CAPA Brings The Jimmy® Awards to Central Ohio Through Its New CAPA Marquee Awards Program

Through the standing of the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) as a sanctioned member of the Broadway League, the Columbus market has been accepted and confirmed as an official Regional Awards Program of The Jimmy Awards®/National High School Musical Theatre Awards.™ CAPA will sponsor the prestigious national program for high school musical theatre students through its own newly created, local awards program—the CAPA Marquee Awards.

“We are thrilled to bring The Jimmy® Awards to central Ohio for the very first time, and to compliment it with additional musical theatre student awards through the establishment of the CAPA Marquee Awards,” stated CAPA President and CEO Chad Whittington. “This is a unique opportunity to recognize and celebrate the wealth of high-caliber musical theatre talent in our own local high schools.”

To be considered for participation in the CAPA Marquee Awards, schools must submit an online application, and present a full-length musical from the Jimmy® Awards List of Qualifying Shows between January 10 and April 28, 2019. The online application process will open at noon on October 15, 2018, and schools will be notified of a decision on their application no later than December 15, 2018. In the inagural year for this new initiative, 10 high schools will be accepted with the hope of increasing that number in subsquent years.

Schools accepted into the program will then be eligible to compete in the following categories:

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Best Musical Production
Best Direction
Outstanding Ensemble Performance
Outstanding Student Orchestra Performance
Backstage Excellence Award
Outstanding Technical Achievement Award

In addition, musical theatre students from high schools selected to participate will be invited to attend free master classes and talk-back opportunities with touring Broadway cast members and local talent in their chosen field of interest throughout the 2018-19 season.

Three adjudicators from the CAPA Marquee Awards program will attend a performance of each participating school’s qualifying musical theatre production to evaluate nominated students/productions and provide valuable feedback to the production’s cast, crew, and creative team.

On May 7, 2019, the (up to) five nominees selected for each category will be announced.

The CAPA Marquee Awards will culminate with a red-carpet ceremony and student showcase event at the Lincoln Theatre on June 3, 2019, at which winners in all categories will be announced. Modeled after the Tony® Awards, the CAPA Marquee Awards will showcase live performances from the nominees for Best Musical Production, as well as opening and closing numbers that incorporate nominated students from all participating high schools.

Students selected as Best Actor in a Leading Role and Best Actress in a Leading Role will be designated as official Jimmy® Award nominees and receive a CAPA-sponsored trip to attend “Jimmys Week” in New York City, a nine-day professional training intensive with theatre professionals and industry experts, and compete on the national level for the 2019 Jimmy® Awards for Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress.

For more information about the CAPA Marquee Awards, please contact CAPA Director of Education Amy Handra at ahandra@capa.com. 

About The Jimmy® Awards/The National High School Musical Theatre Awards™ (NHSMTA)

The Jimmy® Awards program impacts more than 100,000 students who participate in high school musical theatre competitions sponsored by presenters of Touring Broadway productions throughout the United States. Presented by the Broadway League Foundation, the program sends a Best Actress and a Best Actor winner from each of these competitions to New York for a week-long theatre intensive of coaching and rehearsals with industry professionals in preparation for a one-night-only talent showcase on Broadway. Named for Broadway impresario James M. Nederlander, the program has been the catalyst for more than $2 million in educational scholarships. For more information, please visit www.JimmyAwards.com.