"Angels" Author Speaks March 24 At Penn State

3-4-97

University, Park, Pa. -- Tony Kushner, award-winning author of "Angels in America" and prominent gay activist, will speak in Eisenhower Auditorium at 8 p.m. on Monday, March 24.

Known for his Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning play, "Angels in America," Kushner's famous work consists of two plays: "Millennium Approaches" and "Perestroika." A seven-hour long play dealing with AIDS and the crisis of conscience the epidemic poses to America, "Angels" has won almost every major theatrical award since opening in Los Angeles in 1992. An upcoming major motion picture based on the play will be directed by Robert Altman.

Integrating historical figures such as Roy Cohn with a potpourri of characters both gay and straight, "Angels" has played to rave reviews in New York City's Walter Kerr Theatre since 1993. In 1994, the play began its national tour.

Kushner has received numerous playwriting fellowships and awards and taught at New York University, Yale, the University of Iowa, Princeton and the Julliard School of Drama. He has a bachelor's degree from Columbia University and a master of fine arts degree from New York University.

Fifth in the Distinguished Speakers Series, Kushner's presentation is co-sponsored by the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Student Association. Tickets are free and will be available in 225 HUB. For more information, contact Carol German in the Office of Student Activities at (814) 863-3786.

**kiw**

Contact: Karen Wagner (814) 863-4512 (office) kiw1@psu.edu
Christy Rambeau (814) 865-7517 (office) cmr7@psu.edu