Photo Coverage: Phylicia Rashad, Jerry Mitchell, Maddie Baillio, Shanice Williams and More Celebrate SDCF's Mr. Abbott Award Honoree Kenny Leon

The Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation (SDC Foundation), the not-for-profit foundation of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), hosted its star-studded "Mr. Abbott" Award Gala honoring Kenny Leon at espace in New York City yesterday, March 27. BroadwayWorld was there and brings you photos from the cocktail party below!

Christopher Jackson, whom Mr. Leon directed in Holler If Ya Hear Me, joined Stick Fly's Condola Rashad; Phylicia Rashad, who won a Tony Award for her work in A Raisin in the Sun; Shanice Williams of The Wiz Live! for NBC/Storyline Entertainment; blues musician Bill Sims Jr. of America's Blues; Tony Award winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Jitney); and community leader, NBA legend, and four-time MVP Julius "Dr. J" Erving for the festivities.

Lydia R. Diamond (Stick Fly) penned the evening's script, and Kamilah Forbes (The Apollo) directed a special tribute performance honoring Kenny Leon. Derek McLane (Hairspray Live!) designed the decor, and Daryl Waters music directed the tribute performance.

The "Mr. Abbott" Award, presented by SDC Foundation on behalf of directors and choreographers to one of their peers, is named in honor of the late renowned stage director George Abbott. Mr. Leon receives the award in recognition of the outstanding artistry and creativity of his 40-year (and counting) career.

SDC Foundation Director David Roberts stated, "Kenny's career is extraordinary not only in terms of his own success, but also when you think about the artists he has worked with along the way and the careers he has launched and continues to impact. His vision and commitment to a more diverse and varied American theatre embodies the Foundation's mission to create access and connections for directors and choreographers across the country."

The gala was co-chaired by Neil Meron and Craig Zadan of Storyline Entertainment along with SDC Executive Board Members Oz Scott and Michael Wilson; honorary co-chairs were Robert Greenblatt of NBC Entertainment, Samuel L. Jackson and LaTanya Richardson, 2013 "Mr. Abbott" Award winner Jerry Mitchell, John Stamos, and Denzel and Pauletta Washington.

Proceeds from the gala will benefit Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation, whose mentorship programs, community forums, and public events develop and promote the creativity and craft of directors and choreographers and foster a cross-generational, national theatre community.

Kenny Leon is a Tony Award-winning Broadway and film director. His Broadway credits include the 2014 revival of A Raisin in the Sun (Tony Award Winner for Best Direction of a Play and Best Revival), The Mountaintop starring Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett, Stick Fly produced by Alicia Keys and Nelle Nugent, August Wilson's Fences starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis (which garnered ten Tony nominations and won three Tony Awards including Best Revival), the 2004 revival of A Raisin in the Sun with Sean P. Diddy Combs, Audra McDonald, and Phylicia Rashad, Gem of the Ocean, Radio Golf, and the 2014 premiere of Holler If Ya Hear Me, a new musical created using the music of Tupac Shakur. Off-Broadway credits have included critically-acclaimed productions of Thulani Davis' Everybody's Ruby at The Public Theater and Lydia Diamond's Smart People at Second Stage, among others. Leon's recent TV and film work includes Hairspray LIVE! and The Wiz LIVE! both for NBC/Storyline Entertainment, In My Dreams for HallMark Hallof Fame, The Watsons go to Birmingham for Walden Media and Hallmark, episodes of Private Practice and Ghost Whisperer, A Raisin in the Sun for Sony Pictures Television, and the Sony and Lifetime TV adaptation of Steel Magnolias. Leon was awarded the 2010 Julia Hansen Award for Excellence in Directing by the Drama League of New York.

Prior to co-founding True Colors Theatre Company, he served 11 years as Artistic Director of the ALLIANCE THEATRE, where he produced the premieres of Disney's Elaborate Lives: The Legend of Aida, Pearl Cleage's Blues for an Alabama Sky and Alfred Uhry's The Last Night of Ballyhoo. Other directorial credits include Toni Morrison's opera Margaret Garner, the world premiere of Flashdance: The Musical, and the complete August Wilson Century Cycle at the Kennedy Center. He has directed extensively throughout the US, including at Chicago's Goodman Theatre, Boston's Huntington Theatre, Baltimore's Center Stage, Los Angeles' Center Theatre Group, and New York's Public Theater. Leon is also the Co-Founder of the National August Wilson Monologue Competition for high school students, a national education program teaching reading comprehension, public speaking, and performance techniques through the work of the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. Mr. Leon is an alumni of Clark Atlanta University.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

SDC Foundation presents The Mr. Abbott Award honoring Kenny Leon at ESPACE on March 27, 2017 in New York City.

Kenny Leon
Atmosphere
Atmosphere
Atmosphere
Julius "Dr. J" Erving and Dorýs Madden
Julius "Dr. J" Erving and Dorýs Madden
Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Stephen Mckinley Henderson
Joy Abbott
Joy Abbott
Condola Rashad
Condola Rashad
Condola Rashad
Condola Rashad and Sebastian Vallentin Stenhøj
Condola Rashad and Sebastian Vallentin Stenhøj
Charlotte St. Martin
Jerry Mitchell
Jerry Mitchell and Joy Abbott
Oz Scott and Joy Abbott
Jerry Mitchell, Joy Abbott and Lydia R. Diamond
Lydia R. Diamond
Lydia R. Diamond
Judine Somerville
Judine Somerville
Kenny Leon and Joy Abbott
Kenny Leon, Lynda R. Diamond, Joy Abbott and Jerry Mitchell
Kenny Leon and Lynda R. Diamond
Kenny Leon, Judine Somerville and Jerry Mitchell
Joy Abbott, Kenny Leon and Laura Penn
Kenny Leon, Anita Gillette and Jerry Mitchell
Kenny Leon and Anita Gillette
Anita Gillette
Anita Gillette
Kenny Leon, Jennifer Thompson, Dorýs Madden and Julius "Dr. J" Erving
Kenny Leon, Jennifer Thompson, Dorýs Madden and Julius "Dr. J" Erving
Kenny Leon and Julius "Dr. J" Erving
Kenny Leon
Chirlane McCray and Kenny Leon
Chirlane McCray and Kenny Leon
Chirlane McCray, Kenny Leon and Joy Abbott
Chirlane McCray
Chirlane McCray
Chirlane McCray and Pam Mackinnon
Mayor Proclamation
Pam Mackinnon and Chirlane McCray
Chirlane McCray
Pam Mackinnon, Chirlane McCray and Kenny Leon
Chirlane McCray
Chirlane McCray
Chirlane McCray, Kenny Leon and Joy Abbott
Kenny Leon
Chirlane McCray and Kenny Leon
Pam Mackinnon, Chirlane McCray and Kenny Leon
Oz Scott, Pam Mackinnon, Chirlane McCray, Kenny Leon, Michael Wilson and Laura Penn
Oz Scott and Michael Wilson
Elizabeth Ashley and Joy Abbott
Elizabeth Ashley
Elizabeth Ashley
Kenny Leon, Chirlane McCray and Kasim Reed
Phylicia Rashad
Stephen Mckinley Henderson
Chirlane McCray, and Phylicia Rashad
Kenny Leon and Elizabeth Ashley
Julius "Dr. J" Erving
Julius "Dr. J" Erving, Kenny Leon, Condola Rashad, Kasim Reed, Sebastian Vallentin Stenhøj
Kenny Leon and Condola Rashad
Kenny Leon and Condola Rashad
Michael Wilson, Condola Rashad and Sebastian Vallentin Stenhøj
Kenny Leon, Bob Greenblatt and Jerry Mitchell
Kenny Leon and Phylicia Rashad
Joy Abbott, Kenny Leon and Phylicia Rashad
Kenny Leon and Brittney Lopez
Kenny Leon and LaChanze
LaChanze
LaChanze
Kenny Leon and Ben Vereen
Kenny Leon and Jennifer Thompson
Bill Sims Jr., Kenny Leon and Ruben Santiago-Hudson
Bill Sims Jr.
Bill Sims Jr.
Kenny Leon, Maddie Baillio, Jerry Mitchell and Judine Somerville
Kenny Leon and Maddie Baillio
Maddie Baillio
Maddie Baillio
LaChanze and Ben Vereen
Constanza Romero and Pam Mackinnon
Phylicia Rashad and Stephen Mckinley
Condola Rashad and Phylicia Rashad
Condola Rashad and Phylicia Rashad
Condola Rashad, Julius "Dr. J" Erving, Phylicia Rashad and Kenny Leon
Jerry Mitchell with the “Hairspray LIVE� table
Shanice Williams
Shanice Williams
Shanice Williams
Shanice Williams
Shanice Williams
Kenny Leon and Jennifer Thompson
Bob Greenblatt
Kenny Leon and Bob Greenblatt
Derek McLane
Derek McLane and Kenny Leon
Judine Somerville and Julius "Dr. J" Erving
Mark Brokaw and Leigh Silverman
Shanice Williams and LaChanze
Shanice Williams and LaChanze
Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Bill Simms Jr.
Ricky Schroeder and Jerry Mitchell
Ricky Schroeder and Jerry Mitchell
Kenny Leon
The “Mr. Abbott� Award
Atmosphere