she is the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a 2015 National Medal of Arts bestowed on her by President Barack Obama. Blessed with a luminous soprano and an incomparable gift for dramatic truth-telling, she is as much at home on Broadway and concert stages as she is on film and television.
The program will also include an opening performance from a finalist of the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Award and a live auction. The co-chairs of the event are Michael & Ilana Heintz and Mark & Merrill Shugoll. For questions, more information, or to purchase sponsorships, please contact Veronica Kannan, Director of Development, at [email protected] or 240.670.8795.
BIOGRAPHY
Audra McDonald is unparalleled in the breadth and versatility of her artistry as both a singer and an actor. The winner of a record-breaking six Tony Awards, two Grammy Awards, and an Emmy Award, she was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2015 and received a 2015 National Medal of Arts—America’s highest honor for achievement in the arts—from President Barack Obama. In addition to her Tony-winning performances in Carousel, Master Class, Ragtime, A Raisin in the Sun, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill—the role that also served as the vehicle for her 2017 debut on London’s West End (2018 Olivier Award nomination)—she has appeared on Broadway in The Secret Garden, Marie Christine (Tony nomination), Henry IV, 110 in the Shade (Tony nomination), and Shuffle Along, Or, The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. The Juilliard-trained soprano’s opera credits include La voix humaine and Send at Houston Grand Opera, and Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny at Los Angeles Opera. On television, she was seen by millions as the Mother Abbess in NBC’s The Sound of Music Live! and played Dr. Naomi Bennett on ABC’s Private Practice. She won an Emmy Award for her role as host of PBS’s Live From Lincoln Center and has received nominations for Wit, A Raisin in the Sun, and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. Having first appeared as Liz Lawrence on CBS’s The Good Wife, she can now be seen on CBS All Access’s The Good Fight, which launches its third season in 2019. On film, she has appeared in Seven Servants, The Object of My Affection, Cradle Will Rock, It Runs in the Family, The Best Thief in the World, She Got Problems, Rampart, Ricki and the Flash, Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast, and the movie-musical Hello Again. McDonald has released five solo albums on the Nonesuch label and recently released a new recording, Sing Happy, with the New York Philharmonic on Decca Gold. She also maintains a major career as a concert artist, regularly appearing on the great stages of the world and with leading international orchestras. Of all her many roles, her favorites are the ones performed offstage: passionate advocate for equal rights and homeless youth, wife to actor Will Swenson, and mother.
CALENDAR INFORMATION
Broadway Near Bethesda: An Evening with Audra McDonald
WHEN: Saturday, April 6, 2019
WHERE: The Hamilton Live 600 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
ORDER OF EVENTS: 6:00 pm: Reception & Sponsor Dinner 8:00 pm: Live Auction & Performances
ABOUT THE EVENT: Join us for our biggest event of the year featuring one of Broadway’s most decorated and versatile stars. The legendary Audra McDonald performs an intimate concert of Broadway and popular music at one of DC’s premier concert venues, The Hamilton Live! Winner of a record-breaking six Tony Awards, two Grammy Awards, and an Emmy Award, Audra was named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2015 and received a 2015 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama. She is best known for her roles on Broadway in Carousel, Master Class, Ragtime, A Raisin in the Sun, 110 in the Shade, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill. On television, Audra has appeared in NBC’s The Sound of Music Live!, PBS’s Live from Lincoln Center, ABC’s Private Practice, and CBS’s The Good Wife; she currently stars in The Good Fight on CBS All Access. On film, she has most recently been in Disney’s live action Beauty and The Beast, Hello Again, and Ricki and the Flash. In addition to her lengthy screen and stage credits, Audra’s unparalleled soprano voice has been heard on the great stages of the world with leading international orchestras.
TICKETS & SPONSORSHIPS: For more information on sponsoring the event and to purchase tickets, visit RoundHouseTheatre.org/Gala.
ABOUT ROUND HOUSE THEATRE: Round House Theatre is one of the leading professional theatres in the Washington, D.C. area, producing a season of new plays, modern classics, and musicals for more than 55,000 patrons each year at our theatre in Bethesda. Round House has been nominated for more than 181 Helen Hayes Awards and has won over 32, including four Outstanding Resident Play Awards and the Charles MacArthur Award for Original New Play in 2016. Round House’s lifelong learning and education programs serve over 4,000 students each year at its Education Center in Silver Spring and in schools throughout Montgomery County. Cornerstone programs include Free Play, which provides free tickets for teens and college school students, the year- round Teen Performance Company, which culminates in the student- produced Sarah Metzger Memorial Play, Summer Camp for students in grades K-12, and a full slate of classes for Adults & Youth.
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