Edmund Gaynes to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at 2017 Valley Theatre Awards

Producer/theater owner/multi-hypenate Edmund Gaynes will be awarded the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the VAlley Theatre Awards in North Hollywood, California in Monday, June 5th.

Mr. Gaynes is being honored for his contributions to theatre in the Los Angeles area for over 45 years, and more specifically for his leadership in the creation and development of the NoHo Theatre and Arts District, which now includes over 20 theaters in a one square mile section of North Hollywood.

The concept behind the creation of the NoHo Theatre District was begun in 1992, when Gaynes and other LA theatre owners formed the Valley Theatre League to push to revive and restore a neighborhood that had fallen on hard times. Now a major destination for locals and tourists alike, bustling with restaurants and art galleries, as well as theatres, NoHo has now fully achieved that early vision.

Mr. Gaynes is now primarily based in New York, where he is a prominent theatre owner and producer. He owns and operates two Off-Broadway theatres in the heart of the Broadway Theatre District - St. Luke's Theatre and Actors Temple Theatre. He has produced over 30 plays and musicals in New York, on tour, and throughout the country, as well as over 40 productions in Southern California.

Bi-coastal, he continues to own and operate four theatres in NoHo and remains actively involved in the Los Angeles theatre scene.

His career began as a child actor at the age of seven going on to appear in 13 Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, as well as over 100 TV shows including the landmark productions of "Peter Pan" starring Mary Martin and "Meet Me in St Louis" with Tab Hunter and Jane Powell. Mr. Gaynes has spent his life in the theatre since the age of seven, making him the perfect candidate for the Lifetime Achievement Award. The VAlley Theatre Awards have decided to honor Mr. Gaynes for his lifetime of contributions to all aspects of theatre in Southern California.

He was also honored with the 2014 "Legend of Off-Broadway Award" from the Off-Broadway Alliance on the East Coast. The 3rd Annual VAlley Theatre Awards takes place at the Cupcake Theatre on June 5th at 7pm in North Hollywood, Ca. (Specifically, the NoHo Arts District). The awards gala was created by Paul Storiale, a Los Angeles theatre producer, in 2015.

"The VAlley Theatre Awards Gala is to celebrate intimate theatre in the San Fernando Valley." says Storiale. "We become so engulfed in our own business each season, that theatre creators never get a chance to mingle. This is that chance. Besides the 20 categories of nominations, each year an Artistic Director is given a surprise of being given the honor of Artistic Director of the year. The newest award for the 2017 ceremony is the Lifetime Achievement Award. This year that high honor goes to Edmund Gaynes for his incredible work through the years helping to create the NoHo Arts District."

Storiale is also the President of the NoHo Neighbohood Council.

For more information, visit valleytheatreawards.com.

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