WORTHAM CENTER TO BE FEATURED IN NATIONAL TELECAST
Downtown theater part of Houston spotlight in PBS's 'Moment of Luxury'

January 17, 2008 -- More than 20 years after first being introduced as one of Houston's preeminent public facilities, Wortham Theater Center remains an icon synonymous with cultural importance and architectural beauty.

Wortham's double-barrel reputation will be on display April 17 in a Moment of Luxury, a new national PBS program dedicated to interior design excellence. Locally, it will air at 7:30 p.m. on Channel 8, KUHT. The series premieres April 5.

"We are thrilled to be included in this national showcase," said Dawn Ullrich, director of the City of Houston Convention & Entertainment Facilities Department, which is responsible for managing Wortham Center and a dozen other municipal properties.

"This city has so many beautiful buildings and it is gratifying that the Wortham continues to be on everyone's short list of Houston 's most striking places," Ullrich added.

Native Houstonian William Stubbs, named one of Architectural Digest magazine's Top 100 interior designers, will host the show. Each 30-minute episode will focus on one city's culture, design and architecture. The series will feature Paris and London in its first two programs before making Houston its first U.S.-based episode, said Sarah Greer, the show's executive producer.

"Bill Stubbs and I are both Houstonians and wherever we go, people have this false impression of Houston ," Greer said during a recent break in taping from Wortham's Grand Foyer. "People still think we all wear cowboy boots and have oil derricks in our backyards.

"Bill and I wanted to change that perception and show that Houston has a great atmosphere of culture, one that includes both classic and modern forms," she said.

In addition to Wortham Center, Stubbs, Greer and a film crew visited Hobby Center, Main Street, the Museum District, and the Houston Heights and River Oaks neighborhoods.

Willam Stubbs, host of the new forthcoming PBS program
"Moment of Luxury", tapes a scene from the Grand Foyer in Wortham Center.