O'Hara, Luker and Dansinger to Honor Barbara Cook at NYS ARTS Gala

Broadway’s Kelli O’Hara, Rebecca Luker and Michael Dansicker will join with non-profit organization NYS ARTS at its annual fall gala on November 17, stepping onstage at the Manhattan Penthouse to help honor four outstanding advocates of the arts: Tony Award winner Barbara Cook, Elysabeth Kleinhans’ 59E59 Theaters, the Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation's Executive Vice President, Phoebe Jacobs, and The Rockwell Museum of Western Art's Executive Director, Kristin Swain.

The evening’s honorees will be recognized for their ongoing contributions to the arts, with O’Hara, Luker and Dansicker teaming up for a musical homage celebrating honoree Cook’s more than 50 years in musical theater. Jazz at Lincoln Center musical director Arturo O’Farrill and jazz trumpeter Jon Faddis will also perform, playing for honoree and jazz patron Jacobs. Kleinhans’ 59E59 Theaters, which were developed four years ago to provide space for non-profit theater companies, will be recognized alongside Swain, who contributed to the growth of the Rockwell Museum of Western Art after taking the position of President of the Board of Trustees in 2002.

The evening will also feature a silent auction with items including artwork by Stuart David and De La Vega, signed CDs by jazz greats Wynton Marsalis and Sonny Rollins and a Night on the Broadway Red Carpet with NY1 News. All proceeds from the event will benefit the efforts of NYS ARTS.

NYS ARTS was established over thirty years ago to provide services, resources and tools to cultural organizations. The organization also provides education on statewide and national issues affecting the arts and assists local arts agencies in building community support.