The 5th is thrilled to announce that the company’s annual celebration of high school musicals will be carry on in the wake of the global pandemic with a streaming event called The 5th Avenue Theatre Awards ROADTRIP: Celebrating High School Musicals Across Washington State, premiering at 7 PM on July 17 and rebroadcast at 7 PM on July 18 on Facebook Live.

 

The 2019/20 high school musical theater season was slated to be a record-breaker for The 5th Avenue Theatre Awards, a Tony Awards®-style ceremony recognizing the achievements of high school theater programs state-wide, with 106 schools presenting a total of 126 productions. (A complete list of participating high schools is included at the end of this document.) But as the serious impact of the COVID-19 pandemic drew into sharper focus, more than half of those productions were cancelled before they ever had the opportunity to take the stage.

 

“This has truly been a landmark year and we wanted to honor all of the work done, whether it made it onto the stage or not,” said Director of Education and Engagement Orlando Morales. “We made the choice to suspend the ‘awards’ portion of the event this year in favor of a state-wide public celebration with live elements. Just as this pandemic has hit arts organizations in a way that will take years to recover from, high school arts programs have also been hit particularly hard. We want to use this event as a way to tip our hats in honor of each student and educator’s caring devotion to creative collaboration and the power of the arts.”

 

While the traditional awards portion of the ceremony is suspended this year, the celebration will not pass without some recognition. Along with traditional Special Honors including Student Achievement, Educational Impact, Parent Support, Community Engagement, and Outstanding Educator, The 5th has asked educators and program directors to nominate a high school senior who has achieved excellence in their high school career to be recognized with a Senior Spotlight Special Honor. (TUNE IN TO SEE WHICH ZCSTC SENIOR IS BEING HONORED!)

 

Another beloved 5th Avenue Theatre Awards tradition that will be upheld is the famous opening number inviting all schools to represent their programs in a unified number celebrating the unabashed joy and elation of high school musicals. The opening number this season will be “Beautiful City” from Godspell and will feature more than 100 students as they “shout out” their high schools. (TUNE IN TO CATCH KIRI SCHOONOVER AND CAMERON WERTENBERGER'S PARTS IN THIS OPENING NUMBER!)