The 13th Annual 5th Avenue Awards Winners Announced Honoring High School Musical Theatre

High school students from across Washington State packed The 5th Avenue Theatre tonight for The 13th Annual 5th Avenue Awards Honoring High School Musical Theater, a high school version of the Tony Awards, proudly sponsored by Wells Fargo with additional support from Alaska Airlines. The house was packed with over 2,000 teenagers, many in costumes representing their schools' musical theater productions, who cheered for their peers as they performed musical excerpts and accepted awards honoring top student achievements in musical theater. The acclaimed event, directed this year by Kat Ramsburg, handed out awards in 21 categories ranging from Outstanding Overall Musical Production to Outstanding Lobby Display.

"The High School Awards is always an exciting night to be at The 5th Avenue," says Wells Fargo Senior Vice President of Community Affairs, Mark Dederer. "It is events like this that celebrate arts, education, and students, that bring a special energy to the theater and to the participating schools. The student performances are always electrifying and Wells Fargo is honored to support this event and wish congratulations to all the nominees and recipients."

A grand total of 18 high schools were represented among the recipients of The 13th Annual 5th Avenue Awards. Camas High School took home top honors at the end of the night with the award for Outstanding Overall Musical Production for their hit show, Cabaret. In a testament to the high quality work being done in schools all across Washington State, no school swept the ceremony, with five schools taking home two awards each, including Bellarmine Preparatory School (Little Women), Camas High School (Cabaret),Ferndale High School (Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins),Glacier Peak High School(The Addams Family), and Lewis & Clark High School (Into the Woods).

Ferndale High School student Hannah Sulak received the award for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins) and Camas High School student Andrew Hensen received the award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Cabaret). These talented young students will travel to the National High School Musical Theater Awards in New York City at the end of June. The 5th Avenue sincerely thanks Alaska Airlines, whose support makes it possible to send the recipients of the Leading Actor and Leading Actress awards to New York to compete.

Liberty High School took home the award for Outstanding Direction (The Drowsy Chaperone), Lewis and Clark High School received the award for Outstanding Music Direction (Into the Woods), andRedmond High School brought home the award for Outstanding Choreography (Once on This Island).

This year, the Special Honor for Outstanding Educator was given to Nancy Duck-Jefferson, performing arts teacher at Kamiak High School. She received her Bachelor of Music Education at Pacific Lutheran University in 1990, with an emphasis in Choral Music Education, and earned her Masters of Arts Degree in Music Education from the University of Washington in 1994. Ms. Jefferson began her professional career in music education in the Eastmont School District, teaching both instrumental and choral music at Eastmont Junior High. She moved to the Mukilteo School District in 1992 where she taught Choral Music and Drama at Harbour Pointe Middle School. After moving to Kamiak High School in 1998, she currently teaches five choirs and co-directs the annual spring musical production. Her impact on students is immense and her dedication has had a profound effect on the students who have passed through her classroom.

The program, which Producing Artistic Director Bill Berry created in 2003, has grown in size and scope from 24 productions and 3,100 students to 104 productions at 89 schools, with more than 10,000 students participating this year. For the 2014/15 high school theater season, 197 nominations and 163 honorable mentions were given in various categories. Each year, schools from across Washington State submit their musicals for consideration by The 5th Avenue Awards Committee. Local theater professionals are selected by The 5th as evaluators to travel to cities as far away as Spokane, Lynden, Sequim and Vancouver, seeking the best actors, actresses, directors and designers to represent their schools in this hotly anticipated annual event.

Over the years, many schools have reported back to The 5th Avenue that their involvement in this awards program has significantly helped their individual efforts to secure funding, improve curriculum, and increase student participation.

For a full list of 5th Avenue Award recipients, visit the 2015 5th Avenue Awards page athttps://www.5thavenue.org/education/student-programs#5th-avenue-awards. The award ceremony was webcast live on The 5th Avenue Facebook page.

The 5th Avenue sincerely thanks Wells Fargo for its sponsorship of this important event. In Washington, Wells Fargo invested $3.7 million in nonprofits and schools across the state, and team members logged 56,000 volunteer hours in 2014. Founded in 1852, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 8,700 locations, more than 12,500 ATMs, online (wellsfargo.com), and mobile devices.

The 5th Avenue also extends its thanks to Alaska Airlines for its additional support, and for enabling the recipients of Outstanding Actor and Actress to travel to the National High School Musical Awards. Headquartered right here in Seattle, Alaska Airlines supports 350 Puget Sound charities and last year gave more than $4.3 million. Their team of 6,600 locally-based employees are also giving back to charities that are enriching the lives of people who live throughout Washington. Last year employees volunteered some 20,000 hours to worthwhile nonprofits like the Make-a-Wish foundation, American Cancer Society Relay for Life and Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center. Learn more at alaskaair.com.

2015 5th Avenue Award Recipients

Outstanding Overall Musical

Camas High School, Cabaret

Outstanding Direction

Liberty High School, The Drowsy Chaperone

Outstanding Music Direction

Lewis and Clark High School, Into the Woods

Outstanding Choreography

Redmond High School, Once on This Island

Outstanding Orchestra (tie)

Battle Ground High School, The 1940s Radio Hour

Hockinson High School, Little Shop of Horrors

Outstanding Scenic Design

Lewis and Clark High School, Into the Woods

Outstanding Lighting Design

University High School, Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins

Outstanding Costume Design

Hanford High School, Thoroughly Modern Millie

Outstanding Hair and Makeup Design

Glacier Peak High School, The Addams Family

Outstanding Stage Crew

Ferndale High School, Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins

Outstanding Lobby Display

Peninsula High School, Aida

Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Hannah Sulak as Mary Poppins

Ferndale High School, Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins

Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Andrew Henson as Emcee

Camas High School, Cabaret

Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Aisha Carpenter as Muzzy Van Hossmere

Ballard High School, Thoroughly Modern Millie

Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Jonah Thorpe-Kramp as Mr. Laurence

Bellarmine Preparatory School, Little Women

Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Featured Ensemble Role

Melissa Bailey as Grandma

Heritage High School, The Addams Family

Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Featured Ensemble Role

James Rheaume as Lewis

Seattle Preparatory School, Pippin

Outstanding Performance by an Actor or Actress in a Non-Singing Role

Dustin Vaughn as King Sextimus

Omak High School, Once Upon a Mattress

Outstanding Performance by a Chorus

Glacier Peak High School, The Addams Family

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Group

The March Sisters

Bellarmine Preparatory School, Little Women

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast

Sunnyside High School, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown

Special Honor: Outstanding Educator

Nancy Duck-Jefferson, Kamiak High School

Special Honors: Educational Impact
A.C. Davis High School, White Christmas
Ballard High School, Thoroughly Modern Millie
Blaine High School, Disney's Beauty and the Beast and The Unity Project: Soldat
Camas High School, Cabaret

Cashmere High School, Guys and Dolls

Eatonville High School, Disney's High School Musical

Kamiak High School, Little Shop of Horrors

Mercer Island High School, Sweeney Todd

Snohomish High School, Roald Dahl's Willie Wonka

Stadium High School, LES MISERABLES

Sunnyside High School, Disney's Beauty and the Beast and You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown

Special Honors: Student Achievement

A.C. Davis High School, Cloey Lantrip and Mackenzie Taylor

Auburn Mountainview High School, Spencer Stromberg

Ballard High School, Amanda Balter

Blaine High School, Isabel Bushman
Bonney Lake High School, Cameron Browning
Camas High School, Bethany Burton

Cashmere High School, Molly Robertson

Decatur High School, Dylan Forbes

Edmonds Heights K-12, Mady Griffin

Eisenhower High School, Jacob Dolan
Hanford High School, Zach Harper
Juanita High School, Jonathon Hudson and Erin Johnson

Kamiak High School, Andrew Meyers

Kentridge High School, Samantha Campion

Marysville-Pilchuck High School, Sage Fairbanks

Mercer Island High School, Hannah Conradt

Mount Rainier High School, Marissa O'Keefe
Olympia High School, Lauryn Bertrand

Redmond High School, Elizabeth Bailey

Stanwood High School, Cameron Chollar

Sunnyside High School, Ricky Medina
Tumwater High School, Sean Gassin

University High School, Michael Scott

Wenatchee High School, Bryce Newberry

About The 5th Avenue Theatre

The non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre is acclaimed as one of the nation's leading musical theater companies and is especially renowned for its production and development of new works. Since 2002, the Seattle-based company has produced 17 new musicals. To date, nine (including the sensational hit Disney's Aladdin) have moved on to Broadway premieres, earning a combined 15 Tony Awards, including two for Best Musical (Hairspray and Memphis). The 5th Avenue Theatre is also known for its world class, critically acclaimed productions of musicals chosen from both the contemporary canon and the Golden Age of Broadway.

Unique in its Chinese-inspired design, this exquisite theater opened in 1926 as a venue for vaudeville and film. Today, under the leadership of Executive Producer and Artistic Director David Armstrong, Managing Director Bernadine C. Griffin and Producing Artistic Director Bill Berry, this non-profit theater company attracts an annual attendance of more than 300,000, including over 25,000 subscribers - one of the largest theater subscriptions in North America.

In addition to its main stage productions, The 5th Avenue Theatre is also committed to encouraging the next generation of theatergoers through its extensive educational outreach programs. For more information about The 5th Avenue Theatre, its season and its programs, please visit www.5thavenue.org.

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