Baltimore Center Stage Announces Holiday Event Featuring Staged Reading Of THE LONG CHRISTMAS DINNER 

Baltimore Center Stage has announced a special event featuring a staged reading of Thornton Wilder's The Long Christmas Dinner, which will take place on Monday, December 16, 2019.

This one-night-only presentation of this revered classic features notable personalities with Baltimore ties in the classic roles of the Bayard Family during their 100-year-long Christmas dinner. The reading will serve as a launch-point for a post-performance conversation on the importance of family traditions, moderated by Artistic Director Stephanie Ybarra.

An exciting cast of luminaries are scheduled to perform, including Baltimore native Tracie Thoms, whose credits include The Devil Wears Prada, Rent and Broadway's Falsettos; Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Paula Vogel (Indecent, How I Learned to Drive); and 2018 Dramatists Guild Lanford Wilson Award recipient and writer for Elle magazine, R. Eric Thomas. Additional performers to be announced soon.*

"Thornton Wilder is one of my favorite writers, and his timeless play is such a special way to bring in the holiday season here at Baltimore Center Stage," said Ybarra. "The staged reading, animated by people with roots in Baltimore, will launch into a conversation that asks us to consider how we think about kinship, storytelling, and tradition in our rapidly changing world."

The Long Christmas Dinner follows the Bayard family as they gather for their annual Christmas dinner. Their familial triumphs, heartbreaks, births, deaths, and an ever-changing world reveal a beautiful truth-that some things, like family and tradition, remain forever constant.

This special event will support Baltimore Center Stage's education and community programs. Tickets start at $25. A limited number of VIP tickets are available and include champagne, dessert and access to the best seats.

*performers are subject to change