Supergirl cast members Melissa Benoist, Calista Flockhart, Chris Wood and other celebrities raised more than $100,000 at the exclusive one-night-only reading of Terms of Endearment. The event was presented by Berlanti Productions and Jessica Queller at the Geffen Playhouse. All proceeds from the fundraiser will benefit Stand Up To Cancer and Geffen Playhouse’s New Play Development Program.
The Terms of Endearment reading took place Monday, October 1, on the Geffen Playhouse main stage with an all-star cast that included Melissa Benoist (Supergirl, Glee), Kate Burton (Scandal), Calista Flockhart (Supergirl, Ally McBeal), Willie Garson (White Collar), Alfred Molina (The Front Runner, Spider-Man 2), Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick, Silicon Valley), Italia Ricci (Designated Survivor), Chris Wood (Supergirl, The Vampire Diaries) and Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians, Fresh Off the Boat). Notable attendees at the event include Harrison Ford, Rebel Wilson and Odette Annable. The original Terms of Endearment cast featured Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito and John Lithgow.
“We are so grateful to [Supergirl co-creator] Greg Berlanti, Jessica Queller and the Geffen Playhouse for their willingness to engage in the fight against breast cancer,” said Sherry Lansing, a co-founder and member of the Council of Founders and Advisors of Stand Up To Cancer and a member and former chair of the board of directors of the Entertainment Industry Foundation. “This wonderful reading is yet another example of how the entertainment community has embraced SU2C’s mission to accelerate research into new treatments for patients contending with this devastating disease and to turn every cancer patient into a long-term survivor.”
RELATED: Stand Up to Cancer Unites Hollywood
“At its core, the Geffen is driven by the power of the arts to illuminate the human experience,” said Geffen Playhouse Executive Director Gil Cates, Jr. “Terms of Endearment is a deeply personal, resonant story and we are proud to partner with Stand Up To Cancer to bring awareness to the very important work they do every day.”
Supporting artists is central to the Geffen Playhouse’s mission, and the New Play Development Program is a cornerstone of that support. As one branch of the Geffen’s many efforts to foster new work, The Writers’ Room playwrights group creates community between visionary Los Angeles artists, many of whom are emerging on the national theater scene. This monthly group provides the resources to help writers develop ambitious passion projects—plays and musicals that shed new light on the pressing issues of our city and our time.
RELATED: Lucy Hale Teams up with St. Jude’s
Stand Up To Cancer enables scientific breakthroughs by funding collaborative, multidisciplinary, multi-institutional scientific research teams and investigators. Thanks to the support of our dedicated partners and the entertainment community, SU2C is able to bring widespread attention to cancer research. 100% of donations received from the public support Stand Up To Cancer’s collaborative cancer research programs. In just 10 years, SU2C research has contributed to FDA approval of five new cancer therapies, including treatments for breast, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers and difficult-to-treat leukemias.
ABOUT GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE
Geffen Playhouse has been a hub of the Los Angeles theater scene since opening its doors in 1995. Noted for its intimacy and celebrated for its world-renowned mix of classic and contemporary plays, provocative new works and second productions, the not-for-profit organization continues to present a body of work that has garnered national recognition. Named in honor of entertainment mogul and philanthropist David Geffen, who made the initial donation to the theater, the company was founded by Gilbert Cates and is currently helmed by Executive Director Gil Cates, Jr., Artistic Director Matt Shakman and Board Chair Howard Tenenbaum. Proudly associated with UCLA, the Geffen welcomes an audience of more than 130,000 each year, and maintains extensive education and community engagement programs, designed to involve underserved young people and the community at large in the arts. www.geffenplayhouse.org
ABOUT STAND UP TO CANCER
STAND UP TO CANCER (SU2C) raises funds to accelerate the pace of research to get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives now. A division of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), SU2C was established in 2008 by media and entertainment leaders who utilize these communities’ resources to engage the public in supporting a new, collaborative model of cancer research, to increase awareness about cancer prevention, and to highlight progress being made in the fight against the disease. As of April 2018, more than 1,500 scientists representing more than 180 institutions are involved in the SU2C-funded research projects.
Under the direction of our Scientific Advisory Committee, led by Nobel laureate Phillip A. Sharp, PhD, staff at SU2C and the American Association for Cancer Research, our Scientific Partner, implement rigorous competitive review processes to identify the best research proposals to recommend for funding, oversee grants administration, and ensure collaboration across research programs.
Current member of the SU2C Council of Founders and Advisors (CFA) include Katie Couric, Sherry Lansing, Kathleen Lobb, Lisa Paulsen, Rusty Robertson, Sue Schwartz, Pamela Oas Williams, and Ellen Ziffren. The late Laura Ziskin and the late Noreen Fraser are also co-founders. Sung Poblete, PhD, RN, serves as SU2C’s President and CEO.
For more information on Stand Up To Cancer, visit StandUpToCancer.org.
ABOUT BERLANTI PRODUCTIONS
Berlanti Productions is a production company founded by WGA, DGA, Emmy and Golden Globe nominated writer, director, and producer, Greg Berlanti, which has produced both critically acclaimed and commercially successful titles since its inception. Series produced under the Berlanti Productions banner include The CW’s Riverdale, Arrow, The Flash, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl and Black Lightning, and NBC’s Blindspot. Upcoming projects include The CW’s All American, Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Lifetime’s YOU, DC’s Titans, and CBS’s Red Line and God Friended Me.
ABOUT JESSICA QUELLER
Jessica Queller is a TV writer, author and women’s heath advocate. She is currently an executive producer on the hit CW show Supergirl. Other TV writing credits include, Felicity, Gilmore Girls, Ed, Gossip Girl, The Carrie Diaries and Vegas. Jessica is the author of Pretty Is What Changes, an acclaimed memoir about inheriting the BRCA mutation from her mother. Jessica is a frequent media spokeswoman on issues of cancer prevention.