SHE LOVES ME's Nicholas Barasch Named 2016 Dorothy Loudon Award Honoree

It was announced today by The Theatre World Awards Board of Directors, and The Dorothy Loudon Foundation, Broadway newcomer Nicholas Barasch, currently appearing in the Broadway revival of She Loves Me at Studio 54, will be honored with the 8th Annual Dorothy Loudon Award at the 72nd Annual Theatre World Awards Ceremony set for Monday evening, May 23, 2016 beginning at 7:00 p.m. at Circle in the Square Theatre (West 50th Street, between Broadway and 8th Avenue), home of the current 2015 Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Fun Home. The 2016 Theatre World winners will be announced shortly.

The Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theater honors an Outstanding Performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production. Dorothy Loudon, who had the unique talent of being able to make audiences laugh and cry, made her Broadway debut in Nowhere to Go But Up for which she received a Theatre World Award for her performance. She received a Tony® Award for her incomparable performance as 'Miss Hannigan' inAnnie, and went on to triumphs originating roles in Noises Off, Westside Waltz, and Michael Bennett's Ballroom.

Nicholas Barasch is a high school senior at the Professional Children's School and is currently appearing as Arpad Lazslo in the Roundabout Broadway revival of She Loves Me at Studio 54. He has appeared in the Broadway productions of The Mystery of Edwin Drood, West Side Story and the BAM/New York City Opera's Annie Nicole: The Opera. Regionally he has appeared at the Delaware Theatre Company, the Ahmanson Theatre, and the National Theatre. Film and television credits include New Form Digital's Mr. Student Body President, and as a series regular on Nichelodeon's "The Backyardians."

The Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence is chosen by the Trustees of The Dorothy Loudon Foundation, Lionel Larner, Executive Director, together with recommendations from the Theatre World Awards Committee. Past recipients include Leanne Cope, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Jonny Orsini,Susan Pourfar, Seth Numrich, Bobby Steggert, and Susan Louise O'Connor.

Lionel Larner, Executive Director of The Dorothy Loudon Foundation, has been an agent for over fifty years representing a cavalcade of stars that have included Eve Arden, Anne Baxter, Larry Blyden, Barry Bostwick, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Jose Ferrer, Tony Goldwyn, Judd Hirsch, Glenda Jackson, Lynn Redgrave, Dame Diana Rigg, and the great Dorothy Loudon, among others. In 1968, Dorothy Loudon met Mr. Larner that began, for want of a better word, a love affair between agent and client. They developed a close friendship that lasted until her death in 2003. In her will she named him as Trustee and Executive Director of a Charitable Foundation to be formed. As "keeper of the flame" Mr. Larner works diligently to fulfill the mission of the Dorothy Loudon Foundation and at the same time to keep the memory of her talent fresh in people's minds and to familiarize younger Broadway talent and audiences with her legacy. In addition to funding the arts, the Foundation has supported the disadvantaged both locally and internationally, AIDS research related charities, and disaster-relief programs.

It was previously announced, Golden Globe® and three-time Tony® Award-winner and musical theater icon Bernadette Peters will receive the 4th Annual John Willis Award given for lifetime achievement in the theatre to honor the man who created and maintained the Theatre World tradition for 66 years, encouraging new talent in an often challenging business. The John Willis Award is presented annually by the Theatre World Awards, Inc. Board of Directors to an individual whose lifetime achievements and personal generosity to the Theatre Community merit special recognition and acknowledgement. Previous recipients of the John Willis Award include Alan Alda, Christopher Plummer and Chita Rivera.

Hosted annually by well-known theater journalist, Peter Filichia, the 72nd Annual Theatre World Awards ceremony will be produced by Theatre World Awards, Inc. Board of Directors.

Mahoney Asset Management is returning as a Proud Sponsor of the 72nd Annual Theatre World Awards.

First presented in 1945, the prestigious Theatre World Awards, founded by John Willis, the Editor-in-Chief of both Theatre World and its companion volume, Screen World, are the oldest awards given for Outstanding Broadway and Off-Broadway Debut Performances. The Theatre World Awards are presented annually at the end of the theatre season to six actors and six actresses for their significant, reviewable, debut performances in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production. The ceremony is a private, invitation-only event followed by a party to celebrate the new honorees and welcome them to the Theatre World "family." In what has become a highly entertaining and often touching tradition, 12 previous winners serve as the presenters, and often relive moments from past ceremonies and share wonderful stories rarely heard at other theatrical awards.

Previous winners who have won the prestigious Theatre World Award at the beginning of their careers include Meryl Streep, Rosemary Harris, Marlon Brando, Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Anne Bancroft, James Earl Jones, Liza Minnelli, Alan Alda, Zoe Caldwell, Christopher Walken, Alec Baldwin, Bernadette Peters, Audra McDonald, Al Pacino, Grace Kelly, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, and so many more.