Each year, the Basie Awards honor the best of Monmouth County's high school theatre. See this year's list of nominations:
Sara Winick, Patch Staff
RED BANK, NJ — Nominations for the 2025 Basie Awards have been announced, with the annual celebration of Monmouth County high school theatre set to take place on Wednesday, May 21, at the historic Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank.
This year’s ceremony marks the 20th anniversary of the Basie Awards program, which is modeled after the Tony Awards and evaluates musical and drama productions in high schools throughout Monmouth County.
A rubric is used to assess performances in 25+ categories, recognizing excellence in everything from acting and directing to set and costume design, choreography, lighting and orchestra.
“Twenty years of witnessing hundreds of student productions and all the work that goes into them — both onstage and behind the scenes — has yielded recognition for thousands of students, staff and other individual nominees,” said Adam Philipson, President and CEO, Count Basie Center for the Arts.
“But what is equally notable is the supportive theatrical community that has developed throughout the county,” Philipson continued. “Which we like to think is a reflection of the Basie Awards tradition.”
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This year, the Basie Awards Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Fran and Paul Turner, two longstanding patrons of the arts and supporters of the Basie Center’s arts education initiatives.
“The Count Basie Center’s performing arts school is now the Turner Academy of the Arts — named in Fran and Paul’s honor,” Philipson said. “Recognizing the Turners for their selfless devotion to the arts also celebrates the fact that students can continue to come to us to be inspired and empowered by the performing arts."
“Our twentieth-year celebration will reflect on the past, honor the present, and look ahead to the future," said Samantha Giustiniani, Vice President of Education and Outreach, Count Basie Center for the Arts. “We're thrilled to welcome more than 25 alumni to share in this event, all of whom participated in the Basie Awards as high schoolers.”
Tickets for this year’s presentation go on sale Friday, May 9, at 10 a.m. through the Count Basie Center website, the Basie Center Box Office, or via phone at 732-842-9000.
For the 2025 ceremony, 52 high school productions were evaluated by the Basie Awards nomination committee, producing notations in the following categories:
CAROLE MALIK AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN OF A PLAY
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN OF A PLAY
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN OF A PLAY
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - COMEDY
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - DRAMA
OUTSTANDING COMPANY IN A COMEDY
OUTSTANDING COMPANY IN A DRAMA
OUTSTANDING STAGE + TECH CREW OF A PLAY
OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A PLAY
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
CAROLE MALIK AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING ALL STUDENT ORCHESTRA
OUTSTANDING MIXED STUDENT + ADULT ORCHESTRA
AMY GIINTHER FREDERICKS AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING MUSICAL DIRECTION
OUTSTANDING FEATURED ENSEMBLE GROUP
OUTSTANDING CHORUS IN A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
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OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A FEMALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MALE-IDENTIFIED ROLE - MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING STAGE + TECH CREW OF A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
This year, the Basie Awards shines a light on all that happens backstage and behind the scenes, much of which is led by the students themselves. In our continued efforts to celebrate, educate and uplift our participating schools, we recognize there are student contributions that do not fit neatly into "eligible nominated categories."
We are excited to share the following new recognitions:
OUTSTANDING STUDENT-LED PLAY
OUTSTANDING STUDENT-LED MUSICAL
OUTSTANDING STUDENT LEADERSHIPThese student leaders were nominated by their teachers as having gone above and beyond to lead by example and pave the way for incredible contributions, which may not always be seen by the audience and our evaluators. Announced live at THE BASIE AWARDS on May 21st!
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