The Creative Coalition’s #RightToBearArts Brings Blue and Red Together

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Celebrity Delegation and Congressional Committee Celebrate #RightToBearArts Gala and Fashion Show with Actors Tim Daly, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Harry Hamlin, Steve Howey and more

Co-Hosted by The Creative Coalition and Optune, this star-studded, bipartisan evening shined an important spotlight on inclusivity within the arts

MEDIA:
#RightToBearArts Gala – Getty Photo Selects
#RightToBearArts Gala- EPK (red carpet interviews with talent, gala speeches, fashion show, and more)

May 10, 2019 (Washington, D.C.) – Last night at The Creative Coalition and Optune #RightToBearArts gala, the transcendent and healing power of the arts brought together Hollywood stars and Members of Congress from across the aisle at the first-of-its-kind fashion show, featuring a celebrity delegation walking everyday artists living with glioblastoma.

The annual benefit featured a star-studded celebrity delegation, including actors Tim Daly (Madam Secretary, The Creative Coalition President), Wendi McLendon-Covey (The Goldbergs), Harry Hamlin (Mad Men), Ethan Cutkosky (Shameless), Steve Howey (Shameless), Caterina Scorsone (Grey’s Anatomy), Anthony Carrigan (Barry), Anthony Rapp (Star Trek: Discovery), CCH Pounder (NCIS: New Orleans), Dean Norris (Breaking Bad, The Act), and Shiri Appleby (unREAL). Other notable guests at the #RightToBearArts gala included Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Representative Dan Kildee (D-MI), Representative Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Representative David Cicilline (D-RI), Senator Paul Strauss (D-DC), Robin Bronk (CEO, The Creative Coalition) and Pritesh Shah (Chief Commercial Officer, Novocure).

The celebrity delegates were joined by Optune patient ambassadors – artists from across the country living with glioblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer, who are wearing Optune, a portable head device that is treating their cancer. To kick off the gala, held during National Brain Cancer Awareness Month, the celebrity delegation walked alongside Optune Ambassadors in a powerful fashion show that featured designers including Paisley&Gray, Moral Code, Tai Jewelry and Oka B.

“Art is not a red issue or a blue issue – it’s a human issue,” Robin Bronk, CEO of The Creative Coalition, told USA TODAY. “And tonight’s event underscores how art enhances everyone across our communities, which is why it is so important that funding for arts programs is maintained at a federal level. We are grateful for our celebrity delegates and Optune patient ambassadors who truly exemplify the healing power of the arts and have joined us to advocate for its continued funding.”

“We recognize that the arts have the power to impact and influence our lives for the better,” said Pritesh Shah, Novocure’s Chief Commercial Officer. “And that’s what we too hope to bring to our patients, a feeling of empowerment in the face of this difficult disease.”

The #RightToBearArts gala and fashion show followed a day on Capitol Hill where The Creative Coalition celebrity delegation called on national lawmakers to continue and expand critically needed federal funding for the National Endowment for the Arts.

“The arts empower communities and impact all of us. Without the funding needed to sustain arts programs in our schools and communities, we risk losing the critical fabric of our culture,” said Tim Daly, Actor and President of The Creative Coalition. “We are here to ensure that the National Endowment of the Arts remains funded. Every year, some legislators decide to zero it out of the budget, and every year we come to D.C. to fight to save it. We stand together as advocates urging our lawmakers to keep the arts alive.”

The celebrity delegation met with Speaker Pelosi (D-12-CA), Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Representative Chellie Pingree (D-1-ME), Representative Sean Duffy (R-7-WI), Representative Bill Huizenga (R-2-MI), Representative Adam Kinzinger (R-16-IL), Representative Hakeem Jeffries (D-8-NY), Representative Fred Upton (R-6-MI), and Representative Ron Estes (R-4-KS). The delegation also met with White House official Timothy A. Pataki, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Public Liaison.

To learn more and support The Creative Coalition, please visit https://thecreativecoalition.org

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CONGRESSIONAL CO-HOST COMMITTEE includes Senator Ben Cardin; Senator Dianne Feinstein; Senator Ed Markey; Senator Jeff Merkley; Senator Doug Jones; Senator Paul Strauss; Senator Tom Udall; Senator Chris Van Hollen; Senator Sheldon Whitehouse; Representative Alma Adams; Representative Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen; Representative Mark Amodei; Representative Karen Bass; Representative Jack Bergman; Representative Don Beyer; Representative Earl Blumenauer; Representative Suzanne Bonamici; Representative Julia Brownley; Representative Andre Carson; Representative Buddy Carter; Representative Yvette Clarke; Representative Lacy Clay; Representative Tom Cole; Representative Gerry Connolly; Representative J. Luis Correa; Representative Charlie Crist; Representative Rodney Davis; Representative Madeleine Dean; Representative Diana DeGette; Representative Rosa DeLauro; Representative Ted Deutch; Representative Debbie Dingell; Representative Lloyd Doggett; Representative Sean Duffy; Representative Eliot Engel; Representative Ron Estes; Representative Bill Foster; Representative Virginia Foxx; Representative Lois Frankel; Representative Jimmy Gomez; Representative Jenniffer González Colón; Representative Lance Gooden; Representative Raul Grijalva; Representative Alcee Hastings; Representative Brian Higgins; Representative Katie Hill; Representative Jim Himes; Representative George Holding; Representative Jared Huffman; Representative Pramila Jayapal; Representative Ro Khanna; Representative Joseph P. Kennedy, III; Representative Dan Kildee; Representative Derek Kilmer; Representative Darin LaHood; Representative Barbara Lee; Representative Ted Lieu; Representative Zoe Lofgren; Representative Alan Lowenthal; Representative Carolyn B. Maloney; Representative Donald McEachin; Representative James P. McGovern; Representative Jerry McNerney; Representative Mark Meadows; Representative Seth Moulton; Representative Ralph Norman; Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton; Representative Chellie Pingree; Representative Mike Quigley; Representative Jamie Raskin; Representative Harley Rouda; Representative C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger; Representative Bobby Rush; Representative Jan Schakowsky; Representative John Shimkus; Representative Mike Simpson; Representative Albio Sires; Representative Jackie Speier; Representative Pete Stauber; Representative Bryan Steil; Representative Dina Titus; Representative Paul Tonko; Representative Fred Upton; Representative Marc Veasey; Representative Jackie Walorski; Representative Lee Zeldin.

THE CREATIVE COALITION is the premier nonprofit, 501(c)(3) nonpartisan charity of the entertainment industry dedicated to using the power and platform of the arts and entertainment communities in award-winning public service and advocacy campaigns. Founded in 1989 by prominent members of the creative community, The Creative Coalition is dedicated to educating, mobilizing, and activating its members on issues of public importance. Actor Tim Daly serves as the organization’s president. www.TheCreativeCoalition.org

NOVOCURE is a global oncology company developing a proprietary platform technology called Tumor Treating Fields, the use of electric fields tuned to specific frequencies to disrupt solid tumor cancer cell division. Novocure’s commercialized product, Optune, is approved for the treatment of adult patients with glioblastoma. Novocure has ongoing or completed clinical trials investigating Tumor Treating Fields in multiple solid tumor types.

The evening was cohosted by USA TODAY. Founded in 1982, USA TODAY reflects the pulse of the nation, serving as host of the American conversation by delivering high-quality, engaging content through unique visual storytelling across all platforms. A media innovator, USA TODAY sites reach nearly 92 million unique visitors each month across digital platforms, with more than 24 million downloads of our award-winning app. USA TODAY also remains the nation’s number one newspaper and is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).