Casa Mañana Announces Nominees for Buckley Awards

Casa Mañana is proud to announce the nominees for The 6th Annual Betty Lynn Buckley Awards, a program honoring outstanding achievement in musical theatre among Tarrant County high schools.

Any Tarrant County high school that produces a fall, winter or spring musical is eligible to participate in the program.  A panel of distinguished judges, comprised of local theatre professionals, critics and educators critiques each production and votes for a winner in each of the 16 award categories.  The Fort Worth-based accounting firm of Weaver and Tidwell, L.L.P. then tabulates the votes, which are kept secret until the awards ceremony.  The winners will be announced at a fabulous ceremony styled after the Tony Awards at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 22, 2006, at Casa Mañana Theatre, for which the nominees invariably dress in red carpet-worthy dresses and tuxedos.  Each of the six schools nominated for Best Musical will perform at the awards show.  Also, the winner in each category will receive $500, donated by generous North Texas arts supporters and local businesses.

The Betty Lynn Buckley Awards are named in honor of Fort Worth's own Tony award-winning actress, Betty Lynn Buckley, who got her start in live theatre at Casa Mañana Theatre.  She gained additional experience by performing in Casa Mañana's many children's productions and summer stock shows.  Buckley has been actively involved with Casa Mañana in recent years through the Buckley Awards and also by teaching master classes in song interpretation.  Buckley's performances in Broadway musicals such as Sunset Boulevard, Cats, 1776, Carrie, Song & Dance, The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Pippin, makes her the quintessential leading lady of American musical theatre.  She is also a highly sought-after film and television actress.  She is tentatively scheduled to present the award for Best Musical at this year's Buckley Awards.  Several other yet to be announced celebrities will be presenting awards as well.   

The 2005-2006 Buckley Awards feature 17 Tarrant County high schools, 15 of which received nominations.  Haltom High School and The Oakridge School both have nine nominations, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts and Juan Sequin High School both have seven nominations, and Trinity High School and North Crowley High School have six nominations.

And the nominees are:

Best Musical
Arlington Heights High School – You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown
Haltom High School – Beauty and the Beast
Keller High School – Annie Get Your Gun
North Crowley High School – Big River
The Oakridge School – Children of Eden
Trinity High School – A Year With Frog and Toad
 
Best Female Actor
Sarah Dickerson, "Belle" in Beauty and the Beast, Haltom High School
Heather Evans, "Rose" in Bye, Bye Birdie, Mansfield High School
Bailey Lawrence, "Annie" in Annie Get Your Gun, Keller High School
Madeleine Rady, "Snoopy" in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, Arlington Heights High School
Taylor Wright, "Eve/Mrs. Noah" in Children of Eden, The Oakridge School
Kelly Weaver, "White Witch" in Narnia, The Musical, Grapevine High School
 
Best Male Actor
Eric Aultman, "Huck Finn" in Big River, North Crowley High School
Gavin Best, " Adam/Noah" in Children of Eden, The Oakridge School
Andrew Miller, "Father" in Children of Eden, The Oakridge School
Chase Robinson, "Beast" in Beauty and the Beast, Haltom High School
Kristopher Ward, "Jim" in Big River, North Crowley High School
Phillip Cole White, "Frog" in A Year With Frog and Toad, Trinity High School
 
Best Female Supporting Actor
Courtney Blackmon, "Yonah" in Children of Eden, The Oakridge School
Natalie Hinds, "Natalie" in Godspell, Nolan Catholic High School
Sainty Reid, "Sally Brown" in You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, Arlington Heights High School
Katie Simeroth, "Katie" in Godspell, Nolan Catholic High School
Kacie Smith, "Lois/Bianca" in Kiss Me, Kate, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts
Sarah Walker, "Dolly Tate" in Annie Get Your Gun, Keller High School
 
Best Male Supporting Actor
Brock Griffith, "First Man" in Kiss Me, Kate, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts
Axel Severs, "Snail" in A Year With Frog and Toad, Trinity High School
Ahmad Simmons, "Paul/Gremio" in Kiss Me, Kate, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts
David Sylvester, "Cogsworth" in Beauty and the Beast, Haltom High School
Michael Sylvester, "Lumiere" in Beauty and the Beast, Haltom High School
Ryan Wood, "Buffalo Bill Cody" in Annie Get Your Gun, Keller High School
 
Best Female Ensemble Performer
Sarah Kayfus, "Bird #1" in A Year With Frog and Toad, Trinity High School
Lynn Mercer, "Dancer" in The Music Man, Carroll Senior High School
Sharla Mitchell, "Alice/Soloist" in Big River, North Crowley High School
Katy Reiswig, "Snake" in Children of Eden, The Oakridge School
Emily Villarreal, "Navigation Officer" in Return to the Forbidden Planet, Paschal High School
Shaniqua Williams, "Crossing Soloist" in Big River, North Crowley High School
 
Best Male Ensemble Performer
Woodie Blackburn, "Jacey Squires" in The Music Man, Carroll Senior High School
Lennon Brown, "First Hood" in Sugar, Juan Seguin High School
David Howe, "Salesman #3" in The Music Man, Carroll Senior High School
Rashun Mann, "Spats Palazzo" in Sugar, Juan Seguin High School
Bryson Mitchell, "First Dude" in Sugar, Juan Seguin High School
Tyler Phillips, "Dancer" in Return to the Forbidden Planet, Paschal High School
 
Best Orchestra
Carroll Senior High School, The Music Man
Fort Worth Country Day School, Little Shop of Horrors
Grapevine High School, Narnia, The Musical
Haltom High School, Beauty and the Beast
Juan Seguin High School, Sugar
Mansfield High School, Bye, Bye Birdie
Paschal High School, Return to the Forbidden Planet
 
Excellence in Direction
Michael Allen, Little Shop of Horrors – Fort Worth Country Day School
Bess Cozby, Kiss Me, Kate – Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts
Bryson Mitchell, Sugar – Juan Seguin High School
 
Excellence in Choreography
Kayla Bean, Juan Seguin High School, Sugar
Jewel Gobea & Michael Sylvester, Haltom High School, "Be Our Guest" from Beauty and the Beast
Ahmad Simmons, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts, "Too Darn Hot" from Kiss Me, Kate
 
Excellence in Scenic Design Budget Level I
Nicole Barthel & the Trinity High School Technical Theatre Crew, A Year With Frog and Toad
Clay Hudson, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts, Kiss Me, Kate
Technical Theatre Class, Grapevine High School, Narnia, The Musical
 
Excellence in Scenic Design Budget Level II
Kaitlin Elledge, Fort Worth Country Day School, Little Shop of Horrors
Dawson French & Chase Robinson, Haltom High School, Beauty and the Beast
Morgan Lay, The Oakridge School, Children of Eden
 
Excellence in Lighting Design Budget Level I
Meg Ehrenreich, Colleyville Heritage High School, Little Shop of Horrors
Ryan Martin, Trinity High School, A Year With Frog and Toad
Caitlin McGinn, Juan Seguin High School, Sugar
 
Excellence in Lighting Design Budget Level II
Dawson French & Bill Tyler, Haltom High School, Beauty and the Beast
Joe Sciarrapa, Grapevine High School, Narnia, The Musical
Steven Rheiner, The Oakridge School, Children of Eden
 
Excellence in Costume Design Budget Level I
Benjamin Bedford, Sally Dulaney, Tate Ellis, Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts, Kiss Me, Kate
Abby Lambert, Colleyville Heritage High School, Little Shop of Horrors
Leah Williams, The Oakridge School, Children of Eden
 
Excellence in Costume Design Budget Level II
Nicole Bowen, North Crowley High School, Big River
Jennie Lewis & Kathleen Ludwig, Keller High School, Annie Get Your Gun

Southwest Christian School and Lake Country Christian School deserve honorable mentions for participating and submitting their respective musicals for Buckley Award consideration this year as well.

Tickets for students at participating schools, along with their families, are currently available for purchase through their respective high schools.  Tickets for The 6th Annual Betty Lynn Buckley Awards will go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. Monday, May 15 and can be purchased by calling the Casa Mañana Customer Service Department at 817-332-2272, ext 3.  You can also visit the box office at Casa Mañana Theatre at 3101 W. Lancaster Ave., Fort Worth. Ticket prices are $20 for students and $28 for adults.  For more information, visit www.casamanana.org.  

The 6th Annual Betty Lynn Buckley Awards scholarships are generously underwritten by the following individuals and organizations that recognize the benefits of this program and the impact musical theatre has on the lives of students:

David & Greta Beckerman
Betty Bob & Norman Buckley
John & Mary Sue Caple
Kathleen Culebro (in memory of Mrs. Greene Rhodes)
Taylor & Shirlee Gandy
Dr. & Mrs. Jack Graham
Ann L. Rhodes (2)  
Kal & Karen Silverberg (in memory of Herb Silverberg & Stan Kolker)
Elizabeth & Jim Webb
Fort Worth Star-Telegram (4)  
Pier 1 Imports (2)   
RadioShack

About Casa Mañana:
Now in its 48th year, Casa Mañana is a Fort Worth-based live theatre company that produces and presents shows at two distinct performance venues – Casa Mañana Theatre and the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall.  Casa Mañana combines the talent of award-winning directors, musicians and choreographers with outstanding professional actors from the Dallas-Fort Worth area and Broadway to create self-produced musical theatre productions that are among the best in the nation.  The large number and variety of shows presented annually, such as Broadway's hottest national tours, Children's Playhouse shows, critically-acclaimed plays and world premieres, makes Casa Mañana the largest performing arts organization in Tarrant County.  Since Casa Mañana is also dedicated to the community and education, the company has several outreach programs and a nationally-recognized children's theatre school.  Casa is truly unique in its ability to bring together the top musical theatre talents in the country for the audiences of North Texas to enjoy.  Casa Mañana has again been recognized as the "Best Live Theater Company" by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Readers' Poll and was also named in 2005 as "one of 10 great places to see a show off Broadway" by USA Today.

As a performing arts organization, Casa Mañana strives to create, nurture and advance live professional theatre unparalleled in artistic excellence for the enrichment and education of its diverse community and its future generations of artists and patrons.

 

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