Amy Banks

HERSHEY, Pa. (March 8, 2005) – Hershey Area Playhouse will hold its sixth-annual Cabaret Night fund-raiser – “Take the Road to Broadway” – from 6 to 10 p.m. April 16 at the Antique Auto Museum at Hershey.

The gala supports the community theater’s annual operating budget and showcases talented singers from Broadway and our own backyard.

Featured performers will include singer and actress Amy Banks, a native of Minnesota who has called Lancaster home for the past three years. Banks is a host of Fox TV’s syndicated reality show, “Design Invasion.”

Other professional performers will include Cabaret Night favorites Jane Brockman and Tim Shew, as well as Martha Traverse, Katie Wieand, Gwendolyn Lentz and Tom Rocco. Local performers will include many talented singers, cellist Todd Rubey and pianist Roger Levin. Performers are subject to change without notice.

Tickets to the black-tie-optional event are $100 each; a portion of each is tax-deductible. Corporate tables of 10 are available for $1,250 and include a half-page program ad. For tickets and information, please call 533-8525. The museum is on Route 39, one mile from Hersheypark Drive.

The backdrop for Cabaret Night will be the museum’s main exhibit, "From Sea to Shining Sea," which features more than 85 antique cars, trucks, cycles and buses. It takes visitors on a cross-country journey that begins in New York and ends in San Francisco.

For Cabaret Night, however, the final destination is back in New York, specifically Broadway.

Cabaret Night also features a silent auction, live auction and themed gourmet food stations on each of the museum’s three levels. The live auction and musical gala will take place on the museum’s main level at 8:30 p.m. WITF-FM’s Ellen Hughes will be the event’s emcee.

Hershey Area Playhouse is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to providing residents of the community with an opportunity to participate in the creation and production of a theatrical experience. Since its inception in 1999, HAP has staged 18 productions at numerous venues in the Hershey area.

For more information, visit www.hersheyareaplayhouse.com.

###