Jason Kravitz to Host This Year's New York innovative Theatre Awards

On Monday, September 25, 2017, The New York Innovative Theatre Foundation, the organization who for the past 13 years has been dedicated to celebrating Off-Off-Broadway, will present 26 awards for outstanding achievement in theatre at the 13th Annual New York innovative Theatre Awards Ceremony, Gerald Lynch Theatre located in the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 524 West 59th Street, New York, NY 10019.

If you are unable to attend, watch it live online at www.nyitawards.com/live. Tickets are $29.00 each and can be purchased at nyitawards.com/shop.

The ceremony will be written by Brian Silliman, hosted for the fourth time by the charming crowd favorite, Jason Kravits and directed by an Off-Off-Broadway mainstay, DeLisa White.

The 2017 recipients will be awarded from a pool of 176 individual artists, 48 different productions and 52 different theatre companies. Nominated productions were seen on stages in Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. In the past 14 years, the IT Awards have honored nearly 2,400 artists, 650 productions and 600 companies.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Jason Kravits (Host) is honored to be hosting the IT awards for the fourth time. He has been fortunate enough to appear on stages and screens, large and small for over 30 years, including series regular or in recurring roles on TV shows like The Practice, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Madam Secretary, The Mick and Major Crimes, as well as memorable guest appearances on many others, such as Disjointed, Curb Your Enthusiasm, 30 Rock, Gilmore Girls, The Blacklist, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Friends. Recent film Credits include Chinese Puzzle, Laura Gets a Cat, and Accommodations. On Broadway, Jason performed in The Drowsy Chaperone, Sly Fox and Relatively Speaking. He recently appeared in the City Center Encores! production of The Golden Apple as Mayor Hector, and the Muny production of ...Forum as Lycus.

Jason recently returned from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where he performed a sold-out run of his solo, improvised cabaret Off the Top!, which he will be performing in residence at The Duplex for the rest of the year. (more info at www.offthetop.nyc) As a writer, Jason has penned the 10-minute play Green Eggs and Hamlet, the holiday stories The Kvetch, and A Christmoose Story, as well as the acclaimed web-series Lords of the Playground.

Brian Silliman (Writer) NY acting credits include The Honeycomb Trilogy, The Butter and Egg Man, Dark Water (NY IT Nomination for Best Lead Actor), The Particulars (2012 NYC Fringe Award for Overall Excellence in Performance) and many more. TV credits include Law and Order: SVU, Boardwalk Empire, Red Oaks, Blue Bloods, and Orange Is The New Black. He can currently be heard in Gideon Media's new podcast Steal the Stars. His original plays, stories, and musicals have been featured all over NYC, including The Magic of Mrs. Crowling which is published by Original Works.

DeLisa White (Director) received the 2014 New York Innovative Theatre Award (IT) for Outstanding Director for Vincent Marano's Lights Narrow. She has also directed: WorkShop Theater's Verona Walls; Retro Productions' Good Boys and True as well as An Appeal to the Woman of the House (nom: Outstanding Production and Full-Length Play and Outstanding Actress recipient - Heather Cunningham); Greg Oliver Bodine's multiple IT award nominee Poe Times Two for Cape May Stage and the Workshop Theatre Company; Nat Cassidy in Ed Malin's Generic Magic Realism (IT nom: Best Solo Performance), and Mr. Cassidy in the IT Award-winning Things at the Doorstep - inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's work. Productions she has directed have earned a total 15 IT nominations and three wins. She has designed sound for Retro Productions, Workshop Theatre, the NY Fringe Festival and has provided foley effects for Pandora Machine Films and WWOW Cranston and Spade Radio.

The New York Innovative Theatre Foundation is a not-for-profit organization recognizing the great work of New York City's Off-Off-Broadway, honoring its artistic heritage, and providing a meeting ground for this extensive and richly varied community. The organization advocates for Off-Off-Broadway and recognizes the unique and essential role it plays in contributing to American and global culture. They believe that publicly recognizing excellence in Off-Off-Broadway will expand audience awareness and foster greater appreciation of the New York Theatre experience. Visit www.nyitawards.com for more information.