Best Performance by an Actress:
LAUREN A. MARCHAND
Presented by Nederlander Producing Company of America, Inc.

Best Performance by an Actor:
LANGSTON LEE
Presented by Nederlander Producing Company of America, Inc.

New York, NY – June 27, 2023 – The winners of the 14 ^th annual Jimmy Awards^® were determined and announced last night, June 26, 2023, in front of a sold-out audience at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway. The coveted JimmyAwards for Best Performance by an Actress and Best Performance by an Actor were presented to Lauren A. Marchand, The Roger Rees Award (New York, NY) and Langston Lee, Heller Awards for Young Artists (Austin, TX). Both winners were each presented with a check for the amount of $25,000 to further their education.

The ceremony, hosted by Corbin Bleu was also live streamed and will remain available for viewing for the next 72 hours – through Thursday, June 29, 2023 – at www.jimmyawards.com. An alternate stream that includes ASL interpretation and closed captioning is also available.

The Jimmy Awards has been the catalyst for more than $6,000,000 in educational scholarships to date. This year, a total of twenty awards and scholarships were presented to participants.

Six finalists each received a $3,000 scholarship toward their future education:

● Samia Posadas, The Monte Awards (Tucson, AZ)

● Omar Andre Real, The Lucie Arnaz Awards (Palm Springs, CA)

● Corbin Drew Ross, Broadway Dallas High School Musical Theatre Awards (Dallas, TX)

● Maya Sharma, Kravis Center Dream Awards (West Palm Beach, FL)

● Christian Strong, CAPA Marquee Awards (Columbus, OH)

● Anna Wright, St. Louis High School Musical Theatre Awards (St. Louis, MO)

Additional awards winners each received a $2,000 scholarship:

Best Dancer, presented by MJ The Musical , for excellence in dance and movement
● Sophi Keller, Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards (Logan, UT)

Rising Star, presented by The John Gore Organization, for impressive advancement during the Jimmy Awards program
● Gage Williams, St. Louis High School Musical Theatre Awards (St. Louis, MO)

Best Performance in an Ensemble, presented by The Shubert Organization, for outstanding collaboration during the Jimmy Awards program
● Samantha A. Nelson, Applause Awards (Orlando, FL)

Spirit of the Jimmys, presented by Thomas Schumacher & Disney Theatrical Group, for embodying the spirit of this musical theatre celebration
● Omar Andre Real, The Lucie Arnaz Awards (Palm Springs, CA)

Semifinalist Scholarships, co-presented by Blumenthal Performing Arts & McCoy Rigby Entertainment :

● Croix Baker, Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards (Des Moines, IA)

● Steven Dao, Nebraska High School Theater Academy (Omaha, NE)

● Jackson Manning, Philadelphia Independence Awards (Philadelphia, PA)

● Carly Mikula, The Jerry Awards (Madison, WI)

● Mia Nelson, Spotlight Education (Minneapolis, MN)

● Annie Sardouk, Broadway Star of the Future (Tampa, FL)

● Ayden Weinstein, The Kenny Awards (Buffalo, NY)

● Makenzie Woolridge, Tommy Tune Awards (Houston, TX)

The INSPIRING TEACHER AWARD, presented by WELLS FARGO, was presented to Vanessa Lock Gelinas of Oakton High School (Vienna, Virginia) for her role in providing valuable guidance and encouragement for her student who excelled during last year’s Jimmy Awards.

Jimmy Awards alumni EvaNoblezada (Hadestown) and McKenzie Kurtz (Wicked) returned to the Minskoff stage to present the Week-in-Review video and the Tribute to Touring Broadway number, respectively.

Andrew Barth Feldman, 2018 Jimmy Award winner, introduced the Musicals Group number which featured a medley of songs from Broadway musicals inspired by Shakespeare. The INSPIRING TEACHER AWARD, presented by WELLS FARGO, was announced by Elijah Rhea Johnson and Antoine L. Smith, currently starring in MJ The Musical .

Judges for the 2023 Jimmy Awards included Tony Award^®-winning producers, award-winning casting experts, and industry leaders. Khady Kamara, Joe Machota, Alecia Parker, T. Oliver Reid, Tara Rubin, Nick Scandalios, Thomas Schumacher, Bernie Telsey, and Sergio Trujillo selected the evening’s winners. Preliminary judges who evaluated and cast the nominees into performance groups included Kristian Charbonier, Stephanie Klapper, Kevin Metzger-Timson, Dale Mott, and Seth Sklar-Heyn.

The annual talent showcase featured all 96 nominees performing on a Broadway stage following an amazing week in New York City where rehearsals and private coaching took place at The Juilliard School. The industry coaches who mentored the nominees included: Jenni Barber, Max Chernin, Maryann Hu, Adam Kantor, Telly Leung, Howard McGillin, and Desi Oakley.

The National High School Musical Theatre Awards®, better known as the Jimmy Awards®, is a coast-to-coast celebration of outstanding student achievement, recognizing individual artistry in vocal, dance, and acting performance. The 2023 Jimmy Awards featured 96 nominees from 48 regional awards programs making their debuts on a Broadway stage. During this unforgettable talent showcase, a panel of judges selected two students to receive the coveted awards of Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress.

The Jimmy Awards^®/The National High School Musical Theatre Awards ^® (NHSMTA^®) program impacts 140,000 students who participate in nearly 50 regional high musical theatre competitions sponsored by presenters of touring Broadway productions throughout the United States. Named for Broadway impresario James M. Nederlander, the program has been the catalyst for more than $6,000,000 in educational scholarships.

Founded in 2009 by Nederlander Alliances LLC, Pittsburgh CLO, and Broadway Education Alliance (BEA), the mission of the NHSMTA is to raise the profile of musical theatre in schools, honor dedicated teachers, and inspire the next generation of performers and enthusiasts. Numerous participants have already been cast in Broadway, Touring, and West End productions.

Presented by The Broadway League Foundation Inc., the NHSMTA invites one Best Actress and one Best Actor nominee from each local regional ceremony to New York City for a week-long theatre intensive that includes coaching sessions, training, and rehearsals led by some of Broadway’s most accomplished professionals. All their combined efforts throughout the week led to one extraordinary talent showcase performed live in front of an audience on a Broadway stage. For more information, please visit JimmyAwards.com.

The Broadway League conducts the program through The Broadway League Foundation Inc., its philanthropic division. Part of the Foundation’s mission is to enlighten and increase the public's knowledge, appreciation, and awareness of the theatrical arts, and since its founding in 1993, has supported several projects to help preserve Broadway's heritage and introduce new audiences to Broadway theatre. The Foundation is a corporation organized under the Not-for-Profit Corporation Law of the State of New York, the purposes of which are exclusively charitable as defined in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Donations to support the program can be made at www.JimmyAwards.com .

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Apples and Oranges Arts is the streaming and video production partner of the Jimmy Awards. The official media partner of the Jimmy Awards is WABC-TV.