110 Stories Commemorates the 10th Anniversary of 9/11

It's been 10 years since the Unites States of America was attacked and to commemorate the Tenth Anniversary of 9/11, a highly distinguished cast of film, TV & stage actors will gather for a benefit stage reading of Sarah Tuft's "110 Stories" on September 8th & 9th at The Skirball Center for the Performing Arts, NYU in Manhattan.

According to 110 Stories' Playwright/Creative Producer Sarah Tuft, "It's the human side of history, without politics & agenda, giving voice to those who experienced 9.11 directly." A love letter to New York City, the play was most recently performed by an esteemed cast at The Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles in 2010 with proceeds going to LA Red Cross for Haiti relief.

The full cast includes the most prestigious and award-nominated cast ever to perform on a New York stage: 26 EMMYS * 30 GOLDEN GLOBES * 19 SAG AWARDS * 9 TONYS * 5 OSCARS. The cast, directed by Tony winner Gregory Mosher, includes Stephen Baldwin, Mario Cantone, Billy Crudup, Noah Emmerich, Jessica Hecht, Samuel L. Jackson, Melissa Leo, Ralph Macchio, Aasif Mandvi, Cynthia Nixon, Vincent Piazza, Jeremy Piven, Andre Royo, Stelio Savante, Pablo Schreiber, Annabella Sciorra, Tony Shalhoub, Jamie Lynn Sigler, Tamara Tunie, Kathleen Turner, Ben Vereen, Merritt Wever and Frank Whaley.

Net proceeds from this year's event will go to the New York Says Thank You Foundation. Started in 2003 at the suggestion of a 5-year-old boy, The New York Says Thank You Foundation has grown into one of the Nation's leading organizations to transform the 9/11 Anniversary into a positive, hands-on platform for national volunteer service. Each year on the 9/11 Anniversary, The New York Says Thank You Foundation sends hundreds of volunteers from New York along with disaster survivors from around the country to help rebuild communities around the United States recovering from disaster. It's the group's way of saying "Thank You" for all the love and support Americans from across the country extended to New Yorkers in the days, weeks, and months following September 11.

Stelio Savante
Stelio Savante

I had to the privilege to interview actor Stelio Savante, who has performed since 2010 the reprised role of Bolivar Arellano in 110 Stories. He produced the Los Angeles debut of 110 Stories at The Geffen Playhouse in 2010 performing opposite Ed Asner, John Hawkes, Diane Venora, & Sharon Lawrence. Since 2005, he has been seen in recurring roles on Ugly Betty & My Own Worst Enemy & guest star leading roles on JJ Abrams' Undercovers, Without A Trace, Law & Order SVU, NCIS, Law & Order Criminal Intent, Solly's Wisdom, Terminal Kill & Suite Life On Deck.Stelio received his first SAG award nomination for his recurring role in Ugly Betty.

Q: What is your involvement and why did you want to do this?

SAVANTE: I am one of the ensemble leads in the play and I'm a producer of the play. My involvement with the production has been as a cast member since it's original performance back in 2001. We've performed it annually for charity and last year I also produced it at The Geffen Playhouse in LA - performing with Ed Asner, John Hawkes, Katharine McPhee, etc. And this year I'm producing and performing again.


Q: What the audience can expect.

SAVANTE: The audience is going to be shown several first hand non political accounts of regular citizens who survived and overcame 9/11 -- the play is written directly from their recorded interviews and is essentially a love letter to New York -- and the audience can also expect some incredible performances from my fellow cast which includes Samuel L Jackson, Jeremy Piven, Melissa Leo, Cynthia Nixon, Billy Crudup, Kathleen Turner - and of course myself and others.

Q: Did you have anyone special pass away on 9/11?

SAVANTE: Not close to me no. But NY was my home for 15 years and I was only a few blocks from WTC when we got hit.

Q: Tell us some more background on this event and the meaning behind it.

SAVANTE: 110 Stories has a ten-year history of successful performances and donations to charity. In 2004 we performed it at The Public Theater -- with a cast that included James Gandolfini, Edie Falco and Susan Sarandon and we made a nice contribution to the Dennis Leary Fire Fighter's Foundation. Last year we performed at The Geffen Playhouse in LA with proceeds going to the Haiti tragedy through the Red Cross. The play was written by Sarah Tuft 'to preserve, not just history, but also a window into who we really are as revealed by our behavior under extreme circumstances.' She weaves first-person accounts from 9/11 with her experiences as a volunteer in the aftermath of the attack.


There are still tickets available! The Performances are: September 8 @ 8p and September 9 @ 8p

Advance Tickets:
http://110storiesplay.even​tbrite.com/