Press release:
On September 12, from 7 PM, RCI New York is inviting you to join two major movie and performing arts personalities: Peter Schneider and Cătălin Ionescu-Arbore, in a dialogue about producing shows for the youngest audiences.
Peter Schneider will talk about his experience as President of Animation and Chairman of the Studio for the Walt Disney Company for 17 years.
The evening will continue with a retrospective of the Romanian animation cinema, from Ion-Popescu-Gopo to Anca Damian’s ”Crulic”. The movie won 25 international awards and was invited to screen at 130 festivals, around the world.
Peter Schneider and Cătălin Ionescu-Arbore will present the results of their theater collaboration – ”Hot l Baltimore” by Lanford Wilson, a play to be produced by Craiova National Theater (Romania). RCI New York will support touring the production in the U.S.
Peter Schneider (Producer / Director), has enjoyed an extensive and multifaceted movie and theatrical career. His directing credits include the current West End Production of ”Sister Act”, The Musical, ”The Breakup Note Book”, Marc Blitzstein opera, ”Regina”, Glen Roven’s ”Normans Ark”, a revival of ”Grand Hotel”, the Musical, a Live action / Animation short staring Julie Andrews celebrating the 40th anniversary of ”Mary Poppins”, as well as projects at the WPA Theatre, Playwrights Horizon and Circle Rep. He produced the documentary ”Waking Sleeping Beauty”, with Don Hahn, about Disney Animation from 1984 – 1994. His Broadway producing credits include the multi-awarding winning ”The Lion King”, for which he won a Tony Award, and Elton John and Tim Rice’s ”Aida”. He is one of the producers of the NY hit, ”Marvelous Wonderettes” and the sequel, ”Life Could be a Dream”. As President of Animation and Chairman of the Studio for the Walt Disney Company for 17 years, he was responsible for creating and distributing over 50 movies including ”The Lion King”, ”Beauty and the Beast”, (Golden Globe Award Winner), ”Little Mermaid”, ”Toy Story”, ”Roger Rabbit”, ”Remember the Titians” and ”Princess Diaries”. He was the Associate Director of the ”1984 LA Olympic Arts Festival”, is a world champion bridge player, having won the Transnational Open Teams in Estroil Portugal, and has an honorary doctorate from Purdue University.
Cătălin Ionescu-Arbore has studied architecture and he specialized in stage and costume design. Former manager of Bucharest National Opera (Romania) between 2006-2013, his experience spans over 30 years in stage and costume design with accomplishments in lighting design, fashion, television and musicals. He designed many national and international opera and theater productions. Cătălin Ionescu-Arbore is a member of the Romanian Architects Association, the Romanian Fine Arts Association, and of the Romanian Association of Theater Artists (UNITER). He is the winner of 1991 Best Opera Production Award, with Verdi’s ”Don Carlo” at Bucharest National Opera, and 1999 Best Opera Production Award for Boito’s ”Mephistopheles”, a production of Iasi Romanian National Opera.
Lanford Wilson was an American playwright who helped to advance the Off-Off-Broadway theater movement, producing his earliest plays in New York at the Caffe Cino in 1964. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1980 and was elected in 2001 to the Theater Hall of Fame. In 2004, Wilson was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters and received the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award as a Master American Dramatist. He was nominated for three Tony Awards and has won a Drama Desk Award and an Obie Award.
