The Chair: Larry Connelly

Larry Connelly’s eyes twinkle as he talks about ZACH Scott and Red, Hot and Soul. “I have never chaired an event before, although I have been asked many times. I joined the board of ZACH four years ago and I immediately felt comfortable. This year I decided it was my turn to chair this wonderful event. It has been a lot of work, but I have gotten tremendous support from both the volunteers and the staff at ZACH.” Having been named to the Austin Arts Hall of Fame in 2007 along with partner, James Armstrong, Connelly’s commitment to ZACH and many other non-profit and arts organizations harkens to his days both as an elementary school teacher and principal. “I believe that the arts can be used to educate and specifically educate about diversity. The leadership of Austin’s arts organizations – the ballet, the opera and the symphony- has been exceptional and each organization has outreach and educational programs. That is what keeps me involved. What I love about ZACH and Dave Steakley is that his productions always have an Austin element – something the people in Austin can relate to. The casts reflect the diversity that is Austin as well. Take the bilingual production of Jesus Christ Superstar – it was the best production I have ever seen.” Connelly stepped out in 2008 having performed a sophisticated foxtrot/cha cha/hustle dance for the Center for Child Protection’s Dancing with the Stars. “I love to support organizations that work with children. It was a unique experience and I guess I have always wanted to be on stage. It was great fun.” Smiling at the thought Connelly says, “My goal for Red, Hot and Soul is that it gets better every year. I want to try to create memories for the people who attend.”

The Event: Red, Hot and Soul Celebration. Red Carpet Chic: Broadway meets Runway.

April 4, 2009. The Downtown Austin Hilton. Dress: Cocktail attire. True to its theatrical roots, this party will be a production. From red carpet interviews, to having your photo taken for the cover of Playbill, watching yourself as you enter on a catwalk populated with acrobats and dancers, you will arrive at center stage ready to have fun. Models will mix with the beautiful people and both will populate the runway. From the cocktail hour to dinner and the live and silent auctions Red, Hot and Soul is definitely not your run of the mill event. Music by Austin favorite, Skyrocket featuring Trish Murphy. Zach Scott Theatre RED HOT & SOUL

Bang for the Buck – The Organization and its Mission

ZACH is the oldest resident theater in Texas whose history as the creative epicenter of Austin began with its formation in 1933 as the Austin Civic Theatre. In 1993, ZACH became one of only 42 arts organizations in the entire United States that are selected for participation in the prestigious National Endowment for the Arts Advancement Program. Dave Steakley was appointed ZACH’s new Producing Artistic Director in 1997. Under his leadership ZACH has grown from a budget of $700,000 to $2.6 million, and from 25,000 audience members to over 150,000 annually. In 2006, under the leadership of Ann Ciccolella who served as Managing Director from 2000 to 2007, the Austin voters passed a 10 million dollar bond initiative which will help fund a new state of the art 500 seat theatre and Creativity Center at ZACH. Today, ZACH is a fully professional Equity theatre that produces plays and musicals that garner national attention and reflect the vitality and diversity of Austin. Zach serves more than 110,000 adults and children annually through Mainstage shows and educational outreach programming. Proceeds from Red, Hot and Soul support both Mainstage productions and educational outreach. For more information go to: www.zachtheatre.org

Tags: Activities, Event