Tony Honors for Excellence Will Be Presented to Joe Benincasa, Joan Marcus and Charlotte Wilcox

//assets.playbill.com/editorial/90431e99b0a7421c62ff71ab8e1ea285-joanmarcus2.jpg — Joan Marcus

These honors will be presented at the Tony Honors Cocktail Party, a private cocktail reception that will be held June 2 at the Paramount Hotel’s Diamond Horseshoe.

The Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre were established in 1990 and are awarded annually to "institutions, individuals and/or organizations that have demonstrated extraordinary achievement in theatre, but are not eligible in any of the established Tony Award categories," according to press notes.

This year’s Tony Honors will be presented to:

Joe Benincasa is the president & CEO of The Actors Fund, the national human services organization that helps everyone in entertainment and the performing arts; he joined The Fund in 1989. Benincasa oversees innovative programs including comprehensive social services, health care services, employment and training, and affordable, supportive and senior housing. The Actors Fund’s headquarters are in New York City with regional offices in Los Angeles and Chicago, a nursing home in Englewood, NJ, and supportive housing residences in Manhattan, NY, West Hollywood, CA, and Brooklyn, NY. He is also president of the Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation, which is building affordable, supportive and senior care residences for artists in major urban centers. He serves on the boards of directors of several organizations, including Bio-Reference Laboratories, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Career Transition for Dancers, Learning Ally, the Human Services Council, National Executive Service Corps, Times Square Alliance, the YMCA of New York City and the Somerset Patriots, a minor league baseball team.
Joan Marcus: Over the last 25 years, Marcus has photographed almost 300 Broadway shows and hundreds of productions Off-Broadway, at regional theaters and on national tours across the country. In the years preceding, she served as the house photographer for the Kennedy Center, and also worked with other DC-based theatre companies. Her work is theatrical, constantly alive and imaginative. Through Marcus' eyes photographs of plays and musicals have wallpapered the city and country; from newspapers and magazines to television and the internet, from train platforms to Shubert Alley, from Playbill covers to Times Square billboards.
Charlotte Wilcox has been a leader in the industry for over 40 years. As a general manager and as the founder of The Charlotte Wilcox Company, she has given her guidance and leadership to over 100 shows. Her credits, too many to list in their entirety, include serving as general manager for productions of Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady, Cyrano, all three Broadway productions of Grease, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Full Monty, Taboo, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels The Drowsy Chaperone, Come Fly Away, West Side Story, Catch Me If You Can and this season Beautiful – The Carole King Musical. Wilcox also serves on the Board of Governors, the Executive Committee and was a founding member of the Labor Committee for The Broadway League.

Exclusive Photo Feature: Photographer Joan Marcus Captures Theatre History, "One Click at a Time"

Through the Lens With Joan Marcus

She photographed Sierra Boggess for hours on two occasions. "Getting that tail in the right position was a real challenge. Suddenly the tail came up and she had the perfect expression on her face. Not one other time did the tail go up like that." — Through the Lens With Joan Marcus

Most of the world sees Broadway through the eyes of Joan Marcus. Since the early 1990s, Marcus has been the preeminent photographer who shoots the production photos you see in papers, magazines and on websites. Marcus shares recollections about some of her most memorable shots. Read the Playbill.com story.
12 PHOTOS

When she photographed the 2008 revival of <i>Gypsy</i>, she captured star Patti LuPone's wild energy in a classic eyes-closed arms-in-the-air shot during "Rose's Turn." — When she photographed the 2008 revival of *Gypsy*, she captured star Patti LuPone's wild energy in a classic eyes-closed arms-in-the-air shot during "Rose's Turn."

Joan Marcus

But when she shot Bernadette Peters' 2003 revival of the same show, Marcus chose a quieter moment. "I loved her positioning and the way the light fell. She's in the spotlight, but 'Rose's Turn' hasn't come yet."

Joan Marcus

"I love unusual shadows, especially silhouettes." A perfect example is a production shot from <i>La Cage aux Folles</i>, showing Les Cagelles only in red silhouette. "You don't need to see their faces to know who these people are. And look at those legs!" — "I love unusual shadows, especially silhouettes." A perfect example is a production shot from *La Cage aux Folles*, showing Les Cagelles only in red silhouette. "You don't need to see their faces to know who these people are. And look at those legs!"

Joan Marcus

She took her iconic photo of <i>Angels in America</i> during a very brief shoot at a run-through. She was able to get off just a handful of snaps in the final moments of the show. — She took her iconic photo of *Angels in America* during a very brief shoot at a run-through. She was able to get off just a handful of snaps in the final moments of the show.

Joan Marcus

She had a similarly brief time to catch the spirit of the play's second part, <i>Perestroika</i>, and zeroed in on the Angel once again, landing what is possibly an even more beautiful—if less famous—image. — She had a similarly brief time to catch the spirit of the play's second part, *Perestroika*, and zeroed in on the Angel once again, landing what is possibly an even more beautiful—if less famous—image.

Joan Marcus

Next Slide

Marcus generally takes two kinds of photos: "production shots" typically taken during a dress rehearsal or an early preview. She sometimes also schedules "set-ups," which are done on the stage or even in her studio.

Joan Marcus

For the 2004 revival of <i>12 Angry Men</i>, "It was so flat from the point of view of the audience. So I put a ladder in the wings and had them do [a voting scene]. It was a perspective that the audience never saw, but it had everyone in the picture." — For the 2004 revival of *12 Angry Men*, "It was so flat from the point of view of the audience. So I put a ladder in the wings and had them do [a voting scene]. It was a perspective that the audience never saw, but it had everyone in the picture."

Joan Marcus

Similarly, for <i>Life x 3</i>, which was presented in the round at the Circle in the Square Theatre, Marcus climbed onto the theatre's catwalk to capture the circular set from above. — Similarly, for *Life x 3*, which was presented in the round at the Circle in the Square Theatre, Marcus climbed onto the theatre's catwalk to capture the circular set from above.

Joan Marcus

In 1985 Marcus was hired by the Kennedy Center as chief production photographer. Among the shows presented there was Zoe Caldwell in <i>Lillian</i>. The producers liked her photos so much, they used them for the New York production as well. — In 1985 Marcus was hired by the Kennedy Center as chief production photographer. Among the shows presented there was Zoe Caldwell in *Lillian*. The producers liked her photos so much, they used them for the New York production as well.

Joan Marcus

More shows followed, including Bill Irwin's <i>Largely New York</i>... — More shows followed, including Bill Irwin's *Largely New York*...

Joan Marcus

... and the Tony-winning <i>M. Butterfly</i>, and soon New York producers were seeking her services directly. — ... and the Tony-winning *M. Butterfly*, and soon New York producers were seeking her services directly.

Joan Marcus

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“We are thrilled to announce that Joe Benincasa, Joan Marcus and Charlotte Wilcox are this year’s recipients for the Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre. This year’s honorees personify the heartbeat of the Broadway community. Their passion, commitment and tireless dedication to the theatre shines through in their work – and we could not be more pleased to present them each with this year’s Tony Honors,” said Heather Hitchens, executive director of the American Theatre Wing, and Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of The Broadway League, in a statement.

The Tony Awards, hosted by Hugh Jackman, will be broadcast in a live three-hour ceremony from Radio City Music Hall, on the CBS television network, June 8 beginning at 8 PM ET. For more information visit TonyAwards.com.

Through the Lens With Joan Marcus

Through the Lens With Joan Marcus

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