Theater News

Dear Evan Hansen's Ben Platt to Host 2017 Jimmy Awards

The event will take place at the Minskoff Theatre.

Ben Platt will host the 2017 Jimmy Awards on June 26.
Ben Platt will host the 2017 Jimmy Awards on June 26.
(© David Gordon)

Dear Evan Hansen star Ben Platt will host the ninth annual National High School Musical Theatre Awards, taking place Monday, June 26, at 7:30pm at the Minskoff Theatre, home of The Lion King.

Nicknamed the Jimmy Awards after the late Broadway producer and theater owner James M. Nederlander, the evening will feature high school students from across America competiting for the titles of Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress.

Student performers qualify to participate in the national program by winning top honors at regional high school musical theater awards competitions presented by an arts organization headed by a Broadway League member. Over 1,000 high schools and 50,000 students are involved in these annual events. Since its inception in 2009, the NHSMTA has enabled over $1 million in university and conservatory scholarships to be awarded to talented students at the national and local level — several of whom have already been cast in Broadway, touring, and West End productions.

NHSMTA nominees will prepare for their debut on a Broadway stage during a weeklong professional training intensive with NYU Tisch School of the Arts' New Studio on Broadway faculty members as well as other theater professionals. Winners will be selected by a panel of industry experts.

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