The free event, which will be moderated by Playbill.com senior editor Andrew Gans, will be held Nov. 9 at 5:30 PM at the Rizzoli Bookstore, which is located in Manhattan at 1133 Broadway at 26th Street.
The new collection of Kay Thompson and Knight's classic "Eloise" stories — "Eloise," "Eloise in Paris" and "Eloise in Moscow" — were recently released by Simon & Schuster Audio featuring narration by stage and screen star Peters. The collection, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of the very first "Eloise" publication, is available in special book and CD combinations as well as an audiobook-only collection.
"I am so thrilled to be part of this beautiful project," Peters said in a recent statement. "'Eloise' was my favorite book as a little girl. What a joy to bring Kay Thompson's words to life through these wonderful characters, and of course, to inhabit my enormously talented and dear friend Hilary Knight's drawings. Especially little Eloise!"
Peters will also be on hand to autograph the new "Eloise" publication as well as her third children's book, "Stella and Charlie: Friends Forever."
Entertainment Weekly posted an excerpt featuring Peters reading from the classic book. Click below to listen.
With more than six million "Eloise" titles sold since the publication of the original in 1955, generations have been charmed by the little girl who lives at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. This character has been the subject of two television movies, an animated television series and, most recently in March, an HBO documentary, "It's Me, Hilary," produced by Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner.
Bernadette Peters was last on Broadway in the revivals of two Stephen Sondheim classics, Follies and A Little Night Music. She received a 2003 Tony Award nomination for her performance as Rose in the Sam Mendes-directed revival of Gypsy. Peters won her two Tonys for her performances in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Song & Dance and Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun, and she has also starred on Broadway in Mack & Mabel, On the Town, Sunday in the Park with George, The Goodbye Girl and the original production of Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods. A co-creator of the Broadway Barks pet adoption charity, Peters is also the author of three children's books: "Broadway Barks," "Stella Is a Star!" and "Stella and Charlie: Friends Forever." Read more about Bernadette Peters' career in the Playbill Vault.
Knight has illustrated over 50 books, nine of which he also wrote. His latest is titled "The 365 Days of Eloise – My Book of Holidays." Besides books, his work has included note and greeting cards, children's fashion advertisings, illustrations for Cricket magazine, record album covers and posters for the Broadway musicals Half A Sixpence, Hallelujah Baby!, No, No Nanette, Irene and Gypsy.
For more information visit Audio.simonandschuster.com.
