'Saturday Night Live' gala set for Saturday

THE WOODLANDS, Texas - The Center for the Performing Arts at The Woodlands, home of The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, hosts the “Saturday Night Live” gala Saturday, February 26, 2011 at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott. The evening will begin at 6 p.m. in the Pre-Show Lounge for Happy Hour. At 7:30 p.m., guests go backstage for dinner, a live auction and entertainment featuring The Blues Brothers with Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi. Guests are encouraged to dress as their favorite SNL character.

“With a theme like Saturday Night Live featuring a performance by Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi as The Blues Brothers, this event will be the party of the year,” said Jerry MacDonald, president and CEO of The Pavilion. “I invite supporters of the arts, guests of The Pavilion and fans of The Blues Brothers to join us for an exciting and entertaining night in support of the arts.”

Guests will also have the opportunity to bid on fabulous auction items including exclusive trips, music packages, one-of-a-kind sports packages, a specialty piece of jewelry, and culinary dining and spa packages. A sneak peek at a few of the items to be auctioned off include trips to New York City and Edinburgh, Scotland, a “Superstar!” guitar package with autographed guitars from Aerosmith, ZZ Top and Roger Waters accompanied by custom-made guitar stands, an autographed guitar from The Blues Brothers including the opportunity to sing on stage with Zee and Elwood at the gala, an Astros Dream Suite for 12 with hosts Carol and Phil Garner, a Rockets package that includes four courtside/floor seats, two suite tickets to the NCAA Men’s Semi-Finals in April, and another Rockets package that includes a suite at your choice of two games.

Another highlight of the event is the raffle for a chance to win a 2011 Audi A5 Convertible or two first-class airline tickets on United Airlines (formerly Continental Airlines, official airlines of The Pavilion). Only 750 tickets will be sold at $100 each. At the gala, nine finalists from the 749 tickets sold before the event will be drawn. Ticket No. 750 will be sold during the live auction Feb. 26 and placed in the final drawing. The holder of the first ticket drawn from the 10 finalists wins the car. The holder of the second ticket drawn wins the airline tickets. All proceeds from the raffle benefit The Pavilion’s performing arts and educational outreach programs.

“Hosting an event such as our Saturday Night Live gala, which we only do once every few years, is the primary source of funding for our endowment,” said Jerry MacDonald, president and CEO of The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. “This will be the fourth time in our 21-year history that our Board of Directors has hosted a fund-raising gala benefiting our Endowment Campaign, which plays an important role in the future of arts and educational programming at The Pavilion.”

Tables of 10 at “Saturday Night Live” are priced from $5,000 for a “Spartan Cheerleaders” table to $50,000 for a “Blues Brothers” table. Other table levels include “Wayne’s World” for $10,000, “The Killer Bees” for $15,000 and “The Coneheads” for $25,000. Individual tickets are $500. Other sponsorships are available.

For more information about the “Saturday Night Live” gala visit The Pavilion's Web site. To purchase a table or tickets to the event, contact Christine Scully.