Donna Lynne Champlin to Star in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE Presented by Transport Group

Transport Group will present a one-night-only benefit performance of the Frank Capra holiday classic It's a Wonderful Life, directed by Artistic Director Jack Cummings III, on Monday, December 12 at 8pm at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture, 18 Elizabeth Street. Donna Lynne Champlin ("Crazy Ex-Girlfriend") stars in the role of George Bailey.

It's a Wonderful Life is adapted by Joe Landry, based on the story "The Greatest Gift" by Philip Van Doren Stern from the screenplay by Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett, Frank Capra, and Jo Swerling. The evening features original music composed by Ted Shen (Broadbend, Arkansas) and Carmel Dean (Renascence, The Notebook).

It's a Wonderful Life tells the story of George Bailey, a deeply frustrated businessman struggling to hold on to his values. When the fate of his father's business is in jeopardy, George begins to question every element of his life. Interrupting a dark night of the soul, a guardian angel named Clarence appears to show him what life would have been like if he had never existed. Based on the classic film released in 1946 starring James Stewart, Donna Reed, and Lionel Barrymore, and directed by Frank Capra, and widely considered to be one of the greatest films of all time, the evening examines what makes life worth living-a theme that has resonated for generations.

Transport Group

(Jack Cummings III, Artistic Director; Denise Dickens, Executive Director) is an off-Broadway theatre company whose work has been called "storytelling at its purest" by The New York Times, "at once faithful and irreverent." Since the company was founded in 2001 by Jack Cummings III and Robyn Hussa, Transport Group has produced 33 shows: 17 new works and 16 revivals, including three New York premieres and six commissioned works. The company has received a special New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, three Drama Desk Awards including a special one "for its breadth of vision and its presentation of challenging productions," nine Obie Awards, an Outer Critics Circle Award, three Off-Broadway Alliance Awards, and a Dramatists Guild Award. In addition, Transport Group's productions have received 46 Drama Desk Award nominations, eight Drama League Award nominations, four Lucille Lortel Award nominations, six Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, nine American Theatre Wing Design Award nominations, nine Off-Broadway Alliance Award nominations, four Audelco Award nominations, and a Tony Award nomination.

It's a Wonderful Life plays Monday, December 12 at 8pm at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture, 18 Elizabeth Street. It's a Wonderful Life is produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com). Tickets start at $55 and may be purchased by visiting transportgroup.org. For more information visit transportgroup.org or contact info@transportgroup.org. You may follow Transport Group on Instagram and Twitter @TransportGrp and on Facebook @TransportGroup.