Union Square Free Night of Theatre Celebration Set for Oct. 19

By Andrew Gans
29 Sep 2009

Theatre Communications Group's fifth annual Free Night of Theatre will launch Oct. 15 with a celebration in Union Square beginning at 12 noon.

The celebration, which continues to 6 PM, will have "booths, art installations, and performances – both scheduled and spontaneous – as well as guest speakers including theatre artists and local politicians," according to press notes. TCG executive director Teresa Eyring and Mayor Bloomberg are expected to speak.

The park will be transformed into a theatrical street fair with a performance stage and roving artists.

Theatre artists from Broadway and beyond will perform for free while "make-up artists transform faces, celebrity artists share personal stories from the sublime to the ridiculous, and children's theater is performed for kids and parents." A fashion show — featuring items from the 75,000 pieces of Theatre Development Fund's The Costume Collection — will also be presented.

The Free Night of Theatre program was introduced in 2005 to raise the general awareness of America's not-for-profit theatres and attract new audiences. This year more than 75,000 tickets will be available to 700 theatres. More than 5,000 free tickets to nearly 100 theatres across New York City will be offered; online tickets can be reserved beginning Oct. 1.

Visit www.freenightoftheater.net for more information.