Dr Vartan Gregorian Honored with Piscator Award

NEW YORK — Dr Vartan Gregorian, President of Carnegie Corporation, is awarded the Honorary Erwin Piscator Award 2014 in memory of Maria Ley Piscator. This honor recognizes Dr. Gregorian as an outstanding supporter of the performing arts and “for his extraordinary contributions to education, culture and arts in the United States, from his time at the University of Pennsylvania, to his legendary tenure at the helm of New York Public Library, his presidency at Brown University, and currently his position as President of Carnegie Corporation of New York.” The second honoree was Broadway director and producer Harold (Hal) Prince who received the 27th Annual Piscator Award for his outstanding contributions to American theater and musical theater over the past six decades.

The award ceremony held on March 25, 2014 at the Lotos Club in Manhattan, was presented by the performing arts nonprofit, “Elysium—Between Two Continents.” The organization’s goal is to foster “artistic and academic dialogue, creative and educational exchange, and mutual friendship between the USA and Europe, especially the German-speaking countries, through theatre plays, operas, concerts, lectures, and exhibitions.”

The award was created by the Elyseum’s founder and artistic director, Gregorij H. von Leïtis. In 1985, he instituted the award to honor Piscator’s artistic and humanitarian legacy and his lasting influence on theatre on both sides of the Atlantic. In particular, the German theater director and producer’s development of “political theater, a forum for the individual’s ability to effect change.”