“Ben Vereen got emotional when he spoke after being honored with the Sidney Poitier Lifetime Achievement Award and receiving a standing ovation, saying he was at a loss for words for the first time. ‘Thank you. This is truly an honor to be here,’ Vereen said. ‘This is my first time at the festival…’ He told the gala attendees that ‘you, we’ tell stories. ‘The stories must continue. We must keep the stories alive. We must keep the Black theater culture alive.'” – The Winston Salem Journal