Lauren Ambrose and Joan Allen Will Team for Staged Reading of "Daughter of the Queen of Sheba" | Playbill

Related Articles
News Lauren Ambrose and Joan Allen Will Team for Staged Reading of "Daughter of the Queen of Sheba" Academy Award nominee Joan Allen and forthcoming Funny Girl star Lauren Ambrose will take part in a staged reading of "Daughter of the Queen of Sheba," the acclaimed memoir by Jacki Lyden.

//assets.playbill.com/editorial/5dc042525f8841bec5dff1f8dce4ed89-ambrosehs200_1312390948.jpg
Lauren Ambrose Photo by Sam Handel

The Oct. 17 reading, which will benefit Fountain House -- an internationally recognized organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living with mental illness -- will be held at the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College. The evening is scheduled to begin at 6:30 PM.

Karen Croner and Jacki Lyden have created the script for this performance. Daniel Barnz directs; Susan Cartsonis produces.

"Daughter of the Queen of Sheba," according to press notes, recounts Lyden's experience "growing up with a colorful and dramatic mother living with manic depression."

Proceeds will benefit Fountain House with support from NPR.

“We are thrilled to bring ‘Daughter of the Queen of Sheba,' a story of triumph, to the stage for Fountain House,” said Lyden, a host and correspondent for NPR and an award-winning journalist, in a statement. “Over and over, stories of mental illness are framed in pain and despair, isolation and suffering. What we have learned as a family is that prevailing with mental illness is about embracing our energies, even when they wane. We are proud of our mother, who has endured so much, and we have learned from her mania and creativity...We don’t want people with mental illness to exist in isolation. Fountain House also challenges the stigma that hobbles the human spirit before the fight for mental health is even engaged. It’s a community of people who give each other dignity and strength each day—and that’s a community we want to be part of. How excited we are that Joan Allen and Lauren Ambrose will help us tell the world this story—and that our mother can be part of it." The director, producer and writers of this staged reading are also collaborating to bring "Daughter of the Queen of Sheba" to the big screen.

Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College is located at 68th Street, between Park and Lexington Avenues in New York City. Tickets range from $125-$5,000. For further information, contact Robyn Marks at (212) 582-0341, ext. 1288 or e-mail [email protected].

*

Fountain House is one of the world’s leading mental health models, providing employment, education, and housing opportunities to people living with serious mental illness. Visit www.fountainhouse.org.

 
RELATED:
Today’s Most Popular News:
 X

Blocking belongs
on the stage,
not on websites.

Our website is made possible by
displaying online advertisements to our visitors.

Please consider supporting us by
whitelisting playbill.com with your ad blocker.
Thank you!