Please join us to pay tribute to Carole Haas Gravagno, recipient of the 2019 Beyond Celiac Samuel Gee Award, and celebrate her achievements with the Philadelphia debut of acclaimed operatic tenor Arturo Chacón-Cruz.
Highlights of this special evening will include a completely gluten-free cocktail reception and seated dinner by Garces Events in the Kimmel Center’s Hamilton Garden followed by a solo concert by Arturo in the Kimmel’s Perelman Theater.
Carole, a Philadelphia philanthropist and champion of the arts, will be recognized for her support of the important work Beyond Celiac has underway to accelerate new treatments and a cure for celiac disease.
Funds raised through the gala will benefit our efforts to advance research for celiac disease, including the funding of grants to scientists focused on unlocking the secrets of this serious genetic autoimmune disorder.
Carole Haas Gravagno is a lifelong supporter and enthusiast of education, the arts and parenting education. She believes deeply in providing the most vulnerable among us with the kind of nurturing that can transform lives, communities and society. Over the years, Carole has generously given her time, expertise and resources to dozens of educational, arts and cultural organizations. She also has been an ardent champion of Beyond Celiac initiatives to advance critically needed research for celiac disease and related disorders. She currently serves on the board of Intercultural Journeys, Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Philadelphia Zoo, Play on, Philly! (an innovative education and social initiative that provides opportunities for personal development to children through the study of music) and the Stoneleigh Foundation (which supports fellows exploring innovative, collaborative, cross-system reform to the child welfare and juvenile justice systems to provide new solutions to improving child well-being). The common thread that unites all of her interests is finding meaningful ways of bringing people together. Carole holds a Bachelors of Arts from Lenoir-Rhyne College and a Masters in Education from Temple University.
A native of Sonora, Mexico, Chacón-Cruz has performed over 50 roles – such as Cavaradossi inTosca – in theaters across the globe from La Scala in Milan to Carnegie Hall in NYC, among many others. An acclaimed performer, Chacón-Cruz has a wide repertoire and has won a number of international honors and awards, including the Antonio Davalos Award in Mexico’s Carlo Morelli’s competition, first place and the Audience Choice Award at the 2003 Eleanor McCollum Competition in Houston Grand Opera, winner of Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in the New England Region, and the 2005 Operalia . He was also the recipient of the Ramón Vargas Opera Grant given by Vargas and Pro Ópera in Mexico.
Chacón-Cruz’s first ever Mariachi recording “de México para el Mundo” was released In December 2018, distributed by Sony and available on all digital platforms. He recently performed in May in the Los Angeles Opera production of El Gato Montés.
Learn more about Arturo by following him on Twitter and Facebook and his website, and go see him perform.
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