FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2004

THE THEATRE SCHOOL AT DEPAUL UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCES THE
16TH ANNUAL AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN THE ARTS ON MAY 10, 2004

Acclaimed actresses Joan Allen (“The Contender,” “Pleasantville,” “Nixon”) and Zoë Wanamaker (“Electra,” “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”) will be honored at The Theatre School at DePaul University’s 16th Annual Awards for Excellence in the Arts on Monday, May 10, 2004.

Exelon Corporation, parent company of ComEd, will receive the 2004 Corporate Award for Excellence in the Arts, to be accepted by Frank M. Clark, president of ComEd. Alumnus Sam Wanamaker (1919–1993), renowned worldwide as the driving force behind the re-creation of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London, will be honored with a special memorial tribute, presented by alumnus Criss Henderson, Executive Director of Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Theatre School alumnus and Chicago actor Timothy Gregory (“Rose Rage,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”) will serve as host and master of ceremonies for the evening.

The event benefits The Theatre School’s Scholarship Fund, which provides financial assistance to students who come from all over the United States and several other countries to train at the Midwest’s leading theatre training conservatory.

The Awards benefit begins with a 6 p.m. reception in the Normandy Lounge at the Hilton Chicago and Towers, 720 S. Michigan Ave. Dinner is served in the Hilton Grand Ballroom at 7 p.m., with the Awards Presentation beginning at 8 p.m. The Awards Presentation will include student performances and will culminate in a brief interview-style discussion with the honorees, moderated by Richard Christiansen, former chief theatre critic at “The Chicago Tribune.” Dessert and dancing to music by members of The City Lights Orchestra, conducted by DePaul alumnus Rich Daniels, follows at 9 p.m.

The ticket price for the benefit is $300 per person, with tables for 10 available for $3,000, $5,000, $10,000 or $20,000. “Business attire” dress is requested. To arrange reservations or for more information, call (312) 553-2000.

Each year The Theatre School’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the arts during their careers, as well as for their many wonderful professional and charitable accomplishments. The Corporate Award recognizes exemplary corporate commitment to supporting the arts and other causes in the community.

"The focal point of this glamorous evening is the ceremony honoring our guests, whose distinguished work in the arts and the community exemplifies the standard of excellence and service we seek to develop in our students," said John Culbert, dean of The Theatre School. “We are also thrilled to recognize the global impact of Sam Wanamaker’s life and work with a tribute to his career, which spanned the full spectrum of directing and performance and culminated in his unwavering vision to realize the re-creation of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.”

Norman R. Bobins, president and CEO of LaSalle Bank Corporation; Sondra A. Healy, chairman of Turtle Wax, Inc.; and Monsignor Kenneth Velo, senior executive for Catholic Collaboration at DePaul University, are benefit co-chairs.

Major supporters of the 16th annual Awards include American Airlines, Hilton Chicago, Turtle Wax, Inc., Wedgwood USA and gripdesign, inc. Lord Piers Wedgwood and Wedgwood USA will again donate the presentation pieces to be awarded.

The evening will also include a raffle and a silent auction. Top prizes include trips to London, the Caribbean and other destinations courtesy of American Airlines; special memorabilia connected to the film “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone;” and a day on the Los Angeles set of the CBS drama “Joan of Arcadia” hosted by Theatre School alumnus Joe Mantegna.

Since 1989, the Awards benefit has raised more than $2 million, making it the largest single contributor each year to The Theatre School’s Scholarship Fund. The scholarship fund dispenses more than $600,000 in financial aid to students in the school’s conservatory programs each year.

"The Gala is a wonderful opportunity to showcase and support The Theatre School’s students in the development of their skill and talent," Healy said. "As a nationally renowned conservatory, The Theatre School is an important link in our rich cultural heritage and has proved itself to be a foundation of the city’s thriving theatre scene. It has earned and truly deserves our attention, care and ongoing support."

Since the inception of the Awards Benefit, more than 80 honorees have received The Theatre School’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, including F. Murray Abraham, Gillian Anderson, Blythe Danner, Laurence Fishburne, Dennis Franz, John Guare, Julie Harris, Gregory Hines, Celeste Holm, Bonnie Hunt, Martin Landau, Patti LuPone, John Mahoney, Michael Maggio, Karl Malden, Joe Mantegna, Marlee Matlin, Rita Moreno, Edward James Olmos, Estelle Parsons, Elizabeth Perkins, David Hyde Pierce, Aidan Quinn, John C. Reilly, William Warfield, Wendy Wasserstein, George Wendt and Jane Wyman. Corporate Award recipients include American Airlines, McDonald’s Corporation, Sara Lee Corporation and Kraft Foods North America. A complete list of past honorees can be found at http://theatreschool.depaul.edu/programs/gala.htm.

The Theatre School at DePaul University educates, trains and inspires students of theatre in a conservatory setting that is rigorous, disciplined, culturally diverse and that strives for the highest level of professional skill and artistry. A commitment to diversity and equality in education is central to the school’s mission. As an integral part of the training, The Theatre School produces public programs and performances from a wide repertoire of classic, contemporary and original plays that challenge, entertain and stimulate the imagination. The school seeks to enhance the intellectual and cultural life of the university community, the city and the profession.

Biographies

Joan Allen is one of the world’s busiest actresses, winning worldwide acclaim in film, theatre and television roles since beginning her career as an original ensemble member at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. She starred in Oliver Stone’s “Nixon,” for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress and won seven critics association awards. Allen received her second consecutive Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her role opposite Daniel Day Lewis in “The Crucible.” She starred in “The Contender,” for which she was nominated for Golden Globe, SAG, Independent Spirit and Academy Awards for Best Actress. She has received numerous critics awards and award nominations for her starring roles in such films as “Pleasantville,” “Face-Off” and “The Ice Storm.” Allen’s other feature film credits include “Compromising Positions,” “Peggy Sue Got Married,” “Manhunter,” “Tucker: The Man And His Dream,” “In Country” and “Searching for Bobby Fisher,” among others. Allen is also one of the New York theatre world’s most honored actresses and winner of every major prize for her work on and off-Broadway. She received the Tony Award for Best Actress for her performance opposite John Malkovich in “Burn This,” and was nominated in the same category for the title role in “The Heidi Chronicles.” Off-Broadway she starred in “The Marriage of Bette & Boo” (for which she won the Obie Award), and reprised her Steppenwolf Theatre/Joseph Jefferson Award-winning role in “And A Nightingale Sang,” for which she received the Clarence Derwent, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World awards. At Steppenwolf, Allen has starred in their productions of “Burn This,” “Earthly Possessions,” “Reckless,” “A Lesson From Aloes” (Joseph Jefferson Award), “Balm in Gilead” and “Of Mice and Men.” Allen received an Emmy Award nomination for the “The Mists of Avalon.” Her upcoming film projects include “The Notebook,” “Yes,” “Off the Map,” “The Upside of Anger” and “The Bourne Supremacy” opposite Matt Damon.

Zoë Wanamaker is a three-time Tony Award nominee (for “Piaf,” “Loot,” and “Electra”) and received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress for her performance in “Electra” in London. She may be most recognized by American audiences for her recent role as Madame Hooch in the feature film “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Wanamaker attended the Central School for Speech and Drama and has enjoyed an extraordinary career on stage, television and film in both Great Britain and the United States. Her extensive list of theatre credits includes Laurence Olivier Award nominations for “The Glass Menagerie,” “Dead Funny,” The Last Yankee,” “The Crucible,” “Othello,” “Mother Courage and Her Children” (also Drama Award), “The Time of Your Life,” Twelfth Night” and “Once in a Lifetime.” Other theatre credits include numerous performances at the National Theatre, Donmar Warehouse, Royal Court and with the Royal Shakespeare Company and others in such plays as “His Girl Friday,” “Boston Marriage,” “The Old Neighborhood,” “The Importance of Being Earnest,” “Sylvia,” “The Taming of the Shrew,” “The Glass Menagerie” and scores of others. She is famous to British television audiences through her current role as Susan Harper in the popular BBC sitcom “My Family” (each episode seen by 11 million viewers in the United Kingdom alone, making it the second most popular program in the country). She previously gained television fame as Tessa Piggott in “Love Hurts” (BAFTA) in the early 1990s. Her numerous television credits also include “David Copperfield,” “Leprechaun,” Gormanghast,” “A Dance to the Music of Time,” “The Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd,” “Prime Suspect” (BAFTA) and “Inspector Morse,” among many others. In addition to “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” Wanamaker’s film credits include “Swept from the Sea,” “Wilde,” “The Raggedy Rawney,” “The Hunger,” “Inside the Third Reich,” and “The Last Ten Days of Hitler.” Wanamaker was awarded an Honorary Commander of Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2000 and is an Associate to The National Theatre in London and a trustee of Shakespeare’s Globe. She is the daughter of Sam Wanamaker.

Sam Wanamaker (1919 – 1993), an alumnus of the Goodman School of Drama (now The Theatre School), is renowned worldwide as the driving force behind the re-creation of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London. He enjoyed a distinguished career as an actor, director and producer on stage and film, starting with his first break playing opposite Ingrid Bergman in “Joan of Lorraine” on Broadway. He first visited the United Kingdom in 1949 and decided to make his home there after a second visit in 1951. He founded his own theatre company in Liverpool, creating the first arts and performance center in Britain. He also continued his acting career, performing as Iago with the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in “Othello” opposite Paul Robeson, in a production of “Macbeth” in Chicago and in the Broadway production of “A Far Country.” He acted in and directed more than a dozen television shows for major U.S. networks and more than 50 films, including “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold,” “Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines,” “Superman IV,” “Baby Boom,” and “Guilty by Suspicion” opposite Robert De Niro. He participated in two long-running TV series, “Holocaust” and his own series, “The Berengers.” Wanamaker also directed opera, notably “War and Peace” for the opening of the Sydney Opera House and Pavorotti’s debut in “Aida” in San Francisco, as well as staging the 25th Anniversary Gala of the Lyric Opera House in Chicago. He founded the Shakespeare Globe Trust and the International Shakespeare Globe Center and established the Shakespeare Globe Museum. After more than 20 years of persevering in his work to see the theatre rebuilt, he witnessed the Royal Unveiling of two sections of the Globe in June 1992. He was made an Honorary Commander of Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1993, and was the recipient of numerous other honorary degrees and special awards, including the Royal Society of Arts’ Benjamin Franklin Medal. Wanamaker died on December 18, 1993. Shakespeare’s Globe was opened by HM the Queen in June 1997.

Exelon Corporation is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities with approximately 5.1 million customers and more than $15 billion in annual revenues. The company has one of the industry’s largest portfolios of electricity generation capacity, with a nationwide reach and strong positions in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Exelon distributes electricity to approximately 5.1 million customers in northern Illinois and Pennsylvania and gas to more than 460,000 customers in the Philadelphia area. Exelon is headquartered in Chicago and is the parent company of ComEd.

Timothy Gregory received his M.F.A. in Acting from The Theatre School in 1997. He is a principal company member of Chicago Shakespeare Theater, where he has appeared in 11 productions, most recently in “Rose Rage” and as Berowne in “Love's Labor's Lost” and Orlando in “As You Like It.” Other Chicago Shakespeare credits include Edmund in “King Lear,” Benedick in “Much Ado about Nothing,” Oberon/Theseus in “A Midsummer Night's Dream,” Proteus in “The Two Gentlemen of Verona,” Bertram in “All's Well That Ends Well,” and Posthumus in “The Tale of Cymbeline.” Other Chicago theatre credits include “Things Being What They Are” at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, “Cherry Docs” at Next Theatre, “The Woman in Black” at The Theatre Building and “Cyrano de Bergerac” at Apple Tree Theatre. Regional credits include “The Grapes of Wrath” at Atlanta’s Alliance Theater and “A Christmas Carol” at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. Gregory has appeared on film in “Life Sentence” and “Betaville” and on television in “Cupid” and “De-classified.” He is the artistic director of Provision Theater Company, where he most recently appeared in their inaugural production of “Cotton Patch Gospel.”

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Contact:
Lara Goetsch, Director, Marketing and Public Relations
(773) 325-7938, lgoetsch@depaul.edu

Karin McKie, Associate, Marketing and Public Relations
(773) 325-7819, kmckie@depaul.edu

Allen/Wanamaker photos available upon request.