Producers of SPRING AWAKENING Revival Honored By Mayor's Office

Ken Davenport, Cody Lassen, Hunter Arnold, and David J. Kurs, producers of Deaf West Theatre's acclaimed production of Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik's Spring Awakening, were honored this morning by The Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities and Commissioner Victor Calise at the NDEAM (National Disability Employment Awareness Month) Awards, where they received the Champion of Change Award.

Along with the producers of Spring Awakening, other recipients of the Champion of Change Award are Montefiore Medical Center, LinkedIn, Alpha Workshops and JCPenney. The NDEAM Awards were also presented to a variety of businesses including the VA Harbor Healthcare, Union Beer, Home Depot, National Parks Service and ABM.

The event, held to honor a diverse roster of businesses in NYC, was presented at the Tweed Courthouse in association with ACCES-VR, the NYC Placement Consortium, and the NY State Commission for the Blind.

2015 is the 25th anniversary year for the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as the 25th year that the NDEAM Awards have been presented in NYC. To acknowledge this quarter century of commitment, the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities presented five special awards specifically for those in the community who, through their innovation, vision, design, development and implementation, change the status quo for employment and career opportunities for people with disabilities. This award is the Champion of Change Award.

The 2015 Champion of Change citation given to Davenport, Lassen, Arnold, and Kurs is presented to Deaf West Theatre, "For its efforts to increase diversity and inclusivity on Broadway. Its production of Spring Awakening shines a spotlight on talented actors of all abilities and creates a Broadway experience that can be enjoyed by every New Yorker. As we celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, I am delighted to join in applauding Deaf West Theatre's commitment to broadening our city's cultural landscape and to building a more equitable tomorrow for all New Yorkers. [Signed, Bill de Blasio, Mayor; October 19, 2015.]"

Spring Awakening, directed by Michael Arden and choreographed by Spencer Liff, is currently playing on Broadway in a limited engagement through Sunday, January 24 only at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256 West 47th Street).

The complete cast of Spring Awakening is Robert Ariza, Miles Barbee, Katie Boeck, Alex Boniello, Joshua Castille, Lizzy Cuesta, Daniel N. Durant, Treshelle Edmond, Sandra Mae Frank, Kathryn Gallagher, Sean Grandillo, Elizabeth Greene, Russell Harvard, Amelia Hensley, Van Hughes, Lauren Luiz, Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Camryn Manheim, Daniel Marmion, Academy and Golden Globe Award winner and Emmy Award nominee Marlee Matlin, Austin P. McKenzie, Andy Mientus, Patrick Page, Ren, Krysta Rodriguez, Daniel David Stewart, Ali Stroker, Alexandra Winter, and Alex Wyse.

Spring Awakening, the Tony Award-winning Best Musical of 2007, is performed simultaneously in American Sign Language and spoken and sung in English by a cast of 28. Deaf West Theatre was last represented on Broadway with the triumphant production of Big River in 2003.

Tickets are on sale at www.ticketmaster.com, by calling 877-250-2929, and in person at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre box office.

Deaf West Theatre's innovative production of Spring Awakening recently completed an extended, critically-acclaimed engagement at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Los Angeles where the production was expanded from its original, sold-out run at the Rosenthal Theatre in downtown L.A.

Spring Awakening, with book and lyrics by Steven Sater and music by Duncan Sheik, is directed by Michael Arden and choreographed by Spencer Liff. The creative team includes Dane Laffrey (scenic and costume design), Ben Stanton (lighting design), Gareth Owen (sound design), Lucy Mackinnon (projection design), and Carol F. Doran (hair and wig design). New York casting by Telsey + Company/Craig Burns, CSA. Original casting by Beth Lipari and Bruce Newberg.

Based on Frank Wedekind's controversial 1891 expressionist play of the same name and featuring an electrifying pop/rock score, Spring Awakening follows the lives of a group of adolescents as they navigate their journey from adolescence to adulthood in a fusion of morality, sexuality and rock & roll. An extraordinary creative team including Michael Arden and Spencer Liff has reinvented the groundbreaking musical about lost innocence and the struggles of youth in true Deaf West style.

Spring Awakening is produced by Ken Davenport, Cody Lassen, Hunter Arnold, David J. Kurs, and Deaf West Theatre, with Carl Daikeler, Sandi Moran, Chockstone Pictures, Caiola Productions, Marguerite Hoffman, H. Richard Hopper, LearyTodd Productions, MarKolTop Productions, R&D Theatricals, Brian Cromwell Smith, Invisible Wall Productions, Monica Horan Rosenthal, and Associate Producer Kayla Greenspan.

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