Highlights of Rosie’s Theater Kids’ Passing It On Gala will be featured on the 32nd episode of BACKSTAGE PASS with Lia Chang, executive produced and hosted by Lia, The episode will air on April 30 at 1:30pm and 6:30pm on FIOS 34, RCN 83, and Spectrum 56/1996, and stream on MNN2. If you miss the episode, it will be archived on my youtube channel.
On April 17, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids honored actor, director and writer BD Wong and attorney Jay Cohen, Esq. at this year’s Passing It On Gala, which featured an evening of performances celebrating 20 years of mentorship.
Directed by Artistic Director Lisa Danser, the evening began at The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College. Rosie’s Theater Kids were joined by this year’s mentors who included Ehizoje Azeke (In The Heights film), Lauren Chapman (Senior teaching artist, content developer, trainer for Disney Theatrical), Frederick Earl Mosley, and Chesney Snow (In Transit).
RTKids Artistic Director Lisa Danser and 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Krystal Joy Brown. Photo by Lia Chang
Krystal Joy Brown (Hamilton, Merrily We Roll Along) performed “Reach Out and Touch (Somebody’s Hand)” before Paul Williams presented Jay Cohen, Esq. with his award.
Paul Williams. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids’ honoree Jay Cohen, RTKids and Paul Williams. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids’ alum Anthony Garcia and Lucy Lin spoke eloquently of the impact BD Wong made on their creative lives and career choices before Saturday Night Live’s Bowen Yang presented the 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids’ Standing Ovation Award to his “Awkwafina is Nora from Queens” castmate, BD. The third season of “Awkwafina is Nora from Queens” drops on Comedy Central on April 26.
RT Kids’ alum Lucy Lin shares the impact that BD Wong’s mentorship has had on her life. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids’ Alum Anthony Garcia and RTKids. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids’ Alum Anthony Garcia and Lucy Lin. Photo by Lia Chang
Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Leah Laford received the 2023 RTKids’ SAM ((Scholastic and Artistic Merit) Scholarship in the amount of $40,000.
Scholarship Leah Laford winner (pink shirt) and RTKids. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 SAM Scholarship Winner Leah Laford, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Barry Wong, 2023 SAM Scholarship Winner Leah Laford, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Tareake Ramos, RTKIDS’ Artistic Director Lisa Danser, 2023 SAM Scholarship winner Leah Laford, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, RTKIDS’ Founding Artistic and Executive Director Lori Klinger. Photo by Lia Chang
Other special guests included Lori Tan Chinn, Daniel K. Isaac, Veanne Cox, Tony Winner Adrienne Warren, Tony Nominee Ephraim Sykes, Charl Brown and more.
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn and Lia Chang. Photo by Shane Marshall Brown
Ephraim Sykes, BD Wong, Christopher Woodley, and Adrienne Warren. Photo by Lia Chang
Ephraim Sykes and Adrienne Warren. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Adrienne Warren. Photo by Lia Chang
Daniel K. Isaac and 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Daniel K. Isaac. Photo by Lia Chang
Daniel K. Isaac. Photo by Lia Chang
Judine Somerville and 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Judine Somerville and 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Ephraim Sykes, Aiden Mekhi Sierra, Adrienne Warren. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Judy Gold and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Jamie DeRoy, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Judy Gold. Photo by Lia Chang
Lori Tan Chinn and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Daniel K. Isaac and Bowen Yang. Photo by Lia Chang
Judy Gold, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Lori Klinger. Photo by Lia Chang
Veanne Cox, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Jamie DeRoy. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Veanne Cox. Photo by Lia Chang
Elliott and Cathy Masie. Photo by Lia Chang
Judy Gold hosted the gala dinner at 583 Park Ave, which also featured performances by Orfeh, Nikki Kimbrough, Marissa Rosen and Tim Kodres. The Band was led by Steven Jamail on the keys, and featured Judy Kang on violin, Domenic Rigazzi on tenor saxophone, David Kawamura on guitar, Jason DiMateeo on bass, and Joshua Mark Samuels on percussion.
Judy Gold. Photo by Lia Chang
Orfeh. Photo by Lia Chang
Orfeh. Photo by Lia Chang
Orfeh. Photo by Lia Chang
Marissa Rosen, Tim Kodres, Nikki Kimbrough, Steven Jamail and Orfeh. Photo by Lia Chang
BD Wong won all five New York theater awards, including the Tony, for his performance in M. Butterfly, his Broadway debut. He has since appeared in more than twenty other Broadway, Off-Broadway or regional productions and twenty-five films; the latter most recently includes Bird Box, Jurassic World, Focus, and The Space Between Us. He has been a regular on four television series, including eleven seasons of “Law & Order SVU” as George Huang. Most recently he was nominated for an Emmy Award for his performance as Whiterose on “Mr. Robot.” He also plays Hugo Strange on Fox’s “Gotham.” He authored the critically acclaimed Harper Entertainment memoir Following Foo. He directed Alice Chan, a play he co-authored with Robert Lee, for the 2016 La Jolla Playhouse Pop Tour where he was also 2015 Artist In Residence. He is on the board of Rosie’s Theater Kids and Entertainment Community Fund.
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and his entourage. Photo by Lia Chang
Lia Chang, Jillian Wong, Taylor Wong, Roberta Wong, BD Wong, Richert Schnorr, Doris Lee, Barry Wong, Marie E. Frederickson and John R. Schnorr. Photo by Shane Marshall Brown
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Richert Schnorr. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Richert Schnorr. Photo by Lia Chang
Jay Cohen, a partner and co-chair of the Litigation Department from 2008 through 2017, is a nationally recognized trial lawyer and corporate counselor, particularly with regard to his comprehensive expertise in media, antitrust, securities, intellectual property and general complex commercial disputes. Clients describe Jay as “the full package: he’s a good, smart, and thorough lawyer who understands and looks at the bigger picture,” and say that he is “very effective in court,” noting his “real touch with both judge and jury.” Jay is one of a select group of nationally recognized trial lawyers in The Legal 500 and has been recognized by Benchmark Litigation as the “General Commercial Attorney of the Year” in 2018 as well as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in America. For more than 25 years, Jay has regularly represented major clients of the media and entertainment industry as lead counsel in a range of sophisticated and precedent-setting matters. In addition, Jay’s practice includes advising on high-stakes corporate transactions as well as conducting internal investigations on behalf of public companies and their boards of directors. Jay is a Lecturer in Law at both the University of Chicago Law School, where he teaches trial advocacy and Columbia Law School where he teaches a seminar on law and the music industry. Jay is the Chairman of the Board of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts and a member of the Board of Directors for the Bronx Defenders and is an active participant in the firm’s pro bono practice.
Past mentors of Rosie’s Theater Kids include Broadway luminaries such as Adrienne Warren, Robert La Fosse, Jessie Mueller, Julio Monge, Jawan Jackson, Nasia Thomas and our founder, Rosie O’Donnell. Passing It On is an event that honors our diverse community unified by a lasting dedication to give back, nurture, and grow our future. Started in 2010, Passing It On is a vital part of Rosie’s Theater Kids’ artistic programming that identifies the individual talents and unique gifts within each student. Mentors from the professional theater and music community are paired with students so that they may gain insight not only into the richness in each artform, but what they are capable of achieving.
RTKids Seniors Brooklyn, Arlene, Rowan, Natalie, Alexa, kneeling from left: Leah, Angelie, and Evelis. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids Alumni Zi Ying Cao, Tiamen Montgomery, Lauren Rexach, Lucy Lin, Anthony Garcia. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids was launched in 2003 at PS 51, a Title I public school bordering on the theater district where students would walk by Broadway theaters daily, and never have the opportunity to go inside. Rosie noticed this, and thought it was, “…like living in Hawaii, and never having access to the beach.”
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and RTKids’ alum Lucy Lin. Photo by Lia Chang
RTKids Alum Anthony Garcia, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Together with Rosie, Founding Artistic and Executive Director Lori Klinger developed PS Broadway – RTKids foundational program. In 2003, all 40 fifth graders at PS 51 participated in 15 weeks of singing and dancing training, and every single fifth grader went to see their first Broadway show – all free of charge.
BD Wong rehearses with Rosie’s Theater Kids at the Maravel Arts Center on 445 W. 45th St. in New York on March 17, 2012. Photo by Lia Chang
BD Wong rehearses with Rosie’s Theater Kids at the Maravel Arts Center on 445 W. 45th St. in New York on March 17, 2012. Lucy Lin is in the purple shirt. Photo by Lia Chang
Over the years since its debut, RTKids has blossomed into much more than simply a song and dance venue. The dedication and inspiration of its expert staff and generosity of its guest Broadway professionals have yielded truly remarkable results including 100% high school graduation and college placement rates. Today, RTKids’ services have expanded to include ACTE II (A Commitment to Excellence), which includes performing arts instruction, life skills development, academic tutoring, college scholarship funding, and college and financial aid guidance and support at Maravel Arts Center, RTKids home just west of the theater district.
William DeMeritt and Cassandra Lopez. Photo by Lia Chang
Grant Chang, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Robert Lee, Cindy Cheung. Photo by Lia Chang
Cindy Cheung, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and guests. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Roberta Wong, Marie E. Frederickson, John R. Schnorr, Richert Schnorr. Photo by Lia Chang
Marie E. Frederickson, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Lori Tan Chinn, Roberta Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Board Member Cathie Masie, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Cassandra Lopez, Dennzyl Green, William DeMeritt. Photo by Lia Chang
Richert Schnorr, Mark Bennett, Ken Berkeley, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Mark Bennett, Grant Chang, William DeMeritt, Ken Berkeley, Cindy Cheung, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Raymond Miller, Cassandra Lopez. Photo by Lia Chang
Mark Bennett, Ken Berkeley, Cindy Cheung 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong, Raymond Miller. Photo by Lia Chang
Lisa Danser, Judine Somerville, 2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong. Photo by Lia Chang
Jennifer Sharpe, Raymond Miller, Jef Poulin. Photo by Lia Chang
Ken Berkeley, Mark Bennett. Photo by Lia Chang
2023 Rosie’s Theater Kids Standing Ovation Award recipient BD Wong and Marissa Rosen. Photo by Lia Chang
Lia Chang, Cassandra Lopez, William DeMeritt. Photo by Lia Chang
William DeMeritt, Jef Poulin, Daniel K. Isaac. Photo by Lia Chang
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BD Wong in Rehearsal for “Passing It On: An Evening of Mentorship to Benefit Rosie’s Theater Kids”
Lia Chang. Photo by Jennifer Sharpe
Lia Chang. Photo by Kalin Ivanov
Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer, activist, documentarian and an Award winning filmmaker and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Lia is also the host and Executive Producer of BACKSTAGE PASS WITH LIA CHANG, an Arts and Entertainment and Lifestyle program that airs on Sundays at 1:30pm and 6:30pm on FIOS 34, RCN 83, Spectrum 56/1996 and streams on MNN2. Lia was recently profiled on Asian American Life. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers, musicians and corporations. www.liachang.com www.liachangphotography.com
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