Shea’s Performing Arts Center has announced the 10 finalists for the 2023 Kenny Awards, which will be held on Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 6 p.m. at Shea’s Buffalo Theatre. The Kenny Awards, presented by Shea’s Performing Arts Center and The Lipke Foundation, and in its 30th year, celebrates excellence in high school musical theatre in Western New York. The Lipke Foundation will provide a $10,000 grant to the theatre program that receives the award for Outstanding Musical Production.
The 10 finalist schools for the 2022 Kenny Awards are:
Amherst Central High School
Amherst, NY
Seussical: The Musical
February 10-11, 2023
Barker Junior/Senior High School
Barker, NY
Smile
March 10-12, 2023
Iroquois High School
Elma, NY
TBD
March 16-18, 2023
Lockport High School
Lockport, NY
All Shook Up
March 24-26, 2023
Maple Grove High School
Bemus Point, NY
Newsies
March 25-27
Maryvale High School
Cheektowaga, NY
Disney’s Beauty and the Beast
March 3-4, 2023
Nardin Academy
Buffalo, NY
Disney’s The Little Mermaid
November 10-12, 2022
North Tonawanda High School
North Tonawanda, NY
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
March 9-11, 2023
Pine Valley Central School
South Dayton, NY
Little Women
March 24-25, 2023
West Seneca West Senior High
West Seneca, NY
Mean Girls
February 9-11, 2023
Finalists are eligible for the following award categories: Outstanding Musical Production, Outstanding Orchestral Performance, Outstanding Technical Design, Outstanding Choral Performance, Outstanding Scenic Design, Outstanding Dramatic Performance, Outstanding Costume Design, Outstanding Dance Performance, The Showstopper Award, Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble, The Blossom Cohan Award, Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role, Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role, Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role, and Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role. The 2022 Outstanding Musical Production Award recipient was Lancaster High School for their production of Catch Me if You Can.
Recipients of the Outstanding Leading Actress and Actor awards will travel to New York City to participate in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (The Jimmy Awards) produced by the Broadway League Foundation at the Minskoff Theatre. Elizabeth Hopkins of Barker High School (Little Women) and Ryan Butler of Starpoint High School (Newsies) represented Western New York at the 2022 Jimmy Awards.
