Tommy Tune to Present Karen Akers with Urban Stages 2016 Musical Artist Award

Urban Stages celebrates its critically-acclaimed 32nd season at the Central Park Boathouse on Monday, May 23rd at 6:30pm. This year's annual gala will honor the renowned Karen Akers with Urban Stages Musical Artist Award presented by ten-time Tony Award winner Tommy Tune.

The event will also give kudos to "The Story is the Song," a theme commemorating the storytelling abilities of greats such Billy Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Mabel Mercer and Karen Akers herself. All proceeds will benefit Urban Stages wide array of programming including praised Off-Broadway premieres of new plays and musicals, the award-winning Winter Rhythms music festival, admission-free touring plays and workshops via Outreach and much more.

The evening will feature the American Song Book performed by Matthew Ward, gondola rides on the Central Park Lake, cocktails, dinner and dancing. Christie's very own Katie Jacobs will head a live auction with cases of wine, Broadway tickets and dream getaways up for grabs.

For tickets to the event, visit urbanstages.org or call Urban Stages at 212 421-1380.

"Karen is a wonderful performer and dear friend of Urban Stages. We are thrilled to honor her at this year's Gala. In addition to celebrating Karen's amazing talent and career, our Gala helps raise money for programs like our educational Outreach program which reaches thousands of New Yorkers in over 100 neighborhoods." Urban Stages founder and artistic director, Frances Hill

Ms. Akers has been seen in Urban Stages' Award winning cabaret series Winter Rhythm (produced by Peter Napolitano, Director of Musical Theater), and is one of America's most arresting and successful concert and cabaret stars. She has performed throughout the United States, Europe and the former Soviet Union. Appearing at many prestigious venues worldwide from Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, New York's Oak Room at the Algonquin Hotel, and London's Pizza on the Park. Her career also includes three performances at the White House.

On Broadway, she was seen in Tommy Tune's award winning musical "GRAND HOTEL," and made her debut Broadway debut in "NINE" for which she won a Theatre World Award as well as a Tony Award nomination. Ms. Akers has had two of her own PBS television specials: "PRESENTING KAREN AKERS" and "KAREN AKERS: ON STAGE AT WOLF TRAP." The latter is available on home video. In addition to her own PBS specials, she has performed in PBS musical tributes to Ira Gershwin and Duke Ellington. On the big screen she has been seen in Mike Nichols's "HEARTBURN" opposite Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep, Woody Allen's "THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO" and "VIBES."

URBAN STAGES is an award-winning, not-for-profit, Off-Broadway Theatre Company founded in 1984 by current Artistic Director Frances Hill. For over 30 years, Urban Stages has produced dozens of world, American and NYC premieres including Trezana Beverley's Mabel Madness, Pulitzer Prize Finalist Bulrusher (2007) by Eisa Davis. We have been honored with awards, nominations and recognition from the Drama Desk, Obie Awards, Audelco, Outer Critics Circle and much more. For instance, our world premiere of the musical Langston In Harlem by Walter Marks (music and book) and Kent Gash (book and direction) garnered a Drama Desk Nomination, a Joe A. Calloway award and 4 Audelco awards including Best Musical Production of 2010. More recently, Unseamly by Oren Safdie (2015) was a NY Times Critics Pick, Jim Brochu Character Man (2014) was nominated for a Drama Desk and an Outer Critics Circle award for Best Solo performance and Honky (2013) by Greg Kalleres saw a regional run at San Diego Rep and was televised nationally on PBS in late 2015. After production, most plays move on to larger venues. Men On The Verge Of A Hispanic Breakdown by Guillermo Reyes and Minor Demons by Bruce Graham both moved to commercial theatres. Chili Queen, a play by newscaster Jim Lehrer, transferred to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. (1989). My Occasion Of Sin (2012) by Monica Bauer won critical acclaim when it moved to Detroit Rep. Bill Bowers has toured the United States and the world with his two Urban Stages premieres blending mime and theatre - Beyond Words (2012) and Under A Montana Moon (2002)! Some Urban Stages premieres have even been developed into film and television projects such as Scar by Murray Mednick, Conversations With The Goddesses by Agapi Stassinopoulos, and Cotton Mary by Alexandra Viets. In addition to plays and musicals, annually we hold a music festival - Winter Rhythms - that features famous and up-and-coming Cabaret, musicians, lyricists and other music artists. In 2015, Winter Rhythms was celebrated by the Manhattan Association of Cabaret with a Ruth Kurtzman Benefit Series Award.

For over 20 years, URBAN STAGES OUTREACH PROGRAM (Rachel Sullivan, Program Director) has brought plays and workshops to all 5 boroughs of NYC in over 200 events a year. We have a repertoire of 20+ multi-cultural programs, ranging from plays that explore science, plays that spotlight historical figures as well as dance and mime workshops. Each show caters to specific age groups, from toddlers to families to Adult Learners. Many of the neighborhoods we reach (and return to multiple times) have little to no theatre and arts programming. We are even the first theatrical experience for some. Our programs travel mainly to libraries and non-profit organizations. They are all admission-free for patrons. For artists, our Outreach Program offers paid opportunities. We commission plays, pay royalties and fees allowing writers, directors, designers, actors and teaching artists to be working artists.

Under the Outreach Umbrella are our art residencies. We are able to offer extended theater and art related residencies for weeks to months at a time to places like to senior citizens centers, community centers and schools. In the past, we offered programming to LGBTQ homeless centers, centers helping women reclaim their lives from incarceration and drug abuse and various non-profit agencies. Finally, annually we hold a Summer Theater Camp for children 10-14 years old. Professionals teach our campers about all aspects of theatre and the campers collaborate on an original musical. We offer partial scholarships making our summer theater camp more accessible.

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