The Actors Fund’s annual gala on Monday, April 25, 2016 will honor actor and producer Michael Douglas, producer and singer/songwriter Emilio and Gloria Estefan, NBC Entertainment Chairman and Broadway producer Robert Greenblatt, American prima ballerina Cynthia Gregory and director and choreographer Casey Nicholaw. The accomplished group, representative of the diverse members of the arts community helped by The Actors Fund, will each receive The Fund’s Medal of Honor, the highest award given by the 134-year old human services organization serving everyone in performing arts and entertainment. The event begins with 6 pm cocktails followed by 7 pm dinner and tribute at the New York Marriott Marquis. The evening will include special tribute performances by guests to be announced. For tickets to the April 25 Gala evening, call 212.627.1000 or email actorsfund@resevt.com. For more information and updates, visit actorsfund.org/Gala2016.
“The Actors Fund exists to help everyone in film, television, theatre, music and dance—so it’s fitting that we honor this diverse group of accomplished arts and entertainment professionals,” said Chairman Brian Stokes Mitchell.
An actor with over 45 years of experience in theatre, film and television, Michael Douglas, after 104 hours of the successful television series, The Streets of San Francisco, branched out into independent feature production in 1975 winning a Best Picture Oscar for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Since then as an actor and producer, he has shown an uncanny knack for choosing projects that reflect changing trends and public concerns. Over the years, he has been involved in such controversial and politically influential motion pictures as The China Syndrome, Falling Down and Traffic, such popular films as Fatal Attraction, Romancing the Stone, Basic Instinct, The American President and Ant Man. His performance as ruthless corporate raider Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s Wall Street, earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor and his performance as musical icon Liberace in HBO’s Behind the Candelabra earned him a Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy Award and SAG Award as Best Actor in a TV movie. Michael Douglas is a United Nations Messenger of Peace.
Gloria Estefan has sold over 100 million records and sold out stadiums around the world. Emilio and Gloria Estefan together have won 26 GRAMMY Awards, but their music is only half the story. One of the most celebrated couples in music, Emilio and Gloria Estefan know the importance of giving back to the community and have never forgotten their Cuban roots. Married since 1978, their musical talents have not only catapulted their own careers, but have helped other Latin artists such as Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, Carlos Ponce and Ricky Martin. In addition, the Estefans founded the Gloria Estefan Foundation, aimed at reaching those who struggle outside the safeguards of society by promoting good health, education and cultural development. On Your Feet!, the critically acclaimed Broadway musical based on the lives and music of Emilio and Gloria Estefan opened on Nov 5, 2015 and since opening has received rave reviews.
As Chairman, NBC Entertainment since 2011, Robert Greenblatt has taken NBC to the top of the television industry after a decade in last place. Under his leadership, NBC’s primetime and late night line-ups were No.1 in the key demographic for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons and the network is on track to win the crown again for the 2015-16 full year that includes this summer’s Olympics in Rio. Prior to NBC, Mr. Greenblatt was responsible for the transformation of Showtime into a first-class premium cable channel from 2004-2010, and he was one of the original architects of the Fox Broadcasting Company as head of primetime programming from 1994-1997. Also a Golden Globe Award-winning producer (Six Feet Under) and Tony Award-winning Broadway producer (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder), Mr. Greenblatt led NBC to the forefront of live television events with the game-changing broadcast of The Sound of Music Live three years ago. Now a yearly tradition, The Wiz Live was presented this season and Hairspray Live is on tap for next December. Bombshell, the show-within-the-show inside the Broadway-themed NBC series Smash, was produced as a benefit fundraiser for The Actors Fund in 2015 and sold out in less than thirty minutes.
Cynthia Gregory, whom Rudolf Nureyev called “America’s prima ballerina assoluta,” was celebrated as one of the world’s greatest ballerinas during a career that spanned more than a quarter of a century. Miss Gregory danced in more than 80 works during her 26 years with the American Ballet Theatre. After retiring from ABT in 1991, she became the Chairman of the Board of Career Transition For Dancers where, for over a decade, her enthusiastic efforts raised funds, visibility and status for the not-for-profit organization. Career Transition For Dancers merged its services with The Actors Fund in 2015 and continues as a program to provide valuable services free of charge to dancers considering new careers.
Casey Nicholaw is currently represented on Broadway as director and choreographer of Something Rotten (2015 Tony Nominee nominee Best Director and Best Choreographer) and Disney’s Aladdin (2014 Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award nominations Best Choreography), co-director and choreographer of The Book of Mormon (2011 Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards as co-director with Trey Parker receiving the same nominations for choreography as well as an Olivier award). His other Broadway credits as director/choreographer include: Elf: The Musical; The Drowsy Chaperone, and Monty Python’s Spamalot directed by Mike Nichols. His additional New York credits include director and choreography for City Center Encores! highly acclaimed productions of Most Happy Fella, Anyone Can Whistle and Follies.
THE ACTORS FUND is a national human services organization that helps everyone— performers and those behind the scenes—who works in performing arts and entertainment. Serving professionals in film, theatre, television, music, opera, radio and dance, The Fund’s programs include social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and employment and training services. With offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Actors Fund is a safety net for those in need, crisis or transition.
Contact for The Actors Fund:
David Engelman
917.281.5976
dengelman@actorsfund.org