25th Annual Kenny Awards Finalists Announced

The Kenny Awards is celebrating its 25th year of honoring area high schools' musical theatre productions in 2018! Having awarded $120,000 over the past 24 years, The Kenny Awards, presented by Shea's Performing Arts Center and The Lipke Foundation, is an endeavor that recognizes the talent, dedication, and efforts of our local high school youth.

After reviewing applications and speaking with interested schools about their musical theatre programs, ten finalists were selected for the 2018 Kenny Awards.

They are as follows:

Buffalo Academy for the Visual & Performing Arts - Chicago

Dunkirk High School - Little Shop of Horrors

Eden Jr/Sr High School - Catch Me If You Can

Forestville Middle/High School - Disney's Beauty & the Beast

Lewiston Porter High School - Into the Woods

Pioneer Central School - Mary Poppins

St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute - The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Starpoint High School - Mary Poppins

Tonawanda High School - Jekyll & Hyde

West Seneca West Senior High School - Anything Goes

Over the coming months, the Kenny adjudicators will view all 10 of these productions and award the top schools and students for their efforts, including "The Kenny" for Outstanding Musical Production; which incorporates a $5,000 grant from The Lipke Foundation to be used solely by the school's theatre department. Other awards include categories for individual performances in leading and supporting roles, as well as areas of technical production, orchestration, choreography, set design, and vocal performance.

Since its inception in 1993, The Kenny Awards have bestowed $120,000 to theatre programs in Western New York high schools, recognized over 50 local high schools and nearly 10,000 students. In addition to the awards, the program offers complimentary workshops, lectures, and demonstrations to students in the finalist schools to help enhance and reinforce their craft.

The Kenny Awards is one of 30+ awards programs nationwide participating in the National High School Musical Awards Program. The selected Outstanding Leading Actress and Actor of our Kenny Awards go on to receive an all-expenses-paid, week-long trip to New York City to participate in The Jimmy Awards in June, 2018. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity includes rehearsals with Broadway actors and musicians, performances, opportunities to win college scholarships, and a debut performance on a Broadway stage. Visit www.JimmyAwards.com for more information.

As part of the 25th anniversary, a number of alumni outreach events are scheduled throughout the year and some exciting opportunities are being planned for the ceremony. The Kenny Awards ceremony will be held at Shea's on Saturday, May 12, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are $8.00 presale and $10 day of. Beginning April 28, tickets may be purchased at Shea's Ticket Office, 650 Main Street, or through Ticketmaster.

Pictured: 2017 Outstanding Musical Production winner - Maple Grove High School.

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