Rob Marshall Wins Directors Guild of America Award for 'Target Presents: Tony Bennett/An American Classic'

Rob Marshall, director of the critically acclaimed NBC television special TARGET PRESENTS: TONY BENNETT/AN AMERICAN CLASSIC, won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical Variety for 2006 at the 59th Annual DGA Awards ceremony held Saturday, February 3 in Los Angeles.

Marshall's work on "Tony Bennett/An American Classic" marks a second DGA win for the director who took home the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film in 2002 for his direction of the Academy Award winning Best Picture, "Chicago."

Danny Bennett, the program's executive producer, commented, "Rob Marshall's vision for this project from the beginning was to create a musical special for television that redefined the genre. He not only accomplished that but produced a program whose quality and substance has surpassed all our expectations."

"Collaborating with Rob Marshall on 'TARGET PRESENTS: TONY BENNETT/AN AMERICAN CLASSIC' was truly an honor, and we wish him all the best as he accepts this accreditation for his talents and vision," said John Remington, vice president, marketing, Target. "The entire creative process of this effort was thrilling -- from the artists in front of the camera to the artist behind -- and we're so pleased to be a part of this celebration captured on film."

TARGET PRESENTS: TONY BENNETT/AN AMERICAN CLASSIC, originally aired on NBC during Thanksgiving week of 2006 to widespread critical acclaim with The Hollywood Reporter calling it "a masterpiece" and Associated Press touting it as a "grand slam." The show features Tony performing with Barbra Streisand, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, Michael Buble, John Legend, Chris Botti, Diana Krall, k.d. lang and Juanes accompanied by narrative segments about the artist's life and career hosted by Billy Crystal, Robert DeNiro, Catherine Zeta-Jones, John Travolta and Bruce Willis. Marshall's Oscar winning team was on board for cinematography, choreography, production design, costumes and lighting to create a groundbreaking television experience. Associate Director: Yudi Bennett; Stage Managers: Barbara J. Roche, Lee Grant And Murray Siegel. Executive producers are Danny Bennett/RPM TV Productions and Rob Marshall and John DeLuca/LUCAMAR Productions and produced by Jodi Hurwitz.

TARGET PRESENTS: TONY BENNETT/AN AMERICAN CLASSIC is a companion piece to Bennett's latest Grammy-nominated CD "Tony Bennett -- Duets: An American Classic." The platinum-certified CD has been nominated for three Grammy Awards this year and is the top-selling album of the artist's career.

                    WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING ABOUT
           "TARGET PRESENTS: TONY BENNETT/AN AMERICAN CLASSIC"

"Consider this an unqualified rave. ... Tony Bennett/An American Classic ... is as lustrously filmed as it is impeccably sung. For those of us who've been waiting for Oscar-nominated director Rob Marshall (Chicago) to tackle a new musical project, here it is. Marshall has lovingly conceived and masterfully executed a shimmer, swinging hour of razzle-dazzle showmanship that redefines what a variety special can be." -- TV Guide. COM/Matt Roush

"NBC's Tony Bennett bash (is) a masterpiece ... probably the best thing of its sort that you will ever see. ... a triumph of direction by Rob Marshall." -- Reuters/Hollywood Reporter/Tony Gieske

" ... top drawer output ... Marshall and choreographer John DeLuca keep a masterful balance going between the exciting visual materials and the moving musical sounds." -- Reuters/Hollywood Reporter/Tony Gieske

"Tony Bennett's TV Special a 'Grand Slam'" -- Associated Press/Charles Gans

"The exquisite special looks more like a Broadway musical, or a high-end concert with set and costume changes, than most Broadway concerts. ... From the opening moments where Mr. Bennett, alone onstage, sings with eyes closed, the experience is so pure and so intense its like watching a true believer pray." -- Tribune Media/Jacqueline Cutler

"The audience almost becomes a voyeur in Marshall's talented hands. His artistic, sensual style amid a mix of color ad black and white sets this glorious special apart from others that have gone before it." -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/Jane Vranish

"This special proves that Bennett is as good as it gets." -- Oakland Tribune/Susan Young

"'Tony Bennett/An American Classic' has been made with unusual care ... That this is a special that wants to be especially special is clear right from the opening ... and there is something thrilling in the way the unadorned simplicity of the moment underscores the massed talent." -- Los Angeles Times/Robert Lloyd

"This stylish, stirring special is like a wonderful banquet ... as the Bennett special illustrates, when the professionals show up ... something wonderful can happen. ... 'Tony Bennett/An American Classic' is an exhilarating event. We could use more like it." -- Orlando Sentinel/Hal Boedeker

"That passion and pure joy in performing is evident in the TV special, produced by Rob Marshall and his Oscar-winning production crew from 'Chicago' and 'Memoirs of a Geisha,' who will take viewers on a fantastic musical journey through Bennett's career." -- Tulsa World/Rita Sherrow

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SOURCE: RPM/Columbia Records

CONTACT: Sylvia Weiner of RPM TV Productions, +1-908-301-1779,
sweiner@rpm-productions.com

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