Marcia Milgrom Dodge & Evan Ruggiero to Take Part in CHANGING THE NORM

As part of JDAIM 2022 programming (Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month) The Jewish Community Center of Metro Detroit's Opening the Doors Program will present the virtual event Changing The Norm - Celebrating the Beauty of Different Abilities on Monday, February 28th at 7:00pm ET. This virtual event features Tony Award-nominated director and choreographer Marcia Milgrom Dodge and award-winning dancer and actor Evan Ruggiero, who will be talking about their recently celebrated inclusive production of Disney's Beauty & The Beast at the Olney Theatre Center.

Changing the Norm is hosted by the Jewish Community Center of Metro Detroit's Opening the Doors Program, and supported by The Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation, Kaufman Children's Center, the Olney Theatre and The Jewish Federation of Metro Detroit. Cheryl Chodun, Former Detroit's WXYZ reporter will be the moderator.

To purchase tickets, priced at $5, and for more information, please visit https://jlive.app/events/1520.

ABOUT Marcia Milgrom Dodge

Marcia Milgrom Dodge is a Tony & Drama Desk Award nominated director & choreographer for her stirring & lovingly staged Broadway/Kennedy Center revival of Ragtime (and Helen Hayes Award winner for Outstanding Director). Also for Olney Theatre Center, Dodge directed and choreographed the Helen Hayes Award-nominated Once The Musical. For television, Dodge appears as herself in "Encore!" on Disney+ (Episodes 1 "Annie" & 12 "Ragtime"), and choreographed an Emmy Award-winning episode of "Sesame Street: The Tango Festival" and "Elmo's World: Wild Wild West" video. Some of Dodge's bold new approaches to classic plays and musicals include Evita (Drury Lane Theatre), Meet Me In St. Louis & Disney's The Little Mermaid (The Muny); Fiddler On The Roof and The King & I (Maltz Jupiter Theatre, both with new choreography); The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time (St. Louis Rep & Cincinnati Playhouse); The Secret Garden (Cincinnati Playhouse and Center Stage); Smokey Joe's Cafe (The Muny and Drury Lane, Jeff Award for Best Revival). Exciting premieres are Closer Than Ever (Off-Broadway), William Finn's Romance in Hard Times (Public Theater), and Sherlock Holmes & The West End Horror (co-written with Anthony Dodge, Bay Street/Edgar Award nomination). Dodge is also a wife, mother, teacher, and proud member of the Stage Directors & Choreographers Society (SDC). www.marciamilgromdodge.com. @marciamilgromdodge

ABOUT Evan Ruggiero

Evan Ruggiero recently portrayed The Beast in Olney Theatre Center's production of Disney's Beauty & The Beast. Evan began dancing at the age of five in his hometown studio and by age ten, he was accepted into the famed New Jersey Tap Ensemble. Upon entering his sophomore year at Montclair State University while pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre, Evan was suddenly diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer of the right leg. Enduring nine surgeries in a six-month period in an effort to save the leg, the cancer returned more aggressively than the original diagnosis. He was faced with the ultimate decision of amputation in order to stop the cancer and save his life, as well as undergoing chemotherapy for sixteen months. Eighteen months after the amputation, and only two days after receiving his "peg-leg", Evan was tap dancing again. In 2018 he received a Drama Desk Nomination for Best Actor in a Musical, a Chita Rivera Award Nomination for Best Dancer in a Musical, and was awarded a Clive Barnes Award in Theatre for his portrayal of Tom Jones in NYC's off-broadway hit Bastard Jones. Recently, he was seen performing at Carnegie Hall and at the 90th Oscars. He has performed for many notable individuals such as Ellen Degeneres, President Joe Biden and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, Egypt's sixth and current president, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and most recently performed alongside two-time Grammy winning artist, Jason Mraz. Social media: @Lord_Pegleg

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