American Conservatory Theater’s annual season gala, Ignite the Night, raised $620,000 to support A.C.T.’s diverse and far-reaching artistic, artist training, and education and community programs.
Held on Friday, October 24 at San Francisco’s Saint Joseph’s Arts Society, this year’s gala began at 6:30 p.m. with a cocktail reception on the mezzanine where 150 guests enjoyed conversation while partaking of welcome bites and libations. At 7:30 p.m., guests were seated for dinner and serenaded by students from A.C.T.’s Young Conservatory while they experienced a three-course, seated dinner, prepared by Melons Catering, in the nave of the renovated, historic Romanesque-style church. At 8:30 p.m., guests were treated to an electrifying one-night-only performance by Grammy® Award-nominated artist Quentin Earl Darrington! With an extensive career that has taken him from the Bay to Broadway and beyond, Quentin lit the Bay ablaze as Don Cornelius in A.C.T.’s Broadway-bound Hippest Trip—The Soul Train Musical.
Following her successful run in Co-Founders at A.C.T.’s Strand Theater, the charismatic, award-winning Ryan Nicole Austin took the stage as the evening’s Emcee.
Three one-of-a-kind gala packages were auctioned off, including an exclusive dinner experience prepared by Tony Award winner BD Wong at his Brooklyn home, as well as a Tony Awards experience with A.C.T. Artistic Director and Tony Award winner Pam MacKinnon. Guests capped off the night at a lively after-party, dancing to the sounds of San Francisco’s premier Spellbound DJ and indulging in late-night sweet treats.
The Gala Committee—led by Ann and Rodman Marymor, Karesha McGee, and Caroline Nassif—included Brandon Joseph, Barbara Messing, Jeff Minick, Alexandra Simmons, and Jomar Tagatac.