The New York Times Expands Arts & Leisure Weekend to Seven Days; Arts & Leisure Week 2008 Will Take Place January 7 - 13 at the New TimesCenter

The New York Times announced today that its annual celebration of the arts, known since 2001 as Arts & Leisure Weekend, has been extended to seven days of TimesTalks and special cultural offerings in 2008. The new Arts & Leisure Week will take place from Jan. 7 to 13 in TheTimesCenter, The Times’s performance venue in its new headquarters in Times Square. The expansion of the 2008 festival includes a wide range of activities, from interviews between journalists and their guests to special offers at cultural institutions around the world. For more information or to purchase advance tickets, which are $25 for each interview, please visit www.ArtsAndLeisureWeek.com. At TheTimesCenter, 242 West 41st Street, The Times will host a series of TimesTalks discussions featuring an array of luminaries from the arts, film, music, media and politics in conversation with New York Times critics, reporters and editors. This year, headliners include Tony Award-winning actors Philip Bosco and Frances Sternhagen and Circle in the Square producer Theodore Mann, with Patricia Cohen, culture reporter; news anchor and best-selling author Tom Brokaw, with Rick Berke, assistant managing editor for news; former music director of the Metropolitan Opera and current music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra James Levine, with Anthony Tommasini, chief music critic; AMC’s "Mad Men” creator Matthew Weiner with cast members Jon Hamm and John Slattery, co-moderated by advertising columnist Stuart Elliott and book critic Janet Maslin; Pulitzer Prize-winning jazz composer and Jazz at Lincoln Center artistic director Wynton Marsalis, with John Rockwell, a former Arts & Leisure editor; author, homemaking advocate and business magnate Martha Stewart, with food reporter Kim Severson; renowned dancer, choreographer and director Mark Morris, with culture reporter Daniel J. Wakin; the cast of Nickelodeon’s highly acclaimed children’s television series The Naked Brothers Band, with culture reporter Jacques Steinberg; prominent artist and filmmaker Julian Schnabel; president of Walt Disney Theatrical Productions Thomas Schumacher, with performances from "Mary Poppins” and "The Little Mermaid”; creators and cast members from Broadway’s "Young Frankenstein,” with culture reporter Campbell Robertson; Princeton professor of religion and African-American studies Cornel West, with Frank Rich, Op-Ed columnist; Brooklyn-based best-selling authors, including Paul Auster, Nicole Krauss and Rick Moody; and many others. "Arts & Leisure Week will offer more for our readers and sponsors than ever before,” said Alyse Myers, vice president, brand programs, The New York Times. "We have created a full week of one-of-a-kind conversations to showcase the talent of our journalists and their guests and to celebrate our glorious new home, TheTimesCenter. We look forward to welcoming record numbers of audience members to join us with our sponsors for an unprecedented series of talks.” The Times will again offer an Access Pass to many events presented throughout the week. The Pass will be available in event program guides, published in The New York Times, in the Sunday Magazine and posted on the Arts & Leisure Week Web site. Details will be updated regularly at www.ArtsAndLeisureWeek.com. This year's presenting sponsor for Arts & Leisure Week is KIA. Lead sponsors are Greater Fort Lauderdale, HBO and iShares. Corporate sponsors are Design Within Reach; New York University, School of Continuing and Professional Studies; Rodney Strong; and The Container Store. WCBS-TV is this year’s media sponsor. Companies interested in advertising opportunities for Arts & Leisure Week can get more information by contacting their New York Times account manager or Roger Schwoerer, advertising director at (212) 556-1314, or schworo@nytimes.com. For sponsorships, please contact Penfield Marketing Group account manager Doug Metchick at (203) 222-0817 or doug@penfieldmarketing.com. Arts & Leisure Week was originally established as the Arts & Leisure Weekend in 2001 to mark The Times’s 150th anniversary and to give back to its readers. Due to popular demand, Arts & Leisure Weekend is being extended this year to a seven-day event. Throughout the week, The Times collaborates with hundreds of cultural institutions in the United States and Europe to offer free admission, reduced prices and special events at museums, theaters, performing arts centers, tourist attractions, movie theaters, restaurants, spas and health clubs. About The New York Times Company The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2006 revenues of $3.3 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM and more than 30 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company’s core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment. This press release can be downloaded from www.nytco.com