United Solo Special Award Nominees Announced

The world's largest solo theatre festival announced the nominees for the United Solo Special Award. Now in its sixth year, the Festival honors performers who have made outstanding contributions to solo theatre. Previous award winners include Anna Deavere Smith, Patti LuPone, John Leguizamo, Fiona Shaw, and Billy Crystal.

All five of this year's nominees performed their solo shows outside the Festival, and have been widely acclaimed for their dedication to the art of solo performance. The nominees are Tom Dugan, Cush Jumbo, James Lecesne, Benjamin Scheuer, and Wanda Sykes. The winner of the United Solo Special Award will be announced at the festival's closing ceremony on November 22 at Theatre Row on 42nd St in New York City. The winner will be invited to join the United Solo Academy and take part in selecting the following years' nominees.

United Solo will present 150 shows from six continents between September 17 and November 22 at Theatre Row, where it is a resident company. The shows represent a variety of categories, from dramatic to comedic, from original scripts to classic adaptations. Tickets priced $19.25, which includes a theatre restoration charge, can be purchased at the Theatre Row Box Office, 410 West 42nd St, NYC; over the phone at 212.239.6200 and online atwww.telecharge.com. Thirty shows are currently sold out, and the festival will add extra dates for sold-out shows. The most recent schedule can be found atwww.unitedsolo.org