Lee Daniels, Andra Day, Wayne Brady Set for Bring Change to Mind Pride
Glenn Close‘s Bring Change to Mind is mounting its third annual Pride celebration at the New York’s historic Stonewall Inn.
Set for June 10, the fundraiser will honor multi-hyphenate Lee Daniels with the inaugural BC2M Pride Award and feature performances by Oscar nominated Andra Day, Emmy winner Wayne Brady and more surprise guests. The night will kick off with a private dinner where writer, director and producer Daniels will be feted for his leadership and activism in the LGBTQ space on and off the screen. Before his industry career, Daniels is credited with running a nursing agency under contract with AIDS Project Los Angeles that serviced those battling the virus. On World AIDS Day in 2016, he was honored with the Heroes in the Struggle Award from the Black AIDS Institute.
Post-dinner, the party moves on to the Stonewall Inn for the performances and other program elements. The evening will be hosted by actress Annie Starke and drag superstar Nina West. Full details and dinner location will be provided to guests upon registration. Tickets start at $1000, and more details can be found here.
The Pride party — produced by star of the stage and screen Erich Bergen and Chuck Thomas — will raise funds for Bring Change to Mind’s nationwide high school clubs, a network that spans 43 states and serves to support and empower LGBTQ+ teens and allies. The nonprofit’s mission “is to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness” by working with leading scientists to make a difference in the lives of teens and adults. The cause is personal for Close as her sister, Jessie, lives with bipolar disorder and her nephew, Calen, lives with schizoaffective disorder.
Daniels and Close recently collaborated on the upcoming psychological thriller The Deliverance, which also stars Day, Omar Epps, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Tasha Smith, Demi Singleton, Rob Morgan, Mo’Nique, and more. Daniels directed and co-wrote the script alongside Elijah Bynum and David Coggeshall.
