Jeannine Tesori, Stefanie Kane Honored at Playwrights Horizons Gala

Acclaimed Off-Broadway theater company Playwrights Horizons will hold its annual Spring Gala on Monday evening, May 9�at the event space 583 Park Avenue. Among the honorees are Jeanine Tesori and Stefanie Kane.
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The evening will celebrate those writers and artists who trace the beginnings of their careers to Playwrights Horizons, and the funds raised will support the programs that continue this legacy.�The event will feature music by alumni writers two-time Tony Award winner Adam Guettel ("Floyd Collins" at PH, "The Light in the Piazza"), three-time Tony Award winner and Academy Award winner Robert Lopez (Playwrights Horizons' Musical Theater Resident 1997/1998, "The Book of Mormon," "Frozen"), Tony Award winner Jeanine Tesori ("Violet" at PH, "Fun Home") and Chris Miller and Nathan Tysen ("The Burnt Part Boys" at PH, "Tuck Everlasting").�
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For 45 years, Playwrights Horizons has launched the careers of hundreds of American writers and theater artists.�In addition to productions of new plays and musicals, an array of programs support these artists, including readings and workshops of new works; script evaluation program; commissions to both emerging and established writers; intensive year-long fellowships; and the Playwrights Horizons Theater School at NYU.�

The theater company also provides deeply subsidized tickets to launch and cultivate the theater-going pursuits of young audiences.� As Jesse Green of New York Magazine recently wrote, "A brilliant incubator of new plays and voices, Playwrights Horizons has an enviable track record of terrific new work."
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The evening will honor Playwrights Horizons board member Stefanie Kane, who Kane leads the U.S. Entertainment, Media & Communications Assurance practice for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC).�Kane got her start at PwC as a college intern during the summer of her junior year at Washington University of St. Louis. After graduating Magna Cum Laude, she was brought onto the staff, and in the following 25 years has served a range of companies, from start-ups to large multinationals, in the entertainment, media, communications, and technology industries.�

Her experience is steeped in both traditional and digital media and she has led several companies through the process of reinventing their business models for improved competitive positioning. She has also brought her skills and leadership to the Playwrights Horizons Board of Trustees, serving as the Treasurer since 2011.
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Serving as Gala Co-Chairs are Betsy Fippinger, Sam Gonzalez, Bruce Horten and Aaron Lieber. The Spring Gala is the organization's largest fundraising event of the year, with donations earmarked to support six annual productions, the development of new plays and musicals, ticket subsidies and programs for students and early-career professionals. The programs cultivate the next generation of artists, arts managers and theatergoers.
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Cocktails and a Silent Auction will begin at 6 p.m., followed at 7:30 p.m. by dinner and the evening's entertainment.��
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Ticket prices for the Gala start at $1,000 and can be reserved by calling Karen Han at 212-564-1235 extension 3141 or online at www.PHnyc.org.