Producer and director Ava DuVernay will be honored with the Poitier-Belafonte Award for Cultural Activism at Black Theatre Coalition's inaugural Building the Change gala. The event is set for February 12 at New York City's Rainbow Room.

Honorees also include actor and television personality La La Anthony, who will receive the Lynn Nottage Bold Beacon Award, and the National Black Theatre, which will receive the Chadwick Boseman Changemaker Award. 

Festivities will begin with a cocktail hour at 6:00 PM, followed by a 7:00 PM dinner and tribute. The evening will include performances by Grammy winner BeBe Winans, Tony and Grammy winner Jennifer Holliday, and Tony winner Alex Newell.

BTC also announced its Honorary Gala Host Committee, which includes Alicia Keys, André De Shields, Naturi Naughton, Hugh Jackman, Alex Newell, Irene Gandy, Temah Higgins, Yvonne Durant, and Cordey Lash.

The Black Theatre Coalition was founded by T. Oliver Reid, Warren Adams, and Reginald "Reggie" Van Lee in 2019. The coalition works to "remove the 'illusion of inclusion' in the American Theatre by building a sustainable ethical roadmap that will increase employment opportunities for Black theatre professionals."

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