Huntington to Honor Diamond and McQuillan at May Gala

Huntington Theatre Company will honor Boston playwright Lydia R. Diamond and Trustee Bill McQuillan with The Wimberly Award, its highest honor, at the 2011 Spotlight Spectacular! gala benefit on Monday, May 9, 2011 at the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel. The evening's host and entertainment will be announced shortly.

Lydia R. Diamond is a Huntington Playwriting Fellow alumna and the author of the Huntington's hit production of Stick Fly last spring. Her other Boston productions include Harriet Jacobs at Central Square Theatre, and Voyeurs de Venus and The Bluest Eye at Company One. Her work has been produced at many theatres around the country including Hartford Stage, Long Wharf Theatre, Arena Stage, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, and True Colors Theatre Company. She serves on the faculty at Boston University and is a passionate champion and ambassador of the Huntington and its work.

Bill McQuillan is the immediate past President of the Huntington Board of Trustees, of which he has been a member since 1998. Bill served with distinction as Vice-Chair of the Setting the Stage Campaign and was a driving force behind the creation of the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, as well as the Huntington's first-ever institutional endowment. He is the president of Boylston Properties, a real estate development firm in Boston.

Chaired by Huntington Overseers Bryan Rafanelli and Fancy Zilberfarb, the 2011 Spotlight Spectacular! will feature an elegant cocktail reception, a silent auction with unique and exciting items, a seated dinner, live auction, entertainment, and dancing.

An online auction at huntingtontheatre.org/auction will open for bidding in April. It will allow Huntington patrons and friends to bid on items prior to the event. Online, silent, and live auction items available last year included tickets to a Ringo Starr concert, a walk-on role in the film What's Your Number, a "Come as your Favorite President" cocktail party with Trustees Doris Kearns Goodwin (Team of Rivals) and Richard N. Goodwin (Two Men of Florence), a Tony Awards package, and much more. The gala will also offer an opportunity for guests to "Sponsor-a-Class" in support of the Huntington's Student Matinee Series.

The 2010 Spotlight Spectacular! sold out and raised $625,000. This year's table prices range from $7,500 to $25,000 and individual ticket prices range from $500 to 2,500. For more information about the event, to sponsor a table, or to purchase tickets, contact Shaine Belli at 617 273-1536 or SBelli@huntingtontheatre.bu.edu.

Proceeds from Spotlight Spectacular! support the Huntington's programs, including its award-winning Youth, Education, and Community initiatives such as the Student Matinee Series (serving 8,000 students annually), the Huntington-Codman Academy Charter Public School Partnership, and Poetry Out Loud (serving a record 19,000 students from over 70 schools this year).