Richie duPont Award Benefit
Berkshire Theatre Festival Hosts Event May 22
By: Ariel Petrova - May 12, 2010
What began in 2006 as a memorial to Richie duPont, a promising young actor lost in his prime, will be a celebration of his life at a party to raise funds for awards for budding local thespians to attend Berkshire Theatre Festival’s summer and school vacation acting camps.
The Fifth Annual Richie duPont Award Benefit will take place at 8 pm Saturday, May 22, at Firefly on Church Street in Lenox.
This year’s event will feature the return of the popular Tony Lee Thomas Band for listening and dancing. Tickets are $20, for a standard admission, or $25 to be included in a drawing for a special prize. Both tickets include one free drink. A silent auction of donated treasures, goods and services will highlight the evening, with refreshments provided by Laura Shack, Firefly’s owner.
Richie duPont grew up in Lenox and, as a young local actor appeared on the BTF Main Stage as well as other local theatres. He was looking forward to a stage and screen career when he died at the age of 24 in a house fire in Pittsfield. At BTF he had a role in Crucifer of Blood and appeared as a horse in Equus in 2005. At the time of his death, Richie had planned to return to Hollywood, where he had been working as a double for a movie star.
Among those who mourned his death was Travis Daly, a young and upcoming director of BTF PLAYS!, who, along with Kate Maguire, BTF’s Artistic Director, and other friends joined in organizing the first Richie duPont Benefit Event.
“The idea occurred when we were talking about different ideas for establishing a fund,” Daly said, “and we decided to create this one for Richie. I met Richie when he was doing Equus. He was a super, super, great guy. He loved the theater. He loved the community a lot. ”
Now, the Richie duPont Award Fund has been established to help inspire other young people to pursue careers in the theater. After a modest beginning, the event has grown each year, reaching $5,000 in proceeds last year. The fund gives awards to help offset the costs of the BTF PLAYS! vacation camps, which are “pitched” in the Unicorn Theatre throughout the summer and during the April school vacation. The number of awards is expected to increase this year as more members of the community are adding donations and prizes.
“This fundraiser has proven to be a wonderful way to honor the life of Richie duPont and to aid local students who might not otherwise be able to attend our camps,” said Allison Rachele Bayles, BTF’s Administrative Director of Education. “
The list of contributions for the silent auction includes: Original sheet music of “Sweet Baby James” autographed by James Taylor, Beacon Cinema tickets, a $100 gift certificate for Jae’s Spice restaurant, a Red Lion Inn stay, a ball autographed by Red Sox pitcher John Lackey, a Kripalu relaxation day, Norman Rockwell Museum passes, Tanglewood tickets, Arcadian Shop kayak rental, Tickets to Everyday Rapture at The Roundabout Theatre, NYC, Lenox Fitness Center Membership, Dinner for two at The Village Inn, and items from Shooz, Zabians, Barrington Coffee Roasters, Peace, Love and Chocolate, Route 7 Grill, Arizona Pizza, Essentials Salon, and Rumpy’s Tavern, and many others.
Tickets for the Richie duPont fundraiser at Firefly on Church Street are available online by visiting www.berkshiretheatre.org or by contacting BTF’s Development Office at (413) 298-5536 ext. 13. For more information on applying for a Richie duPont award for vacation camp, contact the Education Department at (413) 298-5536 ext. 19.
Tickets
Contact the BTF Box Office at 413-298-5576 ext. 33 or visit www.berkshiretheatre.org for more information.