Maltz Jupiter Theatre Awarded Nine Carbonells

The Maltz Jupiter Theatre brought home nine awards at the April 1 ceremony for the 37th annual Carbonell Awards, South Florida's equivalent of the Tony Awards.

With a ceremony held at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, the Theatre garnered the most awards of any of the South Florida nominees, surpassing winning theaters in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties.

The Theatre won all eight of the Carbonells in the 'musical' category, plus one for costume design - a feat that has not been accomplished in 34 years, as pointed out by The Miami Herald. By show, the Theatre earned six awards for The Music Man (including Best Musical), two for Hello, Dolly! and one for Cabaret.

"We feel so honored to accept such significant acknowledgment from our region's theater community," said Andrew Kato, the Theatre's producing artistic director. "South Florida has wonderful theater companies that are producing spectacular work, and we are truly touched to receive this high level of recognition from our peers."

The evening included performances from each of the nominees for best musical, including three from the Theatre: Kate Shindle singing "Cabaret" from Cabaret, Matt Loehr performing "Ya Got Trouble" from The Music Man and Vicki Lewis singing "Before the Parade Passes By" from Hello, Dolly!

"I credit much of the Theatre's success to the incredible quality of performers and designers that we attract," Kato said. "We are so grateful to the amazing artists who have chosen to work at our Theatre. Our auditions for our 2013/14 season begin this week, and we'd like to encourage even more local performers to check out our audition schedule on our website, audition for us and let their talents be known."

For The Music Man, the Theatre's awards included Best Production of a Musical; Best Actor in a Musical for Matt Loehr for his portrayal of leading man Professor Harold Hill; Best Musical Direction for Anne Shuttlesworth; Best Choreography for Shea Sullivan and Best Costume Design for Jose M. Rivera.

The Theatre's production of Hello, Dolly! earned the Best Director of a Musical award for Marcia Milgrom Dodge, the Best Actress in a Musical Award for Vicki Lewis for her portrayal of Dolly Levi and the Best Supporting Actor in a Musical award for Matt Loehr for his role as Cornelius Hackl.

For Cabaret, the Best Supporting Actress in a Musical award went to South Florida theater veteran Angie Radosh for her portrayal of Fraulein Schneider.

Four of the five shows produced by the Theatre in 2012 received a total of 23 Carbonell nominations in 10 categories.

Celebrating the best shows and performances in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, Carbonell nominations encompass the entire length of South Florida, with seven companies receiving awards and 35 of the shows that opened in 2012 being nominated.

Along with New York's Drama Desk and Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Awards, the Carbonell Awards are among the nation's senior regional arts awards and predate others, including Washington, D.C.'s Helen Hayes Awards. The Carbonell Awards fosters the artistic growth of professional theater in South Florida by celebrating the diversity of our theater artists, providing educational scholarships and building audience appreciation and civic pride by highlighting achievements of our theater community. Named after Manuel Carbonell - an internationally-renowned sculptor who designed the original solid bronze and marble award in 1976 - each season volunteer panelists and judges choose nominees and recipients from hundreds of shows produced on stages throughout the tri-county area.

The Theatre's 2013/14 season, Your Ticket to Great Entertainment, will feature Dial M for Murder, Annie, A Chorus Line, Other Desert Cities and The King and I. Full details of all of the Theatre's casting sessions can be found by visiting www.jupitertheatre.org and clicking on the "auditions and submissions" tab at the bottom of page.

Subscriptions are currently on sale; for a complete schedule and tickets, call (561) 575-2223 or visit www.jupitertheatre.org.