Its taken me a minute to breathe, but its time to share.
On May 2, 2011 the lights went up and lights went down on East West Players' 45th Anniversary Visionary Awards Dinner and Silent Auction at the Universal Hilton. It was my first time at the event as the Producer. I had been as a guest (thanks to brother Jim) and I had been as crew (thanks to Meg). But being the producer of an event with lots of moving parts is always a great ride.
It was truly a beautiful night. After several months of scheduling and inviting, we were excited to be able to honor HARRY SHUM JR., from GLEE; Bank of America for their support of East West Players and the larger ARTS COMMUNITY; and Michael Hagiwara - a long time East West Players family member. Karin Anna Cheung, Dante Basco, George Takei, John Cho, Rodney Kageyama and Aaron Takahashi were awesome presenters! James Kyson-Lee and Tamlyn Tomita were our MCs for the evening.
Its a fundraising Gala - but many people who attend say that its their favorite fundraiser of the season - because its not just a boring dinner and silent auction - its a show. This year - we had some amazing entertainment:
The 3 Filipino Tenors (Antione Diel, Randy Guiaya and Lino Villareal) turned it out with their Opening Medley - takin' us through the decades 4.5 decades that EWP has been producing Asian Pacific American theatrical work. Laurie Cadevida rocked it with 'Born This Way' and Joan Almedilla sent us all to the dessert buffet and final moments of the silent auction with "Song For You."
The night was amazing for many reasons. It was of course a personal milestone, since I've been a fan of EWP and a part of the community for over 10 years. It was great because I am also the Lead Teaching Artist for their PEAC Program. It was also great because my wife Ellen is part of the EWP family and crew regularly working shows.
I invite you to check out East West Players. I invite you to DONATE to them.
I invite you to join us next year for the 46th Anniversary Visionary Awards Dinner and Silent Auction on 4/30/12! If you'd like to volunteer you can email: galavolunteers@eastwestplayers.org
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