Moore And Baldwin Star In A Virtual Reading Of 'Same Time, Next Year' To Benefit Guild Hall

Academy and Emmy Award winner Julianne Moore and Academy nominated and Emmy, SAG and Golden Globe award winner Alec Baldwin will headline a virtual staged reading with Guild Hall on Sunday, July 12, at 7:30 p.m.

The pair will present one of the most popular romantic comedies of our time, Bernard Slade’s “Same Time, Next Year,” in a revival directed by actor, director and producer Bob Balaban, who spearheaded this charity event.

“It’s a joy to watch these two sublime actors make theater-magic together,” said Balaban.

Tickets for this benefit reading are $100 and support Guild Hall, which has been closed since March 13 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During this period, Guild Hall continued to offer online theater, visual arts and educational programming.

“We couldn’t be more grateful to Bob Balaban, Alec Baldwin and Julianne Moore who have joined forces to raise funds for Guild Hall,” said Andrea Grover, Guild Hall’s executive director. “These three artists continue a storied tradition of celebrated actors, playwrights and artists coming together ‘to put on a show’ at Guild Hall. We hope as many people as possible join us for this very special evening—seating is limitless in the virtual realm.”

“Same Time, Next Year,” which debuted in 1975, ran for four years on Broadway, winning a Tony Award for lead actress Ellen Burstyn. It remains one of the world’s most widely produced plays. The plot follows a love affair between two married people who rendezvous once a year to rekindle what initially was a one-night stand. Twenty-five years of manners and morals are hilariously and touchingly played out by the lovers.

Julianne Moore is an Academy Award and Emmy winning actor, and the first American woman to be awarded top acting prizes at the Cannes, Berlin, and Venice film festivals. She is also is a New York Times bestselling author for her children’s book series Freckleface Strawberry. She is on the Advisory Council of The Children’s Health Fund, a supporter of the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, and in 2015, became founding chair of the Everytown for Gun Safety Creative Council, a creative community established to help amplify the movement to end gun violence in America. Moore recently starred in “The Woman in the Window” (2020), “The Glorias” (2020), the Apple series “Lisey’s Story” (2020) and “Mothertrucker” (2021).

Since 1980, Alec Baldwin has appeared in numerous productions on stage, in films and on television. He received a Tony nomination for “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1992), an Oscar nomination for “The Cooler” (2004) and has won three Emmy awards, three Golden Globes and seven consecutive Screen Actors Guild Awards as Best Actor in a Comedy Series for his role on NBC-TV’s “30 Rock.” His films include “The Hunt for Red October,” “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “Malice,” “The Edge,” “It’s Complicated,” “Blue Jasmine,” “Still Alice,” “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation” and “The Boss Baby” among many others.

Baldwin serves on numerous boards related to the arts, the environment and progressive politics including the Hamptons International Film Festival and the New York Philharmonic. He is also the radio announcer for the New York Philharmonic. He has authored three books: “A Promise to Ourselves,” his memoir entitled “Nevertheless,” and, with Kurt Andersen, the Donald Trump parody “You Can’t Spell America Without Me.” He is the host of a podcast, “Here’s the Thing,” for WNYC.

Balaban’s directing credits include the long running off-Broadway play “The Exonerated” (Drama Desk award, Outer Critic’s Circle award), “The Blue Deep” at Williamstown, and the world premiere of Lawrence Wright’s play “Cleo” at Houston’s Alley Theater. He directed Susan Sarandon and Ralph Fiennes in HBO’s “Bernard and Doris” (Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG nominations,) Lifetime’s “Georgia O’Keefe” with Joan Allen and Jeremy Irons (Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG nominations,) and created, produced, and co-starred in Robert Altman’s “Gosford Park” (Academy Award, Bafta Award, SAG Award, Golden Globe Award).

As an actor, Balaban has appeared in over 100 movies including “Midnight Cowboy,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Absence of Malice,” “Waiting for Guffman,” “Moonrise Kingdom,” “Monuments Men,” and Wes Anderson’s soon to be released “French Dispatch.”

This staged reading is part of Guild Hall’s new vision for its 2020 Summer Season which will focus on restarting the local creative economy through collaborations with regional artists, musicians, and performers, in both online and offline presentations. Indoor and outdoor spaces are being redesigned to create small, intimate performance spaces where patrons can join a range of visual and performing arts in health and safety compliant environments.

Guild Hall Museum reopens its doors safely and warmly to the public on Friday, June 26, with its Artist Members Exhibition. For more info, visit guildhall.org. For tickets to “Same Time, Next Year,” visit: https://www.guildhall.org/events/alec-baldwin-and-julianne-moore-in-same-time-next-year-by-bernard-slade/.