Rainn Wilson to Host Children's Theatre Company Benefit, 4/27

Rainn Wilson, the star of the Emmy Award Winning Hit Series, "The Office" will host the 2011 Children's Theater Company Benefit at the OHM, New York City's newest hot spot in West Chelsea which will house an evening of music, comedy, raffles and auction fun.

Rainn Wilson will auction HIMSELF off to visit YOUR office in New York City or you can bid on a chance to win a pair of round trip tickets to LA and visit HIS "Office" set in Los Angeles! A live band will accompany Rainn and our favorite Broadway singers in costumes spoofing our favorite CTC musicals. Or you can bid online (at charitybuzz.com) and boost the morale of your office, surprise your colleagues, employee of the month or the big cheese and have Rainn visit YOUR GROUP in New York City the week of April 16-29th.

Rainn who first met the Artistic Directors of the Children's Theater Company, Mehr Mansuri and Jill Bolstridge in Los Angeles three years ago recalls, "I've watched this company grow and expand into other regions of the United States, as well as the inner-city parts of LA. What might take a formidable organization of twice their size and budget to implement a new chapter out of state, took the CTC team six weeks. They were able to bring together hundreds of families & children, to produce their unique community development model. To empower people at the grass-roots and build capacity from a wide range of humanity is what inspires me to support this unique children's theater."

Producer (Yank!) and Director, Shidan Majidi, a CTC Director and Board Member, who for the last decade has been working for legendary Producer, Cameron Mackintosh on musicals including Cats, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, The Phantom of Opera and Mary Poppins helms this event with Rainn Wilson and will be joined by Peggy Kerry, US Mission to the United Nations, and Academy Award Nominee and Emmy Award Winning Actress Shohreh Aghdashloo. "In order to preserve this great American art form (musical theater), it is very important to expose young people to it as early as possible," says Majidi. "What's unique about the CTC is that it allows children to actively engage and appreciate the arts not only as a creative outlet for self expression, but also as an invaluable asset in learning major life skills by taking on issues of ethical and global relevance through a critically acclaimed musical theater catalogue which captures the triumph of the human spirit. CTC has allowed children, performance opportunities at major professional venues including annual appearances at the United Nations for Nelson Mandela and other Heads of State."

Ms. Aghdashloo, who is currently collaborating with Mr. Majidi on a new play, Our Sweet Life By the Pacific Ocean, adds, "I met Mehr over twenty years ago, when she first introduced this concept of a theater by children as the voices of positive change. As an Iranian woman advocating for human rights through my life and my work, I could not think of a more profound approach to redirect our response to our turbulent past. What I didn't expect was the wit, the humor, irony and pure joy that the company offers through its music and stories and it's brave little children."

WHEN: Wednesday, April 27th, 2011 @ 7:30pm
WHEN: The OHM, 312 Eleventh Avenue (@ 30th Street) New York, NY 10001
TICKET INFO: $25 advanced tickets, $40 at the door (www.childrenstheatercompany.org)