Those paying tribute to Tyson, who was last on Broadway opposite James Earl Jones in a revival of The Gin Game, include Tony Award winners Cynthia Erivo and Adriane Lenox, as well as Tony Award nominees Danielle Brooks and Saycon Sengbloh. These artists will be joined by the Cicely Tyson Celebration Choir, a group formed for this event.
“Cicely Tyson exemplifies what the American Theatre Wing is all about, from her career-defining performances, to her passionate commitment to arts education via her namesake performing and fine arts school,” said Heather Hitchens, president and CEO of the Wing, in an earlier statement. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to honor her at this year’s Gala.”
The funds raised at the annual event will provide support for the Wing’s programs, which champion and celebrate American theatre and ensure that the next generation is “on the stage, behind the scenes, and in the audience," according to a statement.
Past honorees have included James Earl Jones, Dame Angela Lansbury, Harold Prince, the Redgrave Family, Sir Howard Stringer, Frank Loesser, Jerry Herman, Carol Channing, Tommy Tune, Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Les Moonves, Isabelle Stevenson, Jerry Bock, Cy Coleman, John Kander, Fred Ebb, Betty Comden, Adolph Green, Marvin Hamlisch, Sheldon Harnick, Stephen Sondheim, Charles Strouse, Graciela Daniele, Kathleen Marshall, Susan Stroman and Julie Taymor, among others.
After a 30-year hiatus from the New York stage, Tyson portrayed Carrie Watts in Horton Foote’s The Trip to Bountiful, for which she received rave reviews and the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play. Tyson may be best known for her double Emmy Award-winning performance as Jane in The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (Best Lead Actress in a Drama as well as an unprecedented Special Emmy for Actress of the Year). She garnered an Academy Award nomination for Sounder and received her third Emmy Award for Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All.
The evening includes cocktails, dinner and performances. For tickets and more information, contact Jeremiah Hernandez by calling (212) 765-0606 or emailing [email protected].
*
The American Theatre Wing is dedicated to “advancing artistic excellence and nurturing theatre’s next generation: on the stage, behind the scenes, and in the audience.”
