The eighth annual Stephen Sondheim Awards on Saturday night at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven will feature two local nominees: John Rush, a senior at Waterbury Arts Magnet School, for Best Supporting Actor as George in the WAMS musical “The Drowsy Chaperone,” and Housatonic Valley Regional High School's production of “Urinetown The Musical” for Best Musical. That school is in Falls Village.
Modeled after Broadway’s Tony Awards, the prestigious program honors excellence in high school musical theater.
The nominations were announced by student reporters during an online event April 28 via Black Rock Theater’s Facebook page. The gala will celebrate 32 high school musical theater programs from across Connecticut and Massachusetts. There will be performances from the Best Musical nominees, as well as Best Actor/Actress medleys.
Other nominees for Best Musical include “The Little Mermaid” at Amity Regional High School, “Les Miserable” at Darien High School, “The Addams Family” at Hall High School in West Hartford, , “Mean Girls” at North Reading High School in Massachusetts, “Mamma Mia” at Shelton High School, “42nd Street” at Stamford High School and “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” at Valley Regional High School in Deep River.
The Sondheim Awards will be hosted by Broadway's Noah J. Ricketts (“The Great Gatsby,” “Frozen,” “Beautiful”) and Samantha Pauly (“Six,” “The Great Gatsby”).
The gala begins at 7:30 p.m. and has no intermission.
The Shubert Theatre is at 247 College St. Tickets in the mezzanine and balcony are available at my.shubert.com.
CCC plans awards ceremony in June
The Connecticut Critics Circle has announced its 33rd annual awards ceremony will take place June 23 from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at Housatonic Community College's Event Center in Bridgeport.
The awards period covers shows that opened between June 1, 2024 and May 20, 2025.
"It is a powerfully moving evening with artists, many who have devoted their careers to regional theater, receiving an all-too-rare tribute,” CCC President Stuart Brown stated. “It’s also an opportunity to promote the vast talent and productions our famously theatrical state has produced, from its Tony Award-winning regional theaters to well-established venues to emerging professional groups making new names for themselves."
The event is free and open to the public, and usually attracts hundreds of theatergoers from all corners of the state. Due to budgetary constraints, there will not be a reception this year.
There is free parking at the HCC garage, 870 Lafayette Blvd. Parking on the right side will bring you closest to the elevator.
Reserve tickets at eventbrite.com by June 16.
For information, contact Brown at [email protected].
Nancy Sasso Janis is the membership chair of the Connecticut Critics Circle (ctcritics.org.)