The Drama Desk Celebrates 65th Anniversary with Diamond Jubilee at Sardi’s
The Drama Desk celebrated 65 years of excellence in theater and 60 consecutive years of the coveted Drama Desk Awards with a Diamond Jubilee party Sunday November 15 at the legendary Sardi’s on West 44th Street in NYC. Charles Wright, President of the Drama Desk, marked the evening by reading a laudatory letter from Mayor de Blasio commending the Drama Desk for their contributions to New York City for the past 65 years.
Former Drama Desk winners attended to celebrate with an organization whose membership consists of writers, editors, publishers and broadcasters covering the New York theater scene. The Drama Desk Awards, currently produced by TheaterMania, are unique in that Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway shows compete in the same categories. Awards nominators and voters often see hundreds of shows in a single season before voting.
The Diamond Jubilee included a short program with special presentations, recognition of the Drama Desk winners in attendance, along with hors d’oeuvres and beverages, souvenirs and a toast to the organization’s past and future.
"The Drama Desk consists of a modest number of media professionals whose awards, presented each spring, celebrate outstanding accomplishments on stages all around New York City," said President Charles Wright. "This month’s get-together at Sardi’s, coming at the halfway point between the 2015 and 2016 awards, is an opportunity for the Drama Desk family (along with friends) to celebrate our organization’s longevity and the accomplishments of our founders and members over the past 65 years."
On Hand to celebrate the Drama Desk’s 65th Anniversary were Tonya Pinkins, Reed Birney, Annaleigh Ashford, Joan Copeland, Robert Cuccioli, John Cullum, Joe DiPietro, A. R. Gurney, Stephen Karam, Marc Kudish, Michele Lee, Judith Light, William Ivey Long, Jefferson Mays, Robert Sella and more.
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Photography: Barry Gordin
