RUBY DEE TO APPEAR AT THE CLEVELAND PLAY HOUSE Staged Reading of Saint Lucy's Eyes to Benefit Play House, Karamu

Celebrated stage and screen actress Ruby Dee will join actors from Karamu House on the Drury stage at The Cleveland Play House for a fundraiser benefiting both theatres, each currently celebrating their 90th Anniversary Season.

The two theatres have been collaborating for some time on ways to have Dee, a Cleveland native, return to the city. Their efforts result in a staged reading of Bridgette Wimberly’s Saint Lucy’s Eyes at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 8, 2006. A special reception will follow in The Cleveland Play House Club.

Wimberly, another Cleveland native, now lives in New York City. She began writing Saint Lucy's Eyes in a workshop while a fellow in Lincoln Center Theater's Directors Lab. She became a 1999 Mentor Project Fellow at the Cherry Lane Alternative when Wendy Wasserstein chose to mentor Wimberly’s play, culminating in a workshop production at the Kauffman Theater. Saint Lucy's Eyes went on to a sold-out production at the Women's Project and Productions starring Dee and moved to The Cherry Lane Theatre.

The event is a fitting addition to the FusionFest line-up. FusionFest, The Play House’s upcoming first-annual multidisciplinary performing arts festival will run May 2 – 21, 2006. Tickets for the reading are $50.00.

Tickets to both the reading and the reception are $100. For $250, up to six individuals may attend the reading, the reception and join Dee and Wimberly for lunch at 11:30 a.m. Monday, May 8 in The Play House Club. The roster of luncheon guests also includes Play House Artistic Director Michael Bloom, Managing Director Dean Gladden, Karamu House Artistic Director Terrence Spivey, and Karamu House Executive Director Gerry McClamy.