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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Broadway To Dim Its Lights Wed. Jan. 19th at 8pm In Memory Of Stage Pioneer Ellen Stewart
January 18, 2011

The Broadway community mourns the loss of producer and presenter Ellen Stewart, who died this month at age 91. The marquees of Broadway theatres in New York will be dimmed in her memory on Wednesday, January 19th, at exactly 8:00pm for one minute.

Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League, commented, “Much of what we see on stage was developed at La MaMa, creating theatre history. For that, we are grateful to Ellen Stewart's dedication and eye for talent, and her legacy will live on in our theatres.”

Broadway credits include Godspell and Torch Song Trilogy.

Ms. Stewart founded La MaMa, E.T.C. (Experimental Theatre Club) in 1961, and remained its tireless director until her death. In its early period, the company nurtured promising talents like playwrights Sam Shepard, Lanford Wilson, and Harvey Fierstein, and performers such as Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel. Ms. Stewart was a familiar sight at the complex, often personally introducing each performance.

During Ms. Stewart's 49-year tenure, La MaMa presented about 3,000 productions, hosted artists from more than 70 countries, and earned countless cultural awards.

In addition to receiving a 2006 Tony Award® Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre, Ms. Stewart was the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant” in 1985. In 1993, she was inducted into the "Broadway Theatre Hall of Fame," the first Off-Off-Broadway producer to be so honored.

She received the Human Rights Award of the Philippines from President Corazon Aquino and awards from the Emperor of Japan and from France. In the late 1980s, Ms. Stewart established La MaMa Umbria International, an artist residence in Spoleto, Italy.