Coming to City Winery NYC on Tuesday, October 22, is An Evening with Aaron Lazar – a star-studded benefit for Project ALS, which identifies and funds the most promising research and recruits the world’s best scientists and doctors to develop therapeutic strategies that will lead to effective treatments and a cure. Lazar, an award-winning actor of the stage and screen (The Last Ship; Everything Everywhere All at Once), was diagnosed with the progressive neurogenerative disorder in 2022, and has since become a motivational speaker and activist committed to raising ALS awareness around the globe.
Hosted by Tony-nominated actor and Grammy winner Andrew Rannells (The Book of Mormon; Gutenberg! The Musical!), the night of music, laughter, and inspiration will feature performances by Broadway luminaries Sara Bareilles (Waitress; Into the Woods), Kate Baldwin (Finian’s Rainbow; Hello Dolly!), and Brian Stokes Mitchell (Kiss Me, Kate; Man of La Mancha), platinum-selling recording artist and singer Loren Allred (“Never Enough” from The Greatest Showman), and many others to be announced.
Along with a seat at the show, the price of tickets and levels of sponsorship, from $200-$25,000, include an open bar and hors d’oeuvres. Most significantly, the funds raised will continue to support the important efforts of Project ALS in its ongoing quest for bringing an end to the incurable illness.
In addition to the upcoming fundraiser, Lazar launched his ten-track debut album Impossible Dream in August, bringing together nearly 80 stars from across the entertainment industry – including Christy Altomare, Shoshana Bean, Ali Louis Bourzgui, Liz Callaway, Kristin Chenoweth, Brian d’Arcy James, Joanna Gleason, Josh Groban, Neil Patrick Harris, Adam Jacobs, Marc Kudisch, Norm Lewis, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Christiane Noll, Leslie Odom Jr., Kelli O’Hara, Sting, Max von Essen, Adrienne Warren, Betsy Wolfe, and Tony Yazbeck, with the National Children’s Chorus, Broadway Inspirational Voices, and the voice of Rebecca Luker, who was lost to ALS in 2020 – and featuring a group cover of the inspiring eponymous hit from Man of La Mancha, “The Impossible Dream,” which has become his mantra. A portion of the proceeds from the LP sales will benefit the ALS Network.
Lazar’s initiative has special meaning for those of us at DC Theater Arts. Our beloved Founder and Editor-in-Chief Emeritus Joel Markowitz succumbed to ALS in November 2017, after being diagnosed in March of that year. He is deeply missed and will never be forgotten, and we hope that the endeavors of Lazar will make a difference in combatting this disease and bringing hope to those affected by it.
An Evening with Aaron Lazar plays on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, doors open at 6:30 pm, at City Winery NYC, 25 Eleventh Avenue, NYC. For tickets (priced at $200-25,000, including fees), go online. If you can’t attend the event in person, you can make a donation to this worthwhile cause here.
