Emceed by Tony-winning playwright David Henry Hwang and Chris Chan, Esq., the evening will honor the late actor Mako with the Theatre Legacy Award. Activist Rocky Chin, formerly with the NYC Commission for Human Rights, will receive the Community Service Award, and the Red Socks Award, honoring Asian-American artists, will be presented to actor Nicky Paraiso. The evening will kick off with a cocktail hour and dinner, followed by the awards ceremony, dancing and a raffle. Gala-goers can also expect to see video clips from Mako's career and the opening number from Pacific Overtures.

Mako, the Japanese actor who was Tony Award-nominated for playing the Reciter in the original Broadway production of Pacific Overtures, died July 21, 2006, at his home in Somis, in Ventura County, CA. In addition to his 1976 Best Actor (Musical) Tony nomination, the native of Kobe, Japan, was also Academy Award-nominated for "The Sand Pebbles." He also starred in the title role in the 1992 Broadway play Shimada.

Pan Asian Repertory Theatre is the premiere Off-Broadway Asian American Theatre Company; Tisa Chang is the artistic producing director. This May the company will present Velina Houston's Tea, which concerns four Japanese war brides who "gather at a friend's house to mourn [the friend's] death, as they remember their friend, her life and their lives together."

Tickets, for the gala — priced $300, $500 and $1,000 — are available by calling (212) 868-4030. For more information visit www.panasianrep.org.

The Copacabana is located in Manhattan at 560 West 34th Street.