CTG Hosts Special Evening With Daniel Beaty

Up Close Dialogue set for Monday, March 17, 2014, at 7 p.m.

Center Theatre Group welcomes Obie Award-winning writer and performer Daniel Beaty to the CTG/Mark Taper Forum on Monday, March 17, 2014, at 7 p.m. for a free special event. 

Creator/performer of “The Tallest Tree in the Forest” (presented at the Taper April 12 through May 25, 2014), Beaty will share his own personal journey – from growing up in a household rife with addiction to discovering his purpose by watching Dr. King, graduating from Yale University and developing his current career as an internationally-renowned actor, singer and writer. 

The 45-minute presentation will be followed by a question and answer session with Beaty, who will also be signing copies of his new book “Transforming Pain to Power,” which will be available for purchase.  Reservations are required for this free event and can be made through the following link through Thursday, March 13: www.centertheatregroup.org/beaty.

Daniel Beaty is an award-winning actor, singer, writer and motivational speaker. His critically acclaimed plays “Through the Night,” “Emergency” and “Mr. Joy” have been performed at venues ranging from Lincoln Center to the White House, and garnered numerous awards including an Obie Award for writing and performance and two NAACP Theatre Awards. He is a highly requested keynote speaker and thought leader, an adjunct professor at Columbia University, a diversity trainer and a youth development specialist. In 2013, Beaty launched a nationwide initiative (funded by W.K. Kellogg and Ford Foundation, among others) using the tools of storytelling to help individuals and communities heal trauma. He holds a B.A. with Honors in English and Music from Yale University and an MFA in Acting from the American Conservatory Theatre.  His poem “Knock Knock” has been transformed into a children’s book of the same title, published by Little Brown Books. Penguin-Random House published  his empowerment book “Transforming Pain to Power” in March 2014.

In his upcoming “The Tallest Tree in the Forest,” Beaty chronicles Paul Robeson’s remarkable life as an artist and political activist in an unforgettable theatrical biography.  Beaty embodies not only Robeson but also dozens of the international personalities who crossed Robeson’s path.  Beaty fills the theatre with the words, songs and dreams of a man who achieved so much as an All-American linebacker, valedictorian, Columbia Law School graduate and finally an internationally renowned star of stage and screen, and then he risked it all as a civil rights activist.

Tickets for “The Tallest Tree in the Forest” are available by calling (213) 628-2772, visiting www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, or in person at the Center Theatre Group box office at the Ahmanson Theatre. Tickets range from $20 - $70 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Mark Taper Forum is located at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012.  

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