Barry Kornhauser's Receives Top National Theater Award

The Children's Theater Foundation of America (CTFA) has announced that Barry Kornhauser of Millersville University, a nationally recognized playwright, director and educator has been named the recipient of its 2014 Medallion Award. The Award is regarded as the highest honor in the field of Theater for Young Audiences. This year's ceremony - where the award will be officially announced and presented -- will take place in the Imperial Ballroom of the Denver Hyatt at the annual American Alliance for Theatre and Education national conference in Denver, Colorado on Friday, August 1. Kornhauser will be attending to accept his award.

The "Orlin Corey" Medallions have been presented since 1992 at events around the country and are awarded to "individuals and institutions, honoring their significant achievements in theater which have contributed to the cultural enrichment of children and youth in the United States and Canada," according to the CTFA website.

In announcing the award, CTFA noted that "Barry is an acclaimed, award-winning playwright in the Theatre for Young Audiences field, has distinguished himself as a leader in theatre education programs for young people, and has served generously on the boards of organizations serving the national and international TYA community."

Kornhauser -- who is described by Laura Kendall, Director of the Ware & Winter Centers of Millersville University as "a national treasure, who just happens to live in Lancaster" - joins some of the biggest names in children's theatre. Past recipients of this award have included: Maurice Sendak; Dr. Suess; multi-Tony winner Julie Taymor ("The Lion King"); Shari Lewis, Lamb Chops & Friends, Paul Sills, Charles M. Schultz (of "Peanuts" fame); Tony Randall, and Pennsylvania's own Fred Rogers (of "Mr. Roger's Neighborhood); along with such institutions as The National Endowment for the Arts, Th­e Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; PBS Television; ­The New Victory ­Theatre of New York City; and this year's Tony-winner Th­e Oregon Shakespeare Festival; to name only a few.

Barry Kornhauser spearheads the Family Arts Collaborative and Community Outreach programs at Millersville University in Lancaster County, Pa. His office is based in the Ware Center. Prior to this, he served as playwright-in-residence and sundry other positions at the Fulton Theatre for 30 years. His honors include the Charlotte B. Chorpenning Cup Award honoring "a body of distinguished work by a nationally known writer of outstanding plays for children," Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Play, Ivey Playwriting Award, two AATE Distinguished Play Awards,the Bonderman Playwriting Prize, and Pennsylvania's first Educational Theater Award "for outstanding service by an individual for the advancement of theater education in the Commonwealth." He has received grants and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, TYA USA/ASSITEJ, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour. Kornhauser's work has taken him everywhere from a one-room schoolhouse to the White House and to such Tony Award-winning stages as the Children's Theatre Company, La Jolla Playhouse, the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, D.C.and the Alliance Theatre. His plays have also been produced at the Kennedy Center, Childsplay and the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, among other theatres nationwide and overseas, as well as at festivals from New York City to California, including theKennedy Center's New Visions/New Voices and One Theater World.

Founded in 1958, the Children's Theater Foundation of America advances the artistic and professional interests of theatre for young audiences in the USA. The Foundation pursues its goals by funding proposals of American theatres, artists, scholars, and special projects of national import to the field.