Rob McClure to Present 5th Annual Clive Barnes Theatre Award; Ceremony Held Next Week

The Fifth Annual Clive Barnes Awards will take place this Monday, January 26 at 3pm at the Walter Reade Theatre at Lincoln Center. This year's nominees for dance are Harrison Ball (New York City Ballet), Christopher Bloom (Ballet Hispanico), Russell Janzen (New York City Ballet), and Devon Teuscher (American Ballet Theatre). This year's nominees for theatre are Jay Armstrong Johnson for his performance in On the Town, Will Pullen for his performance in The Wayside Motor Inn, Alex Sharp for his performance in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, and Collin Kelly-Sordelet for his performance in The Last Ship.

One recipient from each category will be chosen and the winners will be announced at the ceremony. All finalists will receive a cash prize, with the winners in each category receiving an award of $5,000 furnished by the Clive Barnes Foundation.

This year's Dance Award will be presented by Julie Kent, Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theatre, and this year's Theatre Award will be presented by former Clive Barnes Award recipient Rob McClure, currently starring in Honeymoon in Vegas. Past presenters have included Wendy Whelan, Susan Stroman, Frederic Franklin CBE, Cherry Jones, Paloma Hererra, and Nina Arianda. Previous winners are Chase Finlay (2010, now Principal with New York City Ballet), Nina Arianda (2010, Venus in Fur, Tony Award Winner), MJ Rodriguez (2011, RENT), IIsabella Boylston (2011, now Principal with American Ballet Theatre), Lauren Lovette (2012, now Soloist with New York City Ballet), Jonny Orsini (2013, The Nance), and Lloyd Mayor (2013, Martha Graham Dance Company).

Throughout his professional life, Clive Barnes was caring and generous to his colleagues and friends; always ready to advise and listen. After his death, many condolence letters spoke of his generosity and practical help, especially to young people. In this spirit, The Clive Barnes Foundation was formed in 2009 to create Annual Awards giving recognition, encouragement, and financial support to two talented young professionals and, thus, honoring the memory of the many years of critical work and the warm personal generosity of Clive Barnes.

The Foundation gives an Annual Award to two talented young professionals in the artistic fields of dance and theatre. The finalists are nominated by the Selection Committee, which is comprised of a panel of critics and performers in each field.

The Selection Committee for the Clive Barnes Award includes William H. Ausman, Siobhan Burns, Diana Byer, Frank DiLella, Barbara Hoffman, Arthur Mitchell, Patrick Pacheco, James Sutton, Valerie Taylor-Barnes, and Craig Wright.

The Clive Barnes Foundation Board of Directors includes Valerie Taylor-Barnes (Preisdent), William H. Ausman (Vice President), Brenda Anderson, Charles Askegard, Paloma Herrera, Jann Leeming, Arthur Mitchell, Michael Riedel, Spring Sirkin, Damian Woetzel, and Craig Wright.