PGT Presents From North B'way to B'way: Celebrating Barbara Whitman

Celia Keenan-Bolger and John Ellison Conlee will appear at The Play Group Theatre's 6th Annual Holiday Benefit, honoring Broadway Producer and Chair Emeritus, Barbara Whitman, on Monday December 19that The Play Group Theatre, One North Broadway, White Plains, NY. From North Broadway to Broadway: Celebrating Barbara Whitman, will also feature special performances by PGT Alumni, Daniel & Will Carlyon, and the PGT Senior Class of 2012. All proceeds from the evening will go to support the newly created Barbara Whitman Scholarship Fund.

The Holiday Benefit begins at 7pm. After the performance, light fare will be served. Tickets are available for $150 for an individual, $400 for a family and $75 for PGT alumni. Tickets are available online at www.playgroup.org/benefit/benefit2011, or by calling 914-946-4433

Celia Keenan-Bolger- Broadway: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Tony Award Nomination, Drama Desk Award for Best Ensemble, Theatre World Award), Les Miserables (Drama Desk nom.). Off Broadway: Peter And The Starcatcher (NYTW, Drama Desk nom.), A Small Fire (Playwrights Horizons), Bachelorette (2econd Stage), Saved (Playwrights Horizons), Juno (City Center Encores), Little Fish (Second Stage). Favorite regional credits include Johanna in Sweeney Todd (Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration), Emily in Our Town (Intiman Theatre), and Clara in The Light In The Piazza (Goodman Theatre) Concerts: The American Songbook Series Evening With Adam Guettel, An Evening With Audra McDonald at the Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor, The Broadway Musicals of 1930 at Town Hall, Broadway Originals at Town Hall, The University of Michigan 25th Anniversary At Hill Auditorium and Martha in The Secret Garden World AIDS day concert. Recordings: Spelling Bee, Bright Lights Big City, Summer of '42 and Broadway Musicals Of 1930. TV: "Law & Order"; "The Education Of Max Bickford"; "Heartland". Film: Mariachi Gringo. Celia is a graduate of the University of Michigan Musical Theater Department.

John Ellison Conlee - Broadway: The Full Monty (as Dave Bukatinsky -TONY, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle Award nominations), The Constant Wife, 1776, Anyone Can Whistle, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Encores!). Off-Broadway: World premiere of Pig Farm (Roundabout Theatre Company); The Bald Soprano, The Butter and Egg Man, Once in a Lifetime (Atlantic Theater Company); The Green Heart (Manhattan Theatre Club); Hundreds of Hats (WPA); Henry VIII, Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Measure for Measure (NYSF Shakespeare in the Park); numerous plays (52nd Street Project). Regional: Threepenny Opera, As You Like It, The Taming of the Shrew, The Rivals (Williamstown Theatre Festival); McCarter Theatre; The Old Globe; Goodman Theatre. Films: The Rebound, Brief Reunion, The Pride, Stephanie Daley, Trust the Man, Kinsey, Serendipity, So Close on which he was a producer. Television: "Common Law"; "Medium"; "Law & Order"; "Spin City"; "Third Watch"; Liberty, Dolley Madison, Alexander Hamilton (PBS); and recurring roles on "Parks and Recreation" (NBC) and Brotherhood (Showtime).

Barbara Whitman is a Tony Award-winning Broadway Producer, represented by Next to Normal (Pulitzer Prize), Red (Tony Award-best play), Legally Blonde - the Musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Hamlet starring Jude Law, to name a few. Barbara has been an active volunteer with PGT for the past eight years, serving as Board Chair for the last five.Under Barbara's leadership, PGT was able to move from humble rehearsal studios to its current facility, with a 228 seat Main Stage Theatre, Studio Stage Theatre, rehearsal studios, scene shop and costume shop.Barbara's vision for PGT has always included establishing connections within the community in order to provide the PGT experience to children who would not otherwise be able to afford it.

THE PLAY GROUP THEATRE (PGT) is a nonprofit, educational theatre organization dedicated to providing process-oriented theatre training and diverse performance opportunities to children and teenagers. Through classes, school residencies, technical internships, a full summer program and a varied and continual performance calendar, PGT strives to enable students to develop collaborative and communication skills, artistry, self-esteem, love of theatre and a dedication to the community as a whole.