SDC Foundation's New Mason-Wilson Award Supports New York Collaborations

Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation (SDC Foundation), the not-for-profit foundation of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), announces that today, November 15, former SDC President and 2016 recipient of the Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement Marshall W. Mason (pictured, left) will announce a bequest to SDC Foundation.

The joint bequest will be funded by Mason and the estate of his longtime collaborator Lanford Wilson, who passed away in 2011. The Mason-Wilson Award will support collaborations between artists based in New York.

The bequest will be read by SDC Executive Director Laura Penn at a 1:00 PM ceremony emceed by Judd Hirsch. The ceremony which will also include remarks by Craig Lucas, Danny Irvine, Peter Schneider, and Denise Yaney, who will read the names of Circle Rep's company members over the years. Judith Ivey and Cherry Jones will unveil a plaque commemorating Circle Repertory Company at 99 Seventh Avenue South in Sheridan Square, the theatre's home for 20 years.

Mason stated, "My work with Lanford was the high point of my theatre career. As artists working together, we challenged and inspired each other over a period of 40 years, setting an example for others of what can be accomplished through creative collaboration. It is our hope that this tradition will stay alive through future theatre artists who work together to create more than individuals can accomplish, no matter how brilliant."

SDC Foundation Chair Sheldon Epps stated, "Our esteemed deservedly celebrated colleague Marshall has touched many lives through his work in the theatre, not only as a director, but also as an author, producer, and teacher. Marshall and Lanford's collaboration began in 1964 with the premiere of Balm in Gilead at La Mama, and continued to flourish over the next forty years, with over sixty productions. This Award in their name will impact future generations of promising theatre artists."

SDC Executive Director Laura Penn stated, "There are few director/playwright collaborations that have achieved the intimacy and productivity theirs did. Their relationship has influenced, and for many defined, the director/playwright process in the shepherding of new work to the American stage. The new SDC Foundation Director David Roberts and I are honored that SDC Foundation has been asked to steward the legacies of Marshall and Lanford."

Mason will also announce the Kindle edition of his book Circle Rep: The Transcendent Years.

Marshall Mason co-founded the Circle Repertory Company alongside playwright Lanford Wilson, director Rob Thirkield, and actress Tanya Berezin. Circle Rep quickly became synonymous with Off-Broadway and was a vital part of New York City's and the country's theatrical ecosystems. As Artistic Director, Mason championed playwrights and an Acting Company and launched the careers of some of the greatest theatre artists of the 20th Century. During his tenure, the renowned acting ensemble included exceptional artists such as Barnard Hughes, William Hurt, Kathy Bates, Judith Ivey, Cherry Jones, Christopher Reeve, Jeff Daniels, and Judd Hirsch, among many others. The New York Times called Circle Rep the "chief provider of new American plays," and playwrights whose work was developed and supported included David Mamet, Beth Henley, Paula Vogel, Sam Shepard, A.R. Gurney, Jules Feiffer, and Tennessee Williams. Circle Rep also became a home for designers, including John Lee Beatty, Laura Crow, Dennis Parichy, and many others.

For 50 years, Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation has developed and promoted the creativity and craft of directors and choreographers. SDC Foundation's mission is to create access to the field, to connect artists, and to honor the theatrical legacy of these artists. The centrality of the director's role in theatre and the impact that they have on other artists' careers-from playwrights to designers to actors-makes SDC Foundation's services essential to the theatre industry's health and continued vitality.

Through mentorship programs, community forums and public events, SDC Foundation constructs paths for early-career directors and choreographers from all backgrounds to interact with established artists around the country; puts mid-career artists in the room together to debate and solve issues they face in the business; and reaches beyond the theatre industry to tell the story of what directors and choreographers contribute to the art form. In a discipline that can often feel isolating, SDC Foundation serves the needs of artists at all stages, building a cross-generational theatre community. Visit www.sdcfoundation.org.