BCCM to Honor The Ensemble Theatre's Artistic Director

Bayou City Concert Musicals will present the 2017 Kim Hupp Award to Eileen J. Morris, artistic director of The Ensemble Theatre. The award will be presented on Sunday, April 2, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., on the Main Stage of The Ensemble Theatre, 3535 Main. The event, Serenading Eileen, will consist of a concert featuring some of the honoree's favorite songs and a reception immediately following the concert. Tickets are $75 per person. Proceeds from the event will benefit Bayou City Concert Musicals.

The Kim Hupp Award was established by BCCM to commemorate the life of Kim Hupp, who served as BCCM's first musical director when Bayou City Concert Musicals was still a fundraising arm of the Center for AIDS. Kim Hupp died in 2002. The Hupp Award is presented annually to individuals who have made significant contributions to musical theatre in Houston.

This year's honoree, Eileen J. Morris, is artistic director of The Ensemble Theatre where she worked closely with its founder, George W. Hawkins, since 1982. She oversees every aspect of the theatre's artistic programming, which includes mainstage, tour education, the young performers' program and special projects. The Ensemble Theatre is the largest and oldest African American professional theatre company in the Southwest that owns and operates its facility while producing in-house.

Ms. Morris, the only American woman to have directed eight of August Wilson's Ten Play Cycle, was named Houston's best director in 2016 for The Ensemble Theatre's production of August Wilson's Fences.

"In her role as The Ensemble's artistic director, Eileen J. Morris has nurtured the African-American musical theatre tradition," says BCCM Executive Director ShaRon Williams. "Her commitment to the excellence her theatre brings to all its productions, both musical and non-musical, make her the ideal person to receive the 2017 Kim Hupp Award. That we will be able to present the award to Eileen on her own stage makes this year's Kim Hupp Award all the more special."

Serenading Eileen, The 2016 Kim Hupp Award Concert, benefiting Bayou City Concert Musicals, will be held at 7:00 p.m., Sunday, April 2, 2017, at The Ensemble Theatre, 3535 Main. Veteran Ensemble performer Tony Glover will be master of ceremonies for the evening, which will feature performances by Grace Givens, Regina Hearne, Rodrick Randall, Will Ritchie, Tamara Siler, and Mary Ann Williams, with musical direction by Michael Mertz. The concert will be followed by a reception honoring Ms. Morris.

Tickets are $75 per person and are available by phone at 713-465-6484 or on-line at www.bayoucityconcertmusicals.org.