Tony Award winner Bartlett Sher (South Pacific, The Light in the Piazza) will stage the 3 PM and 8 PM presentations that will feature ten-minute plays and musical numbers from a host of Broadway and Japanese authors.
Among the offerings will be a selection from Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's Pacific Overtures, which has been specifically tailored for the benefit.
Previously announced to appear are Michi Barral, Cindy Cheung, Joel de la Fuente, Angel Desai, Ann Harada, Jennifer Ikeda, Paul Juhn, Peter Kim, Ken Leung, Li Jun Li, Jennifer Lim, Angela Lin, Paolo Montalban, Olivia Oguma, Jon Norman Schneider, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Jade Wu, Jonny Wo, James Yaegashi and Stacey Yen.
Several theatre companies are collaborating on the special event, which commemorates the devastating earthquake that struck Japan in 2011. Proceeds will go directly to Japanese theatre artists affected by the "shinsai" or "great quake."
Shinsai: Theatres for Japan will also include selections by Edward Albee, Shoki Kokami, Oriza Hirata, Richard Greenberg, John Guare, Kumiko Shinohara, John Kander, Fred Ebb and Joseph Stein, Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori, Nen Ishihara, Toshiki Okada, Toshiro Suzue and Yoji Sakate. Original material by playwrights Philip Kan Gotanda, Richard Greenberg, Suzan-Lori-Parks, Naomi Iizuka and Doug Wright will also be performed.
The Atlantic Theater Company, Lincoln Center Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, New York Theatre Workshop, The Play Company, Playwrights Horizons and The Public Theater collaborate to present the benefit.
Tickets, priced $25, are available by visiting PublicTheater.org or by phoning (212) 967-7555.