Peter Knox, David Glover and Sandra Birch in "A Paradise of Fools."

Black Tie benefit to help save the Rep Nov. 10

Posted: Oct. 25, 2012 at 8:05 p.m.

DETROIT - Michigan's longest running, award winning, non-profit professional theater will hold its Annual Black Tie Awards Night and Homecoming on Saturday, Nov. 10. Funds raised at the benefit will be used to help the theater meet financial obligations in a timely and efficient manner and help set the table for the generations ahead.

The Detroit Rep is pleased to announce that MGM Grand Detroit returns this year as a Producer's Circle Sponsor and is once again joined by WXYZ Detroit, UAW Region 1A, and newcomer Domino's Pizza as fellow sponsors. Between The Lines is the Black Tie Media Sponsor.

Also, the Detroit Rep is excited to announce Quicken Loans as the production sponsor of "A Paradise of Fools," the world premiere comedy that will be the highlight of the evening.

The evening begins at 6:30 p.m. with a complimentary champagne and gourmet appetizer reception. Following the reception will be the keynote address by Edward T. Welburn, GM vice-president of global design. Mistress of ceremonies is author and TV host Amyre Makupson. Awards will be given to the previous season's favorites as voted by the Detroit Rep subscribers, followed by the climax of the evening, the farce "A Paradise of Fools" at 8:30 p.m. A champagne afterglow will close out the evening.

The Detroit Repertory Theatre's artistic commitment and accomplishments help keep Detroit's rebirth active and alive. The Annual Black Tie Gala brings together civic-minded citizens who value the Detroit Rep's contributions to the cultural life of Metropolitan Detroit in an effort to bring hope to the community, vitality to the city and a promise of a future for the City of Detroit and the Detroit Repertory Theatre.

Tickets for the special evening are $75 per person and may be purchased in advance by calling the Rep Box Office at 313-868-1347 with a Visa or MasterCard, with no surcharge.

The Detroit Repertory Theatre is located - and has been for over 55 years - in the geographical heart of Detroit at 13103 Woodrow Wilson, Detroit MI 48238. Parking is attended, lighted, fenced-in and free.

More information may be found at www.detroitreptheatre.com

About the keynote speaker
As GM's vice president of global design, Edward Welburn oversees the design development of every GM concept and production car and truck around the globe. During a career that spans nearly 40 years, Welburn has been involved with iconic GM vehicles ranging from the elegant Buick Riviera to the groundbreaking Chevrolet Volt. Welburn began his General Motors career in 1972 as an associate designer assigned to the Advanced Design Studios. He was named vice-president of GM Design North America in October 2003, becoming the sixth design leader in GM history. In March 2005, Welburn was named to the newly created position of GM vice-president, global design, and the first to lead all of the company's global design centers. In 2009, Black Enterprise magazine named Welburn one of the 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America. That same year, Welburn also received the Distinguished Service Citation from the Automotive Hall of Fame, which recognizes an individual's significant contribution to the auto industry.

About "A Paradise of Fools"
Two swindlers and a dim-witted shoemaker turn women's reproductive rights upside down. "A Paradise of Fools" is a world premiere comedy by Michael E. Wolfson, who has written a modern-day version of the commedia dell'arte. The commedia was a peoples theater that rose to prominence during the Italian Renaissance. "A Paradise of Fools," like the commedia, pokes outrageous fun at the moral and righteous foibles of human intercourse. A couple of con artists, Francesca and Bernardo, are down on their luck when they discover a dim-witted shoemaker, Calandrino, has received an inheritance. The swindlers move into action. Bernardo convinces Calandrino that he doesn't look well and summons a renowned doctor, Francesca in disguise, who determines the shoemaker is suffering from a condition usually reserved for women. Calandrino begs to have his manhood restored. A request the doctor readily agrees to...for a fee. The raucous farce is just beginning as other swindlers jump into the fray. In the end, money changes hands, but it isn't clear who swindled whom. Only the audience knows for sure.

About the Detroit Repertory Theatre
The oldest professional non-profit theater in Michigan, the Detroit Repertory Theatre's mission is guided by the belief that the sense of community is stronger than the forces that splinter, and that efforts to preserve unity deserve the same attention and support as the justly cultivated efforts to retain diversity. The implicit goal in all the theater's efforts is to produce the best possible professional theater while fostering cultural democratization of the arts, and fighting by example, the disturbing level of racism that still exists. The Detroit Repertory Theatre is a living embodiment of Martin Luther King Jr's. dream and a salient expression of the creative power of diversity acting in unity.