Grace Auer and Ian Hayes Represented Buffalo at This Year's JIMMY AWARDS

Shea's Performing Arts Center and The Lipke Foundation are proud to have sent the Best Actress and Best Actor winners from the 24th Annual Kenny Awards to participate in The Jimmy Awards on Monday, June 26.

Grace Auer of Maple Grove High School and Ian Hayes of Frontier High School participated in this year's Jimmy Awards program.

At the awards ceremony on Monday night, Hayes was awarded the Best Performance in an Ensemble. This award goes to the person with great team spirit who always supports others and helps create a cohesive ensemble.

The Kenny Awards was one of 37 regional awards programs nationwide participating in The Jimmy Awards, which allowed the selected Outstanding Leading Actress and Actor of the Kenny Awards to win an all-expenses-paid, week-long trip to New York City to compete in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards.

Monday's awards presentation included the student awards and speeches from this year's Best Actress and Best Actor winners. Additionally, the inaugural Inspiring Teacher Award, presented by Wells Fargo, was given to Brendan Jennings (Burbank, CA) and Larry Robinson (Monroe, NC) for the encouragement and inspiration that led their students to win the 2016 coveted Jimmy Award for Best Performance by an Actress and Best Performance by an Actor.

Student performers qualified to compete in the national program by winning top honors at regional high school musical theatre awards competitions presented by Broadway League member performing arts centers. Over 1,300 high schools and 50,000 students participate in these annual events. Since the inception of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (NHSMTA) in 2009, participating students have earned over $1,000,000 in university and conservatory scholarships. Several student participants have already been cast in Broadway, Touring and West End productions.

Jimmy Award nominees prepared for their Broadway debut during a nine-day professional training intensive with NYU Tisch School of the Arts' New Studio on Broadway faculty members plus other theatre professionals.

The six coaches -- Andréa Burns, Randy Graff, Adam Kantor, Michael McElroy, Howard McGillin, and Schele Williams -- mentored the 74 high school students from across America as they competed for the Jimmy Award for Best Performance by an Actor and Actress.

The two-hour talent showcase featured dynamic ensemble and solo performances and was hosted by 2017 Tony Award winner Ben Platt, currently starring in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway. Kenny Ortega was also on hand as a presenter.

Winners were selected by a panel of judges comprised of notable theatre professionals including Tony Award-winning producers, award-winning casting experts and industry professionals: Kent Gash, Montego Glover, Rachel Hoffman, Kevin McCollum, Alecia Parker, Tara Rubin, Bernie Telsey, and Charlotte Wilcox. Additional judges during the week were Paul Canaan, Wayne Cilento, Tara Rubin, Stephanie Klapper, and Cesar Rocha.

The Jimmy Awards are presented by the Broadway League Foundation. Founded in 2009 by Nederlander Alliances LLC, Pittsburgh CLO, and Broadway Education Alliance (BEA), NHSMTA's mission is to raise the profile of musical theatre in schools, recognize dedicated teachers and inspire the next generation of performers and enthusiasts. The Jimmy Awards are named in honor of the late James M. Nederlander, legendary Broadway producer/theatre owner. The NHSMTA program is supported by many leading theatre industry organizations. More information about the National High School Musical Theatre Awards program can be found at JIMMYAWARDS.COM.

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