The Minty Awards, Honoring Catholic High School Musicals, Announce 2017 Nominees

The Minty Organization, the non-profit company which oversees The Minty Awards, is gearing for its biggest ceremony of the year, The Seventh Annual Minty Awards, set for Sunday, June 4 at 7pm at the historic St. George Theatre (35 Hyatt Street).

The nominees for The St. Genesius Award for Outstanding Musical are Bye, Bye, Birdie - St. Joseph Hill Academy; Crazy For You - Moore Catholic HS; She Loves Me - Msgr. Farrell HS; Shrek: The Musical - St. Peter's Boys HS; The Music Man - St. Joseph by-the-Sea HS; Jesus Christ Superstar - Notre Dame Academy; and 9 to 5 - St. John Villa Academy. A full list of this year's nominees is below and available at www.mintys.org.

"The two weeks leading up to the night of the Minty's is always the most exciting - getting to work with our talented dancers, nominees, and casts is such a rewarding experience year after year," said Michael J. Pinto, Sea '06, who serves as Executive Director of The Minty Organization, and co-host of the ceremony. "To have so many alumni attending this year, some having graduated in the 1970s, shows the true connecting power of theater, and what I believe has been the greatest testament of The Minty's-the marvelous sense of community we see each year."

Tickets to The 2017 Minty Awards Ceremony are $20 and can be purchased by calling The St. George Box Office at 718-442-2900. Students and school staff are to order tickets through their school director.

Returning as co-sponsors of the 2017 Minty Awards are Ben-Jo General Trucking, Senator Andrew J. Lanza, and Wagner College.

Last year's ceremony was attended by over 1000 people and saw St. John Villa Academy's cast of Seussical capture The St. Genesius Award for Outstanding Musical.

The schools and students will be competing in 13 categories (including Outstanding Choreography, Outstanding Featured Dancer, Outstanding Leading Actor) including the evening's coveted award, The St. Genesius Award for Outstanding Musical. The school that wins the St. Genesius Award also receives $5,000 to the school's Performing Arts program; and the remaining schools will each be receiving $1,000.

A student from each school will also receive The Theatre Player of the Year Award. Each school was asked to select one student who exemplified the spirit of that school's theater department. Each school's recipient will be presented with a special award the night of the ceremony.

Each school's cast will also be performing in a specially commissioned opening number medley, as well as a 7-minute performance from their show.

Returning as Pinto's co-host for this year's ceremony will be Jessica Caracciolo, SJVA '10. "Every year the shows get bigger and the talent gets better, I can't wait to watch these students shine for another year," stated Caracciolo. "I am so incredibly proud and honored to be a part of this wonderful organization."

Assisting in handing out the envelopes will be a cavalcade of previous Minty Awards winners and nominees who are all returning for this Seventh Year Ceremony, as well as graduates from all the participating schools who were active members of the theater programs during high school, including some who have gone on to a career on Broadway.

Individuals who wish to make a tax-deductible contribution to The Minty Organization are asked to visit www.mintys.org.

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2017 Minty Award Nominees:

The St. Genesius Award for Outstanding Musical
Bye, Bye, Birdie, St. Joseph Hill Academy
Crazy for You, Moore Catholic High School
Jesus Christ, Superstar, Notre Dame Academy
The Music Man, St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School
9 to 5, St. John Villa Academy
She Loves Me, Msgr. Farrell High School
Shrek, St. Peter's Boys High School

Outstanding Leading Actor
Joseph Arnone and Kyle Sinclair, The Music Man
Jack Dawson, Bye, Bye, Birdie
Daniel Fusaro, 9 to 5
Nicholas Gerrity, She Loves Me
Christian Gueits, Shrek
Tom Lynskey, Crazy for You
Joseph Reitano, Shrek

Outstanding Leading Actress
Michelle Askew, Jesus Christ, Superstar
Rosalia Cioffi, Bye, Bye, Birdie
Diana Claps and Carina Orosz, The Music Man
Kirsten Kaiser, Crazy for You
Analise Scarpaci, She Loves Me
Francesca Saccomagno, 9 to 5
Caroline Travers, Shrek

Outstanding Supporting Actor
E.J. Camuzo, Crazy for You
Elbi Cespedes, Bye, Bye, Birdie
Miguel Delgado, The Music Man
Matthew DiBenedetto, She Loves Me
Kenny Harvey, She Loves Me
Ben Jastremski, Shrek
Michael Lutz, 9 to 5

Outstanding Supporting Actress
Clara Chawan, She Loves Me
Emma DeCarlo and Alexa Passante, The Music Man
Lucy Ermilio, 9 to 5
Amanda Lupo, Shrek
Gianna Nepola, Jesus Christ Superstar
Analise Scarpaci, Jesus Christ Superstar
Olivia Vota, Bye, Bye, Birdie

Outstanding Featured Actor
Daniel Cesare, She Loves Me
Jack Dawson, Crazy for You
Christopher Joerger, The Music Man
Tyler Kelly and Patrick Kuflewski, The Music Man
Shawn Malone, Crazy for You
Jesse Martinelli, She Loves Me
Timothy Mayrose, Bye, Bye, Birdie

Outstanding Featured Actress
Francesca Compagno, Crazy for You
Kristen Fontana, Jesus Christ, Superstar
Emily Geoghegan and Kristen O'Byrne, The Music Man
Lauren Farley, Shrek
Julia LoCascio, Bye, Bye, Birdie
Julienne Martinez-Alvarez, Jesus Christ Superstar
Francesca Saccomagno, Shrek

Outstanding Featured Dancer
Marissa Ackerman and Alexa Riccardi, The Music Man
Elbi Cespedes, Elaine Pollock, Bridget Tracy, and Sabrina Warraich, 9 to 5
Clara Chawan and Ava Graziano, Bye, Bye, Birdie
Rosalia Cioffi and Michael Peraccio, She Loves Me
Emily DiGiacomo, Jenna Hood, and Samantha Karcich, Jesus Christ, Superstar
Jillian Jackman, Crazy for You
Jenna Muldoon, Shrek

Outstanding Production Number
"Freak Flag" Shrek
"I Got Rhythm" Crazy for You
"Jesus Christ, Superstar" Jesus Christ, Superstar
"A Lot of Livin' to Do" Bye, Bye, Birdie
"9 to 5" 9 to 5
"76 Trombones" The Music Man
"Twelve Days to Christmas" She Loves Me

The 2017 Theatre Players of the Year
To Be Announced

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The Mission of The Minty Organization for the Performing Arts: "We hope to start a tradition which honors the sacrifice and dedication of Catholic High School students in dramatic arts programs. The Minty Awards aims to promote these programs, performers, and all who support them. We believe that these students and their schools provide excellent examples of self-discipline, teamwork, and faith, and we should celebrate their efforts and achievements."