NSAL Star Maker Awards to Honor Boca Ballet Theatre's Jane Tyree and Dan Guin

The National Society of Arts & Letters Florida East Coast Chapter has announced their 4th Annual Star Maker Awards will be held at The Wick Theatre and Costume Museum in Boca Raton on Sunday, April 25, 2021 at 6:30 pm.

During the event, NSAL scholarship and competition winners will perform, and Boca Ballet Theatre co-Artistic Directors Jane Tyree and Dan Guin will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for their tremendous contribution to the arts. Due to the cancellation of the 2020 event, Broadway legend Avery Sommers will also receive her belated Lifetime Achievement award. Tickets for the event are $250 per person and include supper, dessert and valet parking and are available at www.nsalfloridaeast.org. The event will follow all social distancing protocols.

"The Star Maker Awards is a dazzling celebration of the arts featuring instrumental, vocal and musical theatre performances along with visual art presentations by NSAL's scholarship and competition winners," said event chair Kim Champion. "We are thrilled that we will be able to hold this year's fundraiser in person this year, and we will be following all COVID-19 safety precautions."

This year's national competition is ballet, and the winner of this chapter's competition will receive a $2,000 prize and will compete virtually in June for the $12,000 National prize.

"With ballet as this year's national competition, we are thrilled that Jane and Dan, who are beloved in the dance realm, will be the recipients of our Lifetime Achievement Award," said Judi Asselta, President of the NSAL Florida East Coast Chapter. "Boca Ballet Theatre's contribution to the arts in South Florida is incomparable, and we are honored that they have been instrumental in supporting our competition."

In 1990, a determined group of families launched Boca Ballet Theatre Company with little more than a dream. Two years later, they secured the services of Co-Artistic Directors Dan Guin and Jane Tyree, who brough a wealth of professional experience and a compelling vision for the future of the organization. The following year, the School of Boca Ballet Theatre was established in support of the of the Company's mission. The Company has earned a position among the top civic companies in the country, while the School of Boca Ballet Theatre, one of the few nonprofit dance schools in the country, has garnered attention for its distinctive stair-step approach to training.

"We are also delighted that Avery Sommers will be attending to receive her much-deserved award which we were unable to present in person due to the pandemic," continued Asselta.

Sommers starred on Broadway in the long running, critically acclaimed musicals, Ain't Misbehavin' and Showboat, in addition to starring in the national tours of Chicago and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Sommers also is a star of film and television and has a tremendous following of jazz and blues fans who clamor to see her local shows and performances in New York City's finest cabarets.

For businesses and individuals interested in becoming a sponsor of this prestigious event, there are many opportunity levels available via the Open Doors campaign, which is detailed on the website.

To post a comment, you must register and login.