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Amanda Conte
215-790-5847
aconte@kimmelcenter.org
MEL BROOKS… BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN!
A HILARIOUS CONVERSATION WITH MEL BROOKS
AND SCREENING OF BLAZING SADDLES AT THE
ACADEMY OF MUSIC
MAY 21, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Philadelphia, PA, April 27, 2016) –– The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts presents an incomparable night of cinema and candor in Mel Brooks… Back in the Saddle Again!, Saturday, May 21 at 7:00 p.m. at the Academy of Music. Audiences are invited to join Mel Brooks for an exclusive, inside look at his storied career and the making of the legendary and groundbreaking movie Blazing Saddles. This cinematic masterpiece, considered one of the top comedy films of all time, will be presented on the big screen followed by a live conversation and audience Q&A with Mel Brooks himself.
“It is an honor to welcome Mel Brooks to the Academy of Music in this unique and intimate program,” said Anne Ewers, President and CEO of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. “He has been a staple in the entertainment industry for as long as I can remember, breaking all barriers across genres. It is a special treat for Philadelphia audiences to be able to interact with him in this way.”
Mel Brooks, director, producer, writer and actor, is in an elite group as one of the few entertainers to earn all four major entertainment prizes – a Tony, Emmy, Grammy and Oscar. His career began in television writing for Your Show of Shows, and together with Buck Henry creating the long-running TV series Get Smart. He then teamed up with Carl Reiner to write and perform the Grammy-winning
2000 Year Old Man comedy albums and books. Brooks won his first Oscar in 1964 for writing and narrating the animated short The Critic and his second for the screenplay of his first feature film The Producers in 1968. Many hit comedy films followed including The Twelve Chairs, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Silent Movie, High Anxiety, History of the World Part I, To Be or Not to Be, Spaceballs, Life Stinks, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and Dracula: Dead and Loving It. His film company, Brooksfilms Limited, also produced critically-acclaimed films such as The Elephant Man, The Fly, Frances, My Favorite Year and 84 Charing Cross Road.
For three successive seasons, from 1997-1999, Mel Brooks won Emmy Awards for his role as “Uncle Phil” on the hit sitcom Mad About You. Brooks received three 2001 Tony Awards and two Grammy Awards for The Producers: the New Mel Brooks Musical, which ran on Broadway from 2001 to 2006. The Producers still holds the record for the most Tony Awards ever won by a Broadway musical. He followed that success with The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein, which ran on Broadway from 2007 to 2009 and both musicals continue to be performed and enjoyed by audiences all over the world.
In 2009, Mel Brooks received The Kennedy Center Honors, recognizing a lifetime of extraordinary contributions to American culture. His recent projects include the Emmy nominated HBO comedy specials Mel Brooks and Dick Cavett Together Again, and Mel Brooks Strikes Back! as well as a career retrospective DVD box set titled The Incredible Mel Brooks: An Irresistible Collection Of Unhinged Comedy. In the spring of 2013, he was the subject of an Emmy Award-winning American Masters documentary on PBS called Mel Brooks: Make A Noise and was the 41st recipient of the AFI’s Life Achievement Award.
MEL BROOKS: BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN!
Academy of Music
Saturday, May 21, 2016, 7:00 p.m.
Tickets
All price Level 1 tickets include a Meet and Greet with Mel Brooks. Details regarding the meet and greet will be sent closer to the performance date. Tickets start at $39 (plus applicable service fees) and are on sale now at kimmelcenter.org, 215-893-199, or at the Kimmel Center Box Office. More information at kimmelcenter.org.
Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Located in the heart of Center City, Philadelphia, the Kimmel Center’s mission is to operate a world-class performing arts center that engages and serves a broad audience through diverse programming, arts education, and community outreach. The Kimmel Center campus is comprised of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts (Verizon Hall, Perelman Theater, SEI Innovation Studio, and the Merck Arts Education Center), the Academy of Music (owned by the Philadelphia Orchestra Association), and the University of the Arts’ Merriam Theater. TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank, is the season sponsor of the Kimmel Center’s 2015-2016 Season. American Airlines is the official airline of Broadway Philadelphia. For additional information, visit kimmelcenter.org.
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