Sheen Center's Grand Opening Events to Feature STEP INTO THE LIGHT, Bloomberg & More

The Catholic Archdiocese of New York's new downtown cultural initiative, The Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Center for Thought and Culture, located at 18 Bleecker Street, today announced a schedule of diverse and dynamic programming, as part of its upcoming Grand Opening. The celebratory events will run from Monday, September 14 through Sunday, October 4, 2015, presenting works that explore the heights and depths of the human condition through thought and culture.

"During these three weeks, we're thrilled to invite audiences - Catholics and non-Catholics alike - to come and discover The Sheen Center," says Executive Director William Spencer Reilly. "This is an absolute jewel of a space, and our opening slate of events offers a signature mix of civil discourse on important issues, with some of the fastest-rising talent in the visual and performing arts. Exploring the true, the good, and the beautiful is at the core of our mission, and the time seems so right for a new space in New York dedicated to those ideals."

The inaugural programming includes: The New York Premiere of Paramount Pictures' Captive, starring Golden Globe nominee David Oyelowo (Selma) and Kate Mara (House of Cards); An Evening with Jeannie and Jim Gaffigan, offering a sneak peek of upcoming episodes of the TV Land series "The Jim Gaffigan Show"; a performance by internationally renowned concert pianist Elaine Kwon; "Step into the Light," a showcase of the fastest rising talent on Broadway directed by Ted Sperling, featuring Aaron Lazar (The Last Ship), Alysha Umphress (On The Town) and Analisa Leaming (The King and I); a stage production of The Amish Project, a one-woman play about the 2006 West Nickel Mines Schoolhouse shooting, hailed by The New York Times as "remarkable and compelling"; a series of thought-provoking panels with special guests such as former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York; an art walk featuring contemporary and sacred works; and more.

In addition to the center's opening events at 18 Bleecker Street, Pope Francis' Papal Mass at Madison Square Garden on September 25 will include a special pre-Mass line-up of talent, produced by the Archdiocese of New York in association with The Sheen Center.

Named after the late Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, best known for his popular radio and TV ministry in the 1950s and 60s, The Sheen Center will showcase works that affirm the highest values of the human spirit through the performing and visual arts, symposia, lectures and exhibits.

The state-of-the-art complex has a 274-seat proscenium theater equipped with five-camera high-definition livestream capability and a multi-track recording studio with thirty-two onstage inputs; an 80-seat black box theater; four rehearsal studios; and an art gallery.

This facility is the newest arts center in New York City in 35 years and a great addition to the growing artistic community in NoHo. Cardinal Timothy Dolan has called The Sheen Center and its mission "unique and without parallel in any diocese in the nation," and hopes its programming will "foster thought and dialogue," while challenging and uplifting visitors intellectually, artistically and spiritually.

To ensure The Sheen Center events are accessible to all, the first 100 tickets for each event are $10, seven events are free of charge, and three events will be live-streamed at SheenCenter.org. For ticket information, please visit www.sheencenter.org or call 212-925-2812.

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