McDonald, Crudup, Dukakis, Atkinson, O'Hare and More Join First Congress of Actors and Acting Teachers Jan 7-8

The Actors Center proudly announced today that it is to present its first Congress of Actors and Acting Teachers at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy & Lewis B. Cullman Center on January 7 and 8, 2006.

Daniel Okrent, former Public Editor of The New York Times, will chair a panel of critics, discussing the role of the actor as artist in this society. Journalists taking part are Charles Isherwood (New York Times), Elysa Gardner (USA Today), Richard Schickel (TIME Magazine) and Michael Feingold (Village Voice).

This discussion will be followed by a series of panels of established actors examining their own experiences in the field. Performers that have agreed to join the panel include Billy Crudup, Denis O'Hare, Audra McDonald, Olympia Dukakis, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Kathleen Chalfant, Tim Blake Nelson and Jayne Atkinson.

This congress of 150 actors and 25 acting teachers was founded to encourage public dialogue among established actors regarding their artistic concerns. Its goal is to draw attention to the increasing marginalization of the actor in the theatre and the decreasing opportunities to make a personal, artistic contribution to the field of acting.

"Each year, we watch actors we admire and care about grow more discouraged, less confident and finally cynical," says J. Michael Miller, President of The Actors Center. "Pop culture rules as never before whereas the actor's power to reveal what most of us choose to deny, contributes to our sense of our own humanity. If we can identify those reasons for 'doing what we do' in a public forum year after year, we may win enough followers to make our best work possible. That is the reason and fervent hope for this Congress."

The Actors Center was created in response to the needs of many of our most accomplished actors. It is the base where these established actors pursue artistic growth at peer level, guided by Master Teachers from around the world. It is an artistic haven, nurturing the development of the actor and advancing the art form itself.

Note: This is not a public event, but for an invited audience only.