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Dame Julie Andrews named Mistress of Ceremonies for ACT TWO Gala DALLAS (May 24, 2006) – The Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation announced today that Academy Award-winning actress Julie Andrews will serve as Mistress of Ceremonies for ACT TWO, the Foundation’s gala to be presented in the Meyerson Symphony Center on October 25, 2006 celebrating the beginning of the Center’s construction and featuring in grand concert the incomparable Elton John. Ms. Andrews will be introduced at a private dinner to be hosted by Gene and Jerry Jones later this month honoring ACT TWO’s Host Committee, corporate underwriters and major supporters. Julie Andrews’ participation in ACT TWO is being generously underwritten with a gift from Diane and Hal Brierley “We are thrilled and honored to have an internationally renowned performing artist of the stature of Julie Andrews to share ACT TWO’s spotlight with Elton John and to bring a special measure of elegance and sophistication to the event,” said Jeanne Marie Clossey, a member of the Board of Directors of the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation and Chair of the Foundation’s ACT TWO Host Committee. “Julie Andrews is one of the most admired and revered performing artists of our time and her participation in ACT TWO will make the gala even more special for the attending audience.” Julie Andrews will host a champagne reception in the Meyerson Symphony Center for ACT TWO’s Platinum and Gold patrons and corporate underwriters and will introduce Elton John preceding his ninety-minute grand performance. A seated dinner will follow the grand performance for ACT TWO’s 1,400 Platinum, Gold and Silver patrons. The Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation announced all of ACT TWO’s Platinum and Silver reservation packages have been sold and a limited number of Gold reservation packages remain on sale, each of which includes ten reservations to ACT TWO’s Champagne Reception hosted by Julie Andrews, ten reserved seats in the Meyerson Symphony Center’s Gold section for Elton John’s grand performance and ten reservations for the seated dinner that will follow. “ACT TWO will send a resounding message that Dallas is about to begin construction of the finest performing arts center in the world,” said Howard Hallam, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation. “The gala will generate several million dollars to help construct the Center and provide support for the Center’s future resident companies, including the Dallas Theater Center, Texas Ballet Theater, The Dallas Opera, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and the Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico.” Alon USA, headquartered in Dallas, is a $1 million supporter of the campaign to build the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts and ACT TWO’s producing sponsor. Brinker International, also headquartered in Dallas and a $1 million supporter of the campaign to build the Center, has been the presenting sponsor of the Brinker International Lecture Series during the last three years and is underwriting Elton John’s grand performance in ACT TWO. Neiman Marcus has supported the campaign to build the Center from its inception through cash and in-kind gifts and is supporting ACT TWO, helping to ensure its elegance, sophistication and quality. Other important underwriters include Jackson Walker LLP, the Weitzman Group and Cencore Realty Services. Campaign on Track The campaign to build the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts is also historic because of the level of private sector funding committed to the project. Private sector campaign funding will total 93 percent of the project’s total cost or $257 million, one of the largest private sector commitments to a project of this size in the history of American capital campaigns. Less than five cents of every donor dollar committed to date has been used to support the campaign’s operation, making the project one of the least expensive campaigns of its kind and size. About Julie Andrews She made her feature debut in Mary Poppins, winning an Oscar for her performance in Disney’s 1964 hit. In 1989, she became the first actress to be given the special Tribute Award of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. She has enjoyed continued success on the screen in films such as “Princess Diaries” 1 and 2, and “Shrek 2”. She is an author of books for children, among them “Mandy”, her best-selling fantasy, “The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles”, the popular “Dumpy the Dump Truck” series, and the just released, “The Great American Mousical”. In 2000, she was named Dame Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. She is involved with several charities including the United Nations International Fund for Women (UNIFEM), Operation USA – an international relief agency, and the Foundation for Hereditary Disease. She is married to writer/director Blake Edwards. They have five children and seven grandchildren. About Elton John In December of 2004, Elton John received the Kennedy Center Honor for his lifetime contributions to American culture and excellence through the performing arts. He continues to perform his critically acclaimed "Red Piano" show exclusively at Caesars Palace. It has been heralded as the “Most Exciting Show in Las Vegas 2004” by the Las Vegas Review Journal and “A Must See” by the Los Angeles Times. Tony award-winning “Aida” and long-running “The Lion King” musicals have reigned on Broadway and continue to tour the world. This year, the stage production of “Billy Elliot –The Musical,” in which Elton wrote the music, debuted in London’s famed West End theatre district to rave reviews. According to Variety magazine editor Peter Bart, “’Billy Elliot’ will clearly rank as one of the best musicals of its generation” (May 31, 2005). Elton John and longtime writing partner Bernie Taupin have completed the score for Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures' musical "Lestat" which will open on Broadway at the Palace Theatre in New York City in April 2006. Elton John’s commitment to the fight against AIDS led to the inception of the Elton John AIDS Foundation (Los Angeles and London) which has dispersed a combined total of grants surpassing $80 million to date making the Elton John AIDS Foundation one of the largest public non-profit organizations in the AIDS arena. In 1998, he was knighted by the Queen of England who honored him with the title Sir Elton John, CBE. About the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas and the Office for Metropolitan Architecture in Rotterdam will seat 600 for performances of classic and experimental theater; A completely new Annette Strauss Artist Square, the Center’s outdoor venue, will be designed by Norman Foster and Foster and Partners of London with a permanent pavilion, lighting and sound systems, restrooms, green room and lawn seating for 5,000; Grand Plaza designed by renowned landscape architect Michel Desvigne of Paris, the Grand Plaza will be a destination park larger in size than London’s Trafalgar Square, connecting the venues to comprise the Center in a “cultural oasis” near the heart of downtown Dallas. City Performance Hall constructed by the City of Dallas, it will provide main stage production space for Dallas’ smaller performing arts organizations. The Center will serve as the home for The Dallas Opera, the Dallas Theater Center, Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Texas Ballet Theater, Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico, and other Dallas-area performing arts organizations. It will also host visiting music, dance and theater companies from around the world. The Dallas Center for the Performing Arts will be located in the Dallas Arts District, a unique, 17-block, 61.7-acre neighborhood in the heart of the city’s commercial center. Established in 1983 as an initiative to centralize the Dallas arts community, the Arts District is now home to a distinguished and diverse group of arts and cultural institutions. Anchored by the Dallas Museum of Art, designed by Edward Larabee Barnes; the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, designed by I.M. Pei; the Nasher Sculpture Center, designed by Renzo Piano; and the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, which is building a new facility designed by Brad Clopefil, the neighborhood serves as the foundation for creative vitality in downtown Dallas. To date, the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts has raised more than $201 million towards its goal of $275 million. The campaign was publicly launched in 2000 and includes major gifts such as Margot and Bill Winspear’s $42 million pledge, the largest charitable commitment by a family in Dallas history. Other major gifts include $20 million from Dee and Charles Wyly, and $10 million from Margaret McDermott and the Eugene McDermott Foundation. The Center has also received 81 gifts of $1 million and above. Additionally, $18 million in bond funds were approved by Dallas voters in 2003 to provide the public portion of the project. For more information, please visit HYPERLINK "http://www.dallasperformingarts.org/" \o "http://www.dallasperformingarts.org/" www.dallasperformingarts.org. |
