Kail & Blankenbuehler to Receive Callaway Awards

The director and choreographer of In the Heights, Thomas Kail and Andy Blankenbuehler, are the winners of the 2006-2007 Joseph A. Callaway Award for Excellence in the crafts of Direction and Choreography.

Thomas Kail is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Back House Productions, the resident theater company of NYC's Drama Book Shop. Co-creator and director of Freestyle Love Supreme, seen at New York's Ars Nova, his work has also been featured at the HBO Comedy Festival, The Cherry Lane (Mentor Project), Edinburgh Fringe, Flea Theater, Melbourne Comedy Fest and the O'Neill Musical Theater Conference. Mr. Kail is a graduate of Wesleyan University, CT.

Andy Blankenbuehler, winner of the 2007 Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel and the Outer Critics Circle Awards for In the Heights, recently choreographed the Broadway revival of The Apple Tree, as well as Waiting For The Moon (Frank Wildhorn), A Little Princess (Andrew Lippa), A Wonderful Life (Paper Mill Playhouse) and the Caesar's Palace hit production, Nights On Broadway. As a dancer, he appeared on Broadway in Fosse, Contact, Man of La Mancha, Saturday Night Fever, Steel Pier, Big, and Guys and Dolls.

The Callaway Committee chose these winners from among the following six finalists for the 2006-2007 season – five directors and one choreographer – culled from the hundreds of eligible artist

Each award consists of an elegant crystal memento plus a cash stipend, provided from an endowment bequeathed by Mr. Joseph A. Callaway.  The awards will be presented to both Mr. Kail and Mr. Blankenbuehler (and each finalist will receive a certificate of honor) immediately prior to the Annual SSDC Membership Meeting on November 19th at 6:00 pm at the Abingdon Theatre, 312 W. 36th Street.

The 2006-2007 Callaway Committee, comprised of SSDC director and choreographer members, was chaired by Linda Burson and included Melvin Bernhardt, Leslie (Hoban) Blake, Hope Clarke, Edie Cowan, Susan Einhorn, John Going, Bick Goss, Gus Kaikkonen, Sue Lawless, Michael Montel, Tony Parise and Melanie Sutherland.

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