Photo Coverage: Princess Grace Awards Honors Washington, Shapiro et al.

The Princess Grace Foundation-USA is a not-for-profit, publicly-supported foundation headquartered in New York City and founded more than 25 years ago by Prince Rainier III of Monaco in honor of his wife, Princess Grace (Kelly). The Foundation's mission, that mirrors Princess Grace's in Her lifetime, is to support emerging artists in theater, dance and film through the awarding of scholarships, apprenticeships and fellowships. Since its inception, the Foundation has bestowed more than 650 awards totaling more than $7 million in grants.

This year, PGF-USA honored Denzel and Pauletta Washington with the Prince Rainier III Award in recognition of their outstanding careers and philanthropic endeavors. In addition to their distinguished professional accomplishments, Denzel and Pauletta Washington have been devoted to numerous philanthropic causes for more than 20 years. This is the first time a couple share the Prince Rainier III Award honor, which was inaugurated in 2005 by the PGF-USA Board of Trustees in recognition of the man who helped begin the Foundation. This Award is presented to eminent artists who have not only been highly successful in their careers, but have made significant humanitarian contributions to their fields. To date, Mikhail Baryshnikov (2005), Twyla Tharp (2006), George Lucas (2007), Glenn Close (2008) and Mandy Patinkin (2009) have received this honor, which includes a grant of $25,000 to the philanthropic organization of their choice.
Past winners of the Awards for theater, dance and film who distinguish themselves in their artistic disciplines since receiving their initial Princess Grace Awards are eligible to win the Foundation's Princess Grace Statue Award. This year, Tony® Award-winning director Anna D. Shapiro will be honored for her outstanding achievements. Ms. Shapiro received her first Princess Grace Award in 1996 while working with Steppenwolf Theater Company. In addition to a $25,000 unrestricted cash gift, these Awardees are presented with a bronze statuette of Princess Grace created by the Dutch artist Kees Verkade. To date, fifty-three artists have received this award.

Each year, the Foundation presents the Princess Grace Awards to artists who show excellence and promise in the areas of theater, dance, and film. Students are eligible for scholarships while emerging artists working in companies qualify for apprenticeships and fellowships. A playwriting fellowship is available for individual artists, which includes a residency at New Dramatists in New York City, and the opportunity for representation and publication by Samuel French, Inc. In addition to these, the Foundation also gives honorable mention grants to applicants through Honoraria.

The 2010 Princess Grace Awards winners (listed below) represent 20 colleges, universities, and not-for-profit theater and dance companies throughout the United States. The Awards winners exemplify both classical and experimental artistic disciplines and, while still considered emerging talent, already show exceptional promise in their areas of expertise. The Foundation's support assists their theater and dance studies, helps pay their artistic fees at non-profit theater and dance companies and helps support their thesis film projects. In addition to the Awards, the Princess Grace Foundation-USA extends general operating monies to companies hosting an Awards winner. 

For more information on the Princess Grace Awards and the 2010 winners, visit www.pgfusa.org.

Photo Credit: Peter James Zielinski

As an Equity actor, Peter is photographing the industry from the inside out. He has performed in numerous shows regionally, sung a duet with Richard Chamberlain in the National Tour of "Scrooge," and starred in "The Zoo Project" which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. When not on stage, he can be found photographing headshots and live theatre in NYC, Chicago and LA. As an Adobe Certified Expert in Photoshop, he also acts as a retouching artist for photographers city-wide. For more information, please visit: http://www.pjzstudios.com

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