SKIT's Carolyn Newman is 2015 NJACT Hall of Fame Inductee! at ShowKids Invitational Theatre

Carolyn B. Newman, director and producer of ShowKids Invitational Theatre (SKIT) since the company’s inception in 1986, is a 2015 inductee into the New Jersey Association of Community Theater’s (NJACT) Perry Award Hall of Fame.

After numerous nominations over the past 28 seasons for “Outstanding Production of a Musical”, Carolyn won the 2014 prestigious Perry Award in this category for Shrek. In 2004, she won the Perry Award for her direction of Bye, Bye Birdie. Other awards for SKIT’s beloved skipper have included: McDowell Club’s 2005 “Woman of the Year”, the town of High Bridge’s 2004 “Ambassador of the Year”, 2001 Perry Award for SKIT as the “Outstanding Community Theatre” of 2001, 1998 “Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce Golden Award” & MasterCard & Entrepreneur Magazine’s 1992 “Leadership in Entrepreneurial Achievement Award”. Carolyn’s work has also brought her recognition as one of the “Notable Women through the History of Hunterdon County” by the Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission.

New Jersey's premiere awards for community theater, the NJACT Perry Awards are given for outstanding achievements in New Jersey Community Theater. Considering that more than 200 shows from around the state are reviewed each year, the number of SKIT nominations year after year is staggering. Carolyn has produced 70 shows with over 1,000 SKIT members during her career, and is a 24-time Perry Award nominee as a director – and 2-time winner (Best Director and Best Musical). And her company? SKIT has received 170 Perry Award nominations!

Last September, SKIT had its best showing at the annual industry awards, winning Perry’s in four of the ten categories for which SKIT’s production of Shrek was nominated:

• Outstanding Production of a Musical – ShowKids Invitational Theatre (Carolyn Newman and Diane Lehnert, Producers)


• Outstanding Sound Design – Tom Newman and Fritz Doddy


• Outstanding Scenic Design – Barry deVersterre, Margaret Villegas and Amy Whitmore


• Outstanding Costume Design – Lois Steeves and Cindy Pellis

“Every SKIT production is truly a labor of love, from the parents who worked tirelessly to volunteer their talents, to the committee heads (most of whose children have long graduated from SKIT), to every actor who performed on stage,” says a humble Carolyn Newman. “A win in any category is a win for all of SKIT, but ‘Outstanding Production’ is truly a testament to what we can accomplish together.”

This year, SKIT received four Perry nominations for two different shows, in addition to Carolyn’s Hall of Fame honors:

• Outstanding Lighting Design of a Musical - Julian Denison & Joan Chavez (Footloose)


• Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical – Pam Dean (Footloose)


• Outstanding Youth Actor in a Musical – Jonah Lione (Beauty and The Beast)


• Outstanding Youth Actress in a Musical – Megan Lako (Footloose)