Anna Deavere Smith Headlines March 4 Celebration of Women for the World

Smith students, faculty and staff are invited to celebrate the successful culmination of Smith’s Women for the World campaign Saturday, March 4, with a day of open houses, a festive all-college reception, and a special performance by actress, playwright and social commentator Anna Deavere Smith.

Free tickets are required for “You Go, Girl! A Performance by Anna Deavere Smith in Celebration of Women for the World” at 4 p.m. Saturday, March 4, in Sweeney Concert Hall.

Smith students, faculty and staff can pick up tickets in Campus Center 106 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. beginning Wednesday, Feb. 22. Distribution will be one ticket per person. A Smith College I.D. is required.

In case of a full house, Anna Deavere Smith’s performance will be streamed to overflow seating in Weinstein Auditorium.

President Kathleen McCartney said she is thrilled that Anna Deavere Smith will be part of celebrating Women for the World—the most ambitious fundraising campaign in the college’s history.

“Our campaign focused on making our world more just and inclusive through education,” McCartney said. “I can think of no one better to help us celebrate the campaign’s success than the remarkable Anna Deavere Smith, an artist whose documentary theater style often forefronts issues of social justice, equity and opportunity.”

Smith’s Women for the World campaign raised a total of $486 million for the college’s key priorities. It is the largest and most successful campaign ever undertaken by a women’s college.

In addition to Anna Deavere Smith’s performance, the March 4 celebration will feature open houses from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at signature Smith leadership centers and programs supported by Women for the World. Events will be held at 20 different locations across campus and will include free admission to the Smith College Museum of Art, a showcase in the new Jill Ker Conway Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center, student presentations and more.

A complete schedule of open house programs will be available in the Campus Center starting at 12:30 p.m. on March 4.

The daylong festivities will conclude with a reception for students, faculty and staff from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the atrium of Ford Hall. The reception will feature refreshments, special digital media displays about campaign donors and a photo booth for sharing Smith pride.

About Anna Deavere Smith

Anna Deavere Smith has performed in film, television and on stage. She currently plays Attorney General Mary Campbell on “Madam Secretary” and appears as Alicia on “Blackish.” She played Mrs. Akalitis on “Nurse Jackie,” Nancy McNally, the national security advisor, on “The West Wing” and was featured in the television series “Presidio Med.” Smith has also been featured in several films, including Rachel Getting Married, The American President, The Human Stain, Daveand Rent.

Smith has received numerous awards for her work as a writer and humanist, including the prestigious 2013 Gish Prize for achievement in the arts, the 2012 National Humanities Medal presented to her by President Barack Obama, and the 1996 MacArthur Foundation “genius” award. In 2015, Smith was named the Jefferson Lecturer, the federal government’s highest honor in the humanities.

About Women for the World

Women for the World: The Campaign for Smith is the largest fundraising campaign by a women’s college. Launched publicly in 2012, the campaign’s priorities included scholarship aid, reimagining and enriching the liberal arts, and The Smith Fund, which supports Smith’s operating expenses and annual scholarship aid to students.

On December 31, 2016, President McCartney announced the successful culmination of Women for the World, which surpassed its $450 million goal—including raising close to $130 million for financial aid. More than 37,000 donors contributed to the multi-year, international effort to provide women with new educational opportunities and prepare a new generation of global women leaders.