Jay Leno Headlines Casa Mañana’s 50th Anniversary
Laugh With A Legend Gala August 23 in Fort Worth

     (Fort Worth, Texas) – President and Executive Producer Denton Yockey has announced Casa Mañana will continue its 50th Anniversary Celebration of presenting world-class entertainment with a one night only appearance by Emmy Award-winning and top-rated late-night television host Jay Leno at its Laugh With A Legend Gala on Saturday, August 23, 2008, at Casa Manana Theatre in Fort Worth.

     Casa’s 50th Anniversary Laugh With A Legend Gala starring Mr. Leno launches Fort Worth’s 2008-2009 social season. The exclusive, black tie event will benefit Casa Mañana’s Arts Education & Outreach Program that reaches almost 145,000 children each year across North Texas, the largest program of its kind in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

     Prior to Mr. Leno’s celebrated one-man show at 8:30 p.m., the evening will include pre-show cocktails, dinner, and auction at 6:00 p.m. Following Mr. Leno’s show, guests will enjoy an open bar, hors d’oeuvres, and dancing until dawn to the fabulous music of Cuvee. This exciting evening culminates a season-long celebration of the theatre’s 50th Anniversary.

     Jay Leno had the unenviable task of following in the footsteps of legendary NBC late-night host, Johnny Carson. On Monday night, May 28, 1992, audiences anxiously tuned in for the debut of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” Sixteen seasons after his debut, Leno’s own unique late-night combination of humor, talk and entertainment has helped maintain NBC’s top position in American late-night television. Along the way, “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” has won four Emmy Awards, and Leno’s personal highlights include receiving a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame and being the first person to drive the pace car of all major NASCAR events.

     One of the country’s premier comedians, Leno has appeared in hundreds of comedy shows around the United States. In 2001, he traveled to Bosnia, where he performed for military troops associated with the war in Afghanistan. Leno also traveled to Aviano, Italy in 1995 to entertain military troops associated with the peacekeeping efforts in Bosnia. Leno’s latest children’s book from Simon & Schuster, If Roast Beef Could Fly, was an immediate New York Times bestseller when it arrived in bookstores in April 2004. His other books include, How to Be the Funniest Kid in the Whole Wide World (or Just in Your Class), Leading with My Chin, four versions of Headlines, and Police Blotter. All of Leno’s book proceeds go to various charities.

     The gala is chaired by Elizabeth Webb and George Ann Carter Bahan. Tables and donor-level single tickets are currently on sale, with underwriting opportunities also available. Gala underwriting ranges from $10,000, $25,000 and $50,000 and includes generous benefits, among them a pre-show reception and dinner at 6:00 p.m. catered by The Ashton Depot; participation in live and “Big Board” auctions with guest auctioneer Jody Dean; VIP seating for the Jay Leno performance followed by a festive party in Casa Mañana’s Grand Lobby with open bar, hors d’oeuvres, and dancing to live music by Cuvee. Donor level individual tickets for 50th Anniversary Laugh With A Legend Gala are $1000 per person and include the reception and dinner, reserved V.I.P. seating to Mr. Leno’s performance followed by the party in the Grand Lobby. For more information, call 817-321-5005 or go to www.casamanana.org.

     $500 donor tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, August 1 at 10:00am. These $500 donor tickets include reserved seating for the show, An Evening With Jay Leno, beginning at 8:30 p.m. and admission to the festive party in Casa Mañana's Grand Lobby immediately following the show, featuring an open bar, hors d'oeuvres, and dancing to live music by Cuvee. A portion of the $500 donor ticket is tax-deductible.

     Based upon availability, $250 donor tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, August 11 at 10:00 a.m. These $250 donor tickets include reserved seating for the show and admission to the festive party in Casa Mañana's Grand Lobby immediately following the show, featuring an open bar, hors d'oeuvres, and dancing to live music by Cuvee.

     Tickets can be purchased by calling the Casa Mañana Theatre box office at 817-332-2272. You can also visit the Casa Mañana Theatre box office, 3101 West Lancaster Avenue, Fort Worth. For more information, go to www.casamanana.org. This show may not be suitable for all audiences; parental discretion is advised.

     Event chair Elizabeth Webb is Casa Mañana’s Past Chairman of the Board of Directors. George Ann Carter Bahan is honorary chair. Mrs. Webb, Mrs. Carter Bahan, and members of the Casa Mañana’s 50th Anniversary Committee are coordinating what promises to be an electrifying evening, enhanced by the ingenious collaboration of Fort Worth-based Jan Simus Events. Current underwriters include, as of July 15, the Amon G. Carter Foundation, Toby and Joanie Darden, Rusty and Molly Reid, XTO Energy, Colby and Judy Siratt, Don and Gloria Siratt, Donnie and Julie Siratt, Montserrat/THMC Partners, Bill and George Ann Carter Bahan, David and Greta Beckerman, Doug and Anne Marie Bratton, Coors Distributing Company, Gary and Connie Fagg, Tim and Lisa Fleet, Taylor and Shirlee Gandy, Jim and Teresa Hubbard, Jeannene Hughes, Bob and Doris Klabzuba, Robert P. McInnis, Reed and Pam Pigman, David and Dana Porter, Jim and Elizabeth Webb, American Airlines, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

     Sponsorships support Casa Mañana ongoing dedication to developing audiences and artists of the future. Since 1962, Casa Mañana’s Children’s Playhouse has inspired imagination, enriched young minds, and offered special student matinees at greatly reduced prices in order for children of all walks of life to enjoy live theatre. Casa Mañana’s Theatre School makes a significant contribution to arts education and maintains a special commitment to developmentally-delayed and physically-challenged children. Casa Mañana also reaches out to the community and promotes the performing arts with its two performance troupes, The Casa Kids and The Casa Playaz. Casa Mañana’s “Artist in Residence” program takes regularly scheduled and structured theatre training into the classroom. Casa Mañana partners with the Fort Worth ISD on the Adopt-A-School program at the Applied Learning Academy. Through the Betty Lynn Buckley Awards, Casa Mañana recognizes outstanding achievement in high school musical theatre in Tarrant County. Such ambitious effort needs financial support. In return, Casa Mañana offers a marvelous party. Help Casa Mañana’s efforts to develop and educate the next generation of artists and arts patrons.

About Casa Mañana
     Now in its 50th Anniversary Summer Season, Casa Mañana is a Fort Worth-based live theatre company that offers a diverse range of services to the benefit of the communities in North Texas.

     Casa Mañana produces and presents up to 20 live theatre productions each year at two distinct performance venues – Casa Mañana Theatre and the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall. By combining the talent of award-winning directors, choreographers and musicians with outstanding professional actors from across the United States to Broadway and Hollywood, Casa Mañana’s self-produced musicals, plays and world-premieres are among the best in the nation. Casa Mañana is also proud to be Fort Worth’s premiere presenter of Broadway’s hottest national touring shows, making Casa Mañana the largest performing arts organization in Tarrant County.

     Casa Mañana also produces a series of Children’s Playhouse performances that strives to bring the magic of live professional theatre to the youth of North Texas. During the 2007 – 2008 Season, over 124,000 patrons, including students from area independent school districts and various special interest groups, attended a Children’s Playhouse production. Tickets for this popular series are kept affordable through generous donations to Casa Mañana’s Annual Campaign. The Playhouse Season features live theatre productions that offer a rich assortment of life lessons and educational values to theatre lovers of all ages.

     Casa Mañana also makes a committed effort to reach out to adults and children across North Texas through its nationally-recognized arts education and outreach programs. Each year, over 900 students enroll in Casa Mañana’s Theatre School program, which is one of the largest acting schools for children and adults in the United States. The Casa Kids is a company of young performers chosen from the Theatre School to perform at after-school programs, nursing homes, hospitals and other community-wide organizations. The Casa Playaz is a performance troupe of professional actors who not only entertain students, but also address the essential arts requirements of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) curriculum requirements that help prepare students for the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). The Betty Lynn Buckley Awards, named in honor of Fort Worth’s own Tony Award winning actress Betty Lynn Buckley, honors excellence in musical theatre among participating Tarrant County high schools. In the summer, Camp Casa offers an exciting educational experience that blends arts education with the magic of performing on stage at Casa Mañana Theatre. And throughout the school year, Casa Mañana partners with the Fort Worth ISD on the Adopt-A-School Program to provide students from the Applied Learning Academy with hands-on theatre training through scholarships and scenic, technical and production assistantships.

     As a performing arts organization, Casa Mañana strives to create, nurture and advance live professional theatre unparalleled in artistic excellence for the enrichment and education of our diverse community and its future generations of artists and patrons.


Contacts:
Gene Almy817-321-5023, Gene.Almy@casamanana.org
Paige Hendricks or Susan Flyzik
817-924-2300, pkhendricks@phprinc.com, sflyzik@phprinc.com