Wharton Center Announces 2015 Ovation Award Winners, Heading to the Jimmys Next Month

Rockford High School student Maddy Mathias and Divine Child High School student Aleksander Papanastasopoulos competed in and won the second annual Ovation Awards at East Lansing's Wharton Center on Sunday, May 17, 2015. They were two of 38 high school students (20 female, 18 male) from across Michigan to compete for the award, which celebrates outstanding achievement and individual artistry in vocal, dance and acting performances for both a male and female lead in a high school musical theatre production. It also honors the teacher's and the school's commitment to excellence in performing arts education.

Mathias and Papanastasopoulos were awarded $1,000 cash, along with a full scholarship to Take It From The Top, Wharton Center's Summer Broadway Intensive workshop offered in Grand Rapids, Traverse City and East Lansing. They will also head to New York City in June to compete in the National High School Musical Theater Awards (NHSMTA) on June 29, 2015 -- otherwise known as the Jimmy Awards, a celebration of outstanding student achievement in high school musical theater. The program recognizes individual artistry in vocal, dance and acting performance, and honors teachers and their schools' commitment to excellence in performing arts education.

The seventh annual Jimmy Awards will be held on Monday, June 29, 2015 at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway. At this "Super Bowl" of amateur musical theater, student winners of award competitions from across the United States will perform songs exclusively from the musical theater canon in the quest to win the coveted title of Best Performance by an Actress or Best Performance by an Actor and a Jimmy Award. The Jimmy Award is named for legendary Broadway producer/theater owner James M. Nederlander, in recognition of his generous support of young artists. Tickets for the NHSMTA are on sale at NHSMTA.com.

In preparation for their "Broadway debut," students will rehearse and perfect ensemble numbers, as well as solo and medley mash-ups that feature the role that earned them top honors at their regional awards competitions. Along the way they will brush elbows with Broadway actors, college recruiters and casting agents, see a Broadway show, and much more.

The Ovation Awards partnership includes Wharton Center for Performing Arts, Broadway in Detroit and Broadway Grand Rapids.