Deborah Duncan and Jim Bernhard to Co-Host TUTS' 2015 Tommy Tune Awards; Nominees Announced!

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) is pleased to announce the nominations and presenters for TUTS' 13th annual Tommy Tune Awards, which will be held on April 21 at 7:30 p.m. at The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. The Tommy Tune Awards recognize and reward excellence in the production of musical theatre by high school students and their teachers.

Co-hosts for this year's awards ceremony include Deborah Duncan and Jim Bernhard. Duncan is the host of KHOU's Great Day Houston morning show. Bernhard has written several original productions that have debuted at TUTS and authored the organization's theatrical history, "Stars In Your Eyes".

After evaluating the 45 participating Houston-area high school productions during the 2014-2015 school year, a team of 30 Houston-based theatre professionals nominated 164 participants in 15 award categories. An additional committee considered 76 potential scholarship recipients.

The following high schools and individuals were nominated:

Best Musical:
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line

Best Leading Actor:
Clear Springs High School, The Music Man, Stephen Louis as Harold Hill
Episcopal High School, South Pacific, Henry Herbert as Emile de Becque
G.W. Carver Magnet High School, Ghost, Kyle Ward as Sam Wheat
Klein Forest High School, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Ephraim Tallerine as Chairman/Sapsea/Hitchens
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition, Brett Baker as Marius
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition, Ian Tonroy as Javert
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Alec Michael Ryan as Lawrence
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls, Austin Ingalls as Nathan Detroit
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line, Ashton Lambert as Mike

Best Leading Actress:
Clear Springs High School, The Music Man, Emily Lewis as Marian Paroo
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical, Rebecca Stanley as Wednesday
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins, Audrey McKee as Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin, Morgan Rucker as Leading Player
Kerr High School, The Addams Family, The Musical, Melissa Ramos as Wednesday
Klein Collins High School, Pippin, Hallie Chapman as Leading Player
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition, MarShae Morris as Fantine
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls, Fiona Flynn as Adelaide
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie, Katie More as Rose Alveraz

Best Supporting Actor:
George Bush High School, Oklahoma, Javier Neveu as Ali Hakim
Houston Christian High School, Pippin, Daniel Baudin as Charlemagne
Klein Forest High School, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Raul Alberto as Bazzard/Bax
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition, Nicholas Lammey as Thénardier
Pasadena Memorial High School, Peter Pan, Anthony Martino as Smee
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls, Enrique Garza as Nicely Nicely Johnson
Spring High School, Hairspray, Cameron Stokes as Seaweed
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie, Ryan Brown as Harry MacAfee
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line, Harrison Poe as Paul

Best Supporting Actress:
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins, Jana Landers as Mrs. Banks
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins, Anne Balderrama as Jane
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music, Adriana Scamardi as Mother Abbess
Second Baptist School, Cinderella, Elizabeth Ramsey as Fairy Godmother
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie, Eliza Masewicz as Kim MacAfee
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors, Muna Uzodike/Natalie Holley/Celeste Terni as The Ronnettes
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line, Kerry Sullivan as Val
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line, Meagen Roberts as Diana
The Woodlands College Park High School, Cinderella, Jenny Gee as Fairy Godmother

Best Featured Performer:
G.W. Carver Magnet High School, Ghost, Kristopher Adams as Subway Ghost
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition, Raheem Maughn as Enjolras
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Sophia Clarke as Jolene
Lamar Consolidated High School, Seussical, CJ Nickerson/Tre'von Jones as The Wickersham Brothers
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls, Joseph Reyes as Benny
Second Baptist School, Cinderella, Brandon Jessurun as Herald
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man, Gabe Prevallet/Stone Tejeda/Corey Standley/Cameron Connolly as Barbershop Quartet
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie, Kirby Morris as Gloria
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line, Brock Looser as Sheila

Best Ensemble/Chorus:
Clear Springs High School, The Music Man
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line
The Woodlands College Park High School, Cinderella

Best Scenic Design:
Clear Springs High School, The Music Man
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Kerr High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Klein Forest High School, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Pasadena Memorial High School, Peter Pan
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Spring High School, Hairspray
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors

Best Costume Design:
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Kerr High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Klein Collins High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Spring Woods High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line

Best Lighting Design:
Clear Falls High School, Cinderella
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Lamar Consolidated High School, Seussical
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Spring High School, Hairspray
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line

Best Stage Crew & Technical Execution:
Episcopal High School, South Pacific
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Spring High School, Hairspray
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
Westfield High School, Sweet Charity

Best Musical Direction:
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
Texas City High School, Grease
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line

Best Orchestra:
Cypress Ridge High School, Seussical
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, The Sound of Music
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
J. Frank Dobie High School, Grease
Klein Collins High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Manvel High School, Little Shop of Horrors
Memorial High School, The Drowsy Chaperone
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Texas City High School, Grease

Best Choreography:
Cypress Ranch High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein Collins High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Texas City High School, Grease
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line
Westfield High School, Sweet Charity

Best Direction:
Clear Springs High School, The Music Man
Friendswood High School, Mary Poppins
Houston Christian High School, Pippin
Klein High School, Les Miserables School Edition
Klein Oak High School, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Pearland High School, Guys and Dolls
Second Baptist School, Cinderella
Seven Lakes High School, The Music Man
Spring Woods High School, The Addams Family, The Musical
Stratford High School, Bye Bye Birdie
The John Cooper School, Little Shop of Horrors
The Kinkaid School, A Chorus Line

Presenters for the evening will include Miller Outdoor Theatre's Managing Director Cissy Segall Davis, KUHT's Ernie Manouse, TUTS President and CEO John Breckenridge, composer and musician Michael Moricz, HOT 95.7 FM's Sarah Pepper, the Houston Ballet's Stanton Welch, ABC 13's Tom Koch and TUTS Chairperson-Elect Amy Pierce. Guests will enjoy a special video appearance from Stephanie Styles, a former Tommy Tune Award recipient for Best Leading Actress. Styles is currently starring in the national tour of Newsies.

Scholarships

TUTS' Tommy Tune Awards are designed not only to acknowledge remarkable musical theatre talent at the high school level, but also to encourage future artistic development. TUTS will present eight scholarships to outstanding participating students of the Tommy Tune Awards. These include the Ruth Denney Scholarship, named in honor of Tune's mentor and legendary Lamar High School drama teacher. Ruth Denney was the founder and first director of the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston and then Professor of Drama Education at the University of Texas at Austin. She died in 2007, just a few days before her 93rd birthday. Students under consideration were required to meet specific criteria set out by the Scholarship Committee, as well as submit an application and an essay. The scholarship committee, composed of TUTS board members, has carefully reviewed all of the applications and will announce the scholarship recipients during the awards ceremony.

Jimmy Awards

The Best Leading Actor and Actress will go on to compete at the national level for the Jimmy Award at the National High School Musical Theater Awards in New York City. Established in 2009, the Jimmy Awards are named after Broadway theatre owner and producer, James M. Nederlander. This year, the program will bring the country's best high school performers together to compete on Broadway on June 29. While in New York, Jimmy Award participants will have the opportunity to participate in rehearsals and master classes, receive one-on-one coaching from theater professionals, be seen by casting agents, meet and converse with Broadway actors and compete for scholarships and other prizes. The week's events will culminate in a live awards show where the Jimmy Awards for Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress will be presented.

TUTS' Tommy Tune Awards are named for Houston native and Lamar High School alumnus, Tommy Tune. A performer, director and choreographer with more than 50 years of stage experience, Tune received nine Tony Awards for his work in the following productions: Seesaw, My One and Only, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Nine, Grand Hotel and The Will Rogers Follies. He was also awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2003 by President Bush. Tune is currently taking an autobiographical stroll in Taps, Tunes and Tall Tales where he dances, sings and tale-tells through more than 50 years of showmanship.

The Tommy Tune Awards ceremony is open to the general public. VIP tickets will be available for purchase beginning on April 2, and standard tickets will be available for purchase beginning on April 13. To receive more information, call (713) 558-8887 or visit TUTS.com/TommyTune.

To learn more about TUTS' Education and Community Engagement programs, visit TUTS.com/EDU.