Jelani Alladin to Host THE SHUBERT FOUNDATION HIGH SCHOOL THEATRE FESTIVAL

Over 160 talented NYC public school teen artists will make their virtual Broadway debuts in the special 2020 Online Production of The Shubert Foundation High School Theatre Festival for NYC Public Schools on Monday, June 15 at 7:00pm ET, streaming on www.shubert.nyc.

Jelani Alladin (Frozen, Hercules at The Public Theatre) will host this year's sixth annual event, which has previously been performed live on a Broadway stage. Guest presenters will include Broadway stars Adam Chanler-Berat (Peter and the Starcatcher), James Harkness (Ain't Too Proud), Carly Hughes (Beautiful, "American Housewife"), George Salazar (Be More Chill), and Sherie Rene Scott (Whorl Inside A Loop). This high profile and high-energy theatre education experience for students is presented by The Shubert Foundation and the NYC Department of Education Arts Office.

The Festival's inspired virtual production excerpts reflect the professionalism, the focus and the passions of our NYC public school students from diverse backgrounds and identities who came together with one common goal - to tell stories and build bridges. Under widely challenging circumstances, each student artist found time and space to rehearse and record their individual performance on their devices so audiences everywhere could enjoy their artistry and collaboration.

The Festival is a celebration featuring five outstanding high school student productions from the 2019-2020 school year, which were selected from over 30 productions across the city by a panel of professional theatre artists and theatre educators. Over the course of the festival's six-year history, school productions from all 5 boroughs have performed at the event. This year, student presentations from the following schools will present excerpted scenes and musical numbers in order as follows:

Brooklyn High School of the Arts (Brooklyn) - FAME

Curtis High School (Staten Island) - LUCKY STIFF

Frank Sinatra School of the Arts (Queens) - HAIRSPRAY

Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts (Manhattan) - AIDA

Talent Unlimited High School (Manhattan) - THE WOLVES

The High School Theatre Festival showcases the ongoing excellent theatre work currently taking place in NYC public high schools, as well as highlighting the positive effects of theatre study on skills for the stage and in life: collaboration, artistry, discipline, focus, literacy, student voice, self-awareness, presence, active listening and empathy. The evening focuses on the impact that a full theatre program can have on students and school communities and enables students to see theatre and the arts as a potential career path

"Our 1.1 million students are incredibly creative, and through our investment in high quality arts education, we can cultivate and inspire the next generation of dancers, musicians, actors, and visual artists," said Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza. "I thank the Shubert Foundation High School Theatre Festival for investing in our students and providing them with a professional experience and a Broadway platform."

"Since the beginning of this festival six years ago, our New York City Public High School students have delighted us with their commitment, skill and creativity. But this year they have outdone themselves," said Diana Phillips, President of The Shubert Foundation. "Under the most trying of circumstances they have come together to present magical performances where their talent, spirit and ingenuity are nothing short of an inspiration. Bravo to them and to their teachers for creating such a memorable event."

Sponsored by The Shubert Foundation, the festival is presented in partnership with the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE). Funding for the Festival and for a range of existing Shubert Foundation programs in New York City public schools comes from a grant of $585,000.

Since 2005, The Shubert Foundation has provided more than $6 million to the New York City Department of Education for Theatre/Arts programs.

"You can't stop the beat, and the beat of our youth is powerful. These impressive and engaged teen artists-- from varied diverse cultural backgrounds, neighborhoods and creative points of view-- are using their theatre artistry to spread empathy and shrink the world. The Festival serves as a platform to showcase the impact of a dedicated theatre education for all students and a reminder of the impact of inclusivity on stage, in the classroom and beyond," said Peter Avery, the Festival's producer and the Director of Theatre for the NYC Department of Education.