Charles Busch to Join Rufus Wainwright at Ali Forney Center Benefit

Charles Busch will serve as host of A Place at the Table, a benefit for the Ali Forney Center (AFC), to be held at the Chelsea Art Museum on October 5 at 7 pm. He joins the previously announced Grammy nominee Rufus Wainwright, who will give a special solo performance at the event.

The evening will also feature a cocktail reception with food tastings from up-and-coming NYC chefs Seth Johnson and Andrew D’Ambrosi of the Norwood Club, sushi chef Kevin Chan of Bamboo 52 and current TopChef contestant Ash Fulk of Trestle on Tenth, as well as live and silent auctions. AFC was started in June 2002 in response to the lack of safe shelter for LGBT youth in New York City, and has since become the nation’s largest and most comprehensive organization dedicated to homeless LGBT youth.

Busch is the author and star of such plays as The Lady in Question, Red Scare on Sunset, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, and his latest, The Third Story. His Broadway play The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife won the Outer Circle Critics’ John Gassner Award, and received a Tony nomination for Best Play. He is also the recipient of a 2003 special Drama Desk Award for career achievement.

Wainwright’s albums include Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall (based on his 2006 concert of the songs of Judy Garland), Want One, Release the Stars, Poses, and Rufus Wainwright. He can also be heard on the film soundtracks to Shrek and The History Boys.

Tickets start at $150. For more information, visit www.aliforneycenter.org.