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A Starry Night for the Harlem Stage Inaugural Gala Celebration of Dr. Indira Etwaroo as the Performing Arts Organization’s New CEO & Artistic Director

Posted May 20, 2025

A Starry Night for the Harlem Stage Inaugural Gala Celebration of Dr. Indira Etwaroo as the Performing Arts Organization’s New CEO & Artistic Director

Angela Bassett, Courtney B. Vance, Claire Danes, Hugh Dancy, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Harry Lennix, Tamara Tunie, Calvin Royal III, Daniel Bernard Roumain, Glenn Davis, and More Turn Out for the Celebration Honoring Breakers of the Glass Ceiling

n incomparable city view set the stage for Harlem Stage’s 2025 Gala whose theme was “Watch Your Step…There’s Glass All Over the Floor,” which honored ‘breakers of the glass ceiling.’ Harlem Stage is a dynamic hub of artistic experimentation and empowers performing artists of the Global Majority at every phase to ignite artistic freedom.

On Monday evening, the world’s highest private residential club, 10 Cubed NYC, located on the 100th floor of 217 W 57th Street, welcomed over 150 guests to Harlem Stage’s celebration of the Inaugural Season of new CEO & Artistic Director, Dr. Indira Etwaroo, and to raise funds for the 42-year-old esteemed organization.

The event drew philanthropists and renowned artists, including Harlem Stage board members Claire Danes, Hugh Dancy, and Tamara Tunie, as well as Angela Bassett, Courtney B. Vance, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Karine Jean-Pierre, Harry Lennix, Russell Hornsby, Nona Hendryx, and Hollis King.

The evening began with an intimate three-course dinner for 50 guests with cuisine selections, such as tuna tartare and oxtail gyoza, wagyu strip loin and seafood stuffed branzino, along with a peach cobbler reconstructed and a 72% chocolate and sorrel mousse.

Following the dinner, guests were welcomed to the Great Room where over 100 more supporters, friends, and artists gathered for the gala program, while enjoying gourmet food stations and passed hors d’oeuvres. The cuisine for the entire evening was curated by notable Executive Chef Nduvo Salaam of 10 Cubed NYC.

The program honored philanthropic executive Monique Hanson; Apple executive Lisa Jackson; Bennington College President Laura Walker; and marketing and community outreach executive Donna Walker-Kuhne. Each honoree was presented an amber-hued

crystal infinity figure, accompanied by a musical selection performed by renowned violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain and narrated by actress Lisa Arrindell.

The evening, which also included an auction led by comedian Chuck Nice with bid items such as box seats at a New York Knicks game, a luxury suite at the US Open, a private tour of the Whitney Museum, and dinner for four at 10 Cubed NYC, was memorable and lucrative. By night’s end, Harlem Stage raised over $825,000 for the organization, exceeding its goal of $725,000, with a 1:1 match for the dollars raised in the room made possible by The Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund. The evening concluded with an excerpt from “Memory” performed by actress and vocalist Tayler Harris accompanied by pianist Maritri Garrett.