“Culture Project plays such a vital role in drawing
people’s attention to issues that often go unchallenged
by those without a voice so this Gala marks quite an
emotional return to the proverbial boards that Lynn and
I trod a decade ago,” Ms. Sedgwick said. “Lynn was a
professional inspiration so, to be opening a theater
named for her and reflective of her wonderful ability to
make a difference in people’s lives through performance,
is a touching and
humbling privilege.”
“In celebrating Lynn Redgrave’s legacy of artistic
excellence married with a bold human rights advocacy, we
are delighted to have Kyra hosting this Gala,” said
Allan Buchman, Founder and Artistic Director of
Culture Project. “She broke ground here alongside Lynn
in a production that helped raise awareness of the
injustices faced by death row inmates across America,
and returns now to help us affirm the newly named
theater’s commitment to social justice.”
“The Lynn Redgrave Theater stands for everything it’s
namesake held dear: playwriting, education and the joy
of acting infused
with a very clear sense of integrity and fairness,”
Mr. Buchman continued.
"CCR is the ideal ally in our efforts as we challenge
injustice in our quest for a more humane civil society,"
Mr. Buchman added. "They are at the forefront of every
battle that defines who we are as a nation whether it is
Guantanamo torture stop and frisk illegal surveillance
or government abuse of power. They have our collective
back as a people they stand out because they stand up
for what they stand for. They have played a crucial role
in the development of our signature Blueprint for
accountability series and been the inspiration behind
the choices of many of our plays."
Sisters Lynn and Vanessa performed together at Lynn’s
last Culture Project outing in 2007 with their late
brother Corin Redgrave and his daughter Jemma,
in A Question of Impeachment, a series of
evenings exploring the case for the impeachment of
former President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
In addition to appearing as Sonia “Sunny” Jacobs in the
original run of The Exonerated, Lynn Redgrave’s
association with Culture Project was instrumental in the
development of her third play, Nightingale, for
which a number of developmental public readings of the
play were presented at the theater.
Jillian Crane Kahn and Alfred Kahn are
Chairs of the Gala. In addition to Allan Buchman, the
Benefit Committee includes Ibrahim AlHusseini,
Jill Brooke, Steven Donziger & Laura
Miller, Robert Dunn, Jodie Evans,
James Grant, Eva & Yoel Haller, Steve
& Ruth Hendel, Lucy Jarvis, Lauren
Embrey, Marc Kaplan, Katherine Keating,
Rick Miramontez, Beatrix Ost & Ludwig
Kuttner, Rosemary Pritzker, Michael Ratner,
Cornelia Ravenal & Mikael Sodersten,
Nicole Reeber, Bill Robinson, Melissa
Spohler, Sandy Tabatznik, Vince Warren,
Monica Winsor & Joshua Mailman, and Tom
Wirtshafter.
# # #
About Culture Project
Culture Project is dedicated to addressing critical
human rights issues by shining an artistic spotlight on
injustice. By fostering innovative collaboration between
human rights organizations and artists, it aims to
inspire and impact public dialogue, encouraging
democratic participation in the most urgent matters of
our time.
Founded by Allan Buchman in 1996, Culture Project has premiered celebrated
shows including
The Exonerated, Sarah Jones'
Bridge & Tunnel,
Guantanamo: Honor Bound to
Defend Freedom, Lawrence Wright's
My Trip To
Al-Qaeda,
Tings Dey Happen, the Lucille
Lortel Award-winning world premiere of George Packer's
Betrayed, and Temple University's acclaimed
production of
In Conflict. Culture Project also
produced "Breaking the Silence, Beating the Drum", a
groundbreaking concert at the United Nations to
commemorate the abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave
Trade.
In 2012, Culture Project celebrated its return to the theaters at 45
Bleecker Street. Since then, productions have included
James X, directed by Gabriel Byrne, the revival
of Rinde Eckert’s acclaimed
And God Created Great
Whales,
Shaheed: The Dream and Death of Benazir
Bhutto, along with the 10th anniversary remount of
The Exonerated.
http://cultureproject.org/
About Lynn Redgrave
Lynn Redgrave was born in London into a family of actors
and enjoyed a remarkable career on stage, screen, and
beyond spanning four decades. She was nominated for 3
Tony Awards, 2 Oscars, 2 Emmys, a Grammy and most
recently was the recipient of a 2008 New York Emmy. Film
highlights include Georgy Girl (Oscar nomination,
Golden Globe, New York Film Critics awards), Gods and
Monsters (1999 Golden Globe, Independent Spirit
Award, Oscar nomination), Shine (BAFTA and SAG
nominations), and Kinsey. She was a founding
member of The Royal National Theatre and was the author
of four plays, Shakespeare For My Father (which
examines her relationship with Sir Michael Redgrave),
The Mandrake Root (loosely based on her mother, the
actress Rachel Kempson), and Nightingale (a
fictional meditation on the life of her maternal
grandmother, Beatrice Kempson, Los Angeles Drama Critics
Circle Award for Best Solo Performance), which enjoyed
its New York premiere at Manhattan Theatre Club in 2009.
She performed her last work, Rachel and Juliet, at Tucson,
Arizona's Invisible Theatre and Washington, D.C.'s
Folger Theatre. She also appeared Off Broadway in MCC
Theater's Grace, under the direction of Joseph Hardy.
She wrote the text for Journal, A Mother and
Daughter's Recovery From Breast Cancer, featuring
photographs by her daughter, Annabel Clark, currently in
its third printing from Umbrage Editions. Recent film
credits include The Jane Austen Book Club and the
final Merchant / Ivory production, The White Countess,
acting alongside sister Vanessa and her niece, the late
Natasha Richardson. Recent television credits include
ABC's "Desperate Housewives," "Law & Order: Criminal
Intent" and with America Ferrera in "Ugly Betty."
She can be heard as the voice of Nanny in the animated
film series of Me, Eloise and in the animated
feature My Dog Tulip, which was an official
selection of the 2009 Toronto International Film
Festival. She was a prolific "voice on tape" and her
last audio book release was Roald Dahl's The Witches,
for which she received a Grammy nomination. Ms. Redgrave
was inducted into the Theater Hall in January, 2009.
Lynn Redgrave (67) passed away peacefully on Sunday, May
2, 2010 at her home in Connecticut.
About Kyra Sedgwick
Kyra Sedgwick has conquered success on stage, screen and
television. She has received multiple Golden Globe
nominations (2007 win for “The Closer”), Emmy
nominations (2010 win for “The Closer”), SAG nominations
as well as two Independent Spirit Award nominations, a
Theater Award, Los Angeles Drama Desk Critics Circle
Award and a Dramalogue Award. Over her seven season
tenure, Sedgwick’s role as “Deputy Police Chief Brenda
Leigh Johnson,” on TNT's first original series "The
Closer," garnered her a Golden Globe Award in 2007 for
"Best Dramatic actress" - television, four Emmy
nominations and a win for “Outstanding Lead Actress in a
Drama Series” in 2010, seven SAG nominations, and a 2009
People Choice Award for "Favorite TV Diva". The series
concluded its seventh and final season on TNT August
13th, 2012.
Her film credits include the upcoming Rays of Light,
The Possession, Man on a Ledge, Gamer,
The Game Plan, Loverboy, The Woodsman,
Phenomenon, Born on the Fouth of July and
Heart and Souls. Additional television credits
include work on award-nominated Showtime and HBO series.
Her theatre credits include Culture Project's New York
production of The Exonerated, a triumphant run of
Nicholas Hytner's Twelfth Night at Lincoln
Center, Ah Wilderness! for which she won the
Theater Award, and David Mamet's Oleanna, which
garnered her a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award
and a Drama League Award.
About the Center For Constitutional Rights
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to
advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the
United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who
represented civil rights movements in the South, CCR is
a non-profit legal and educational organization
committed to the creative use of law as a positive force
for social change.