New York City - On October 6, Michele and Lawrence Herbert hosted a pre-gala kickoff cocktail reception for the upcoming Rolex presents Career Transition For Dancers' 25th Anniversary Silver Jubilee - A Star-Studded Retrospective hosted by five time Tony Award winner and legendary Broadway musical star Angela Lansbury on November 8, at New York City Center followed by an Anniversary Supper with the Stars at the Grand Ballroom at the Hilton New York.

Michele Herbert, Alexander Dube, Anka Palitz

Michele, the consummate hostess along with Career Transition For Dancer (CTFD) Executive Director Alexander Dubé greeted each and every guest upon arrival and ushered them into The Herbert's elegant drawing room for champagne, hors d'oeuvres and a chance to hear all the fascinating details about the upcoming Jubilee fundraiser. The atmosphere was filled with family warmth and a shared devotion to helping CTFD fulfill its mission to help dancers train for and transition to a new career when dance is no longer an option.

When all the guests had arrived Michele - who is one of the 25th Anniversary Chairs along with her dear friends Anka Palitz, Nicole Sexton and Allen Brill - took center stage in front of the massive marble fireplace to officially thank the assembled crowd for their support but also to introduce the key Committee Chairs, Co-Chairs and the Artistic team that year after year makes this gala wonderful.

Gala Chairs are Victor Elmaleh, Michele Riggi, James D. Rigler and Susan Fawcett Sosin. The Dinner Chair is Janice Becker; Auction Chairs are Ann Van Ness and Heléne Alexopoulos Warrick; West Coast Chair is Roberta Silbert and the Journal Chair is Craig Dix. Vice Chairs are Gayle Conran, Alexander J. Dubé, Mercedes Ellington, Niko Elmaleh, Christina Rose and Irene Shen. Ann Marie DeAngelo is producer and director. Honorary Chairs are Cynthia Gregory, Bebe Neuwirth, Sono Osato, Ann Reinking, Chita Rivera, Lisa Niemi Swayze and Tommy Tune.

Mrs. Hebert then introduced fellow chair Nicole Sexton, who thanked all the sponsors saying "I am thrilled to be a Jubilee Chair this year. We are blessed with the past underwriting of The Samuel I. Newhouse Foundation, Conde Nast Publications, and the extraordinary Newhouse Family. Amy Bermant Adler, who serves on the Leadership Committee - a special thank you to you and your family, and a very special thank you to our Jubilee Sponsors The Samuel I. Newhouse Foundation Actors' Equity Association; American Federation of Television and Radio Artists; The Barth Family, Michele and Lawrence Herbert, Anita Lands, Lloyd Rigler and Lawrence Deutsch Foundation, Screen Actors Guild Motion Picture Players Welfare Fund, and Dance Magazine and Pointe."

Peter Martins, Helene Alexopoulos Warrick

Anka Palitz who has chaired the Jubilee for many years had the pleasure of announcing the stellar roster of honorees this year - the 2010 Rolex Dance Award will be presented to Twyla Tharp. The Career Transition For Dancers' Awards for Outstanding Contributions to the World of Dance will be presented to the organization's four union founders - Actors' Equity Association, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, American Guild of Musical Artists, Screen Actors Guild - Motion Picture Players Welfare Fund; as well as an award each to The Barth Family and to the CTFD President Cynthia G. Fischer. Also at the gala the Capezio Ballet Makers Dance Foundation will present Trisha Brown with the 59th Annual Capezio Dance Award.

Ann Marie DeAngelo, who brings her brilliant directing and producing talents to create the show each year, excited the crowd with the program for the Jubilee evening which features Tony Award winners Bebe Neuwirth, Ann Reinking, Chita Rivera, Tommy Tune, Karen Ziemba and Marvin Hamlisch. Featuring artists from some of America's greatest dance companies Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, The Joffrey Ballet, MOMIX, National Dance Institute, and Parsons Dance, will perform at the entertainment/dance event of the new season. There will be show-stopping Broadway numbers from "42nd Street" and "Chicago" and more stars, at this once-in-a-lifetime event that is not-to-be-missed!

Ms. DeAngelo explained her passion for dance and the inspiration of legendary New York City Ballet dancer Peter Martins, now director of the company founded by Georges Balanchine and recreated one of Peter Martins' grand jetes to the guests' delight and drew laughs from Martins who was in the room.

Another real treat of the evening was the presence of supremely funny lady Marilyn Michaels, the woman of 1,000 faces and voices who starred as Fanny Brice in the national tour of "Funny Girl." Michaels has continued to delight audiences worldwide with her beautiful voice (her mother was the famed cantoress Fraydele Oysher). At the reception, she introduced her new collaborator on a hopefully Broadway bound musical comedy she is co-writing - her son playwright Mark Wilk.

The crowd feasted on curried chicken on baby lettuce, lobster rolls, seared tuna on wasabi coated crisps and mini-burgers while listening to society favorite pianist Lee Glantz play show tunes and classics before many of them headed off to the Opera.

Career Transition For Dancers (CTFD), with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, has helped over 4,600 professional dancers in 47 states identify their unique talents in preparation for establishing new careers when dance is no longer an option. Since its founding in 1985, the organization has provided more than 46,000 hours (equivalent to over $4 million) of one-on-one career counseling and program services - at no cost - and has awarded millions of dollars in scholarships for education, entrepreneurial grants, and certification programs. CTFD also provides dancers with specialized services that include transition seminars and workshops, peer support groups, resource centers, a toll-free national career counseling hotline, a website, and a National Career Network.

For more information go to www.careertransition.org.