11th Annual Teeny Awards Winners

East End Arts 2013 Teeny Awards winner nominees from 17 participating high schools in the region celebrated their hard work at their formal awards ceremony held at Southold Junior-Senior High School on June 9.

Since 2002 the Teeny Awards has been celebrating excellence in high school theatre across the East End of Long Island, and was conceived from the idea of the Antoinette Perry Awards – The Tony Awards – for Broadway shows. Arts supporters, theatre professionals, and prominent community members presented the winning awards, and each winner received a glass trophy.

The audience celebrated the best of the best in East End high school theatre, and was treated to scenes from some outstanding performances from this year’s production. Performances included “Brotherhood of Man” from “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” by Longwood High School, “Summer Nights” from “Grease” by Southold High School, and “The Tornado Ballet” from “The Wiz” by Center Moriches High School.

Teeny Awards Coordinator Morgan Vaughan noted, “I’ve loved being part of the 10th and 11th years! As an East Hampton native, and a professional singer, actress and teacher for the past 15 years all over the United States, I am very blessed to have come back home to find such a wealth of talent and promise.” She continued, “And I think the performances today really showed that – these kids are not only incredibly talented, they are skilled. As for arts education, it’s much more valuable than many give it credit. Hard work, commitment, community, support, and never settling for just okay are only the beginning of the values a theatrical production instills in its players.”

The 2013 Teeny Awards winners are:

In the Drama category Lead Actor in a Drama went to Brian Rocha from Eastport-South Manor for “Inherit the Wind.” Nicole Chiuchiolo from McGann-Mercy received Lead Actress in a Drama while Supporting Actor in a Drama went to Patrick O’Brien also from McGann-Mercy and Danielle Allen from McGann-Mercy won Supporting Actress in a Drama.

For the comedy category Sean Mannix from Shoreham-Wading River received for “Don’t Drink the Water” and the leading lady went to Rachel Rienecker from Westhampton Beach for “Arsenic and Old Lace.” Supporting Actor went to Jack Vicari from Westhampton Beach for “Arsenic and Old Lace” and Supporting Actress went to Gwyn Foley from Mattituck for “Are Teachers Human?”

John Coyne of Longwood won Lead Actor in a Musical for “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” while Emily Hinz from Pierson won Lead Actress in a Musical for “Funny Girl.” Supporting Actor in a Musical went to Matthew Drinkwater from Greenport for “Guys & Dolls” and Supporting Actress in a Musical, went to Lea Giambruno of Shelter Island for “Legally Blonde.”

Rebecca Dwoskin from Pierson received the Outstanding Performance award for “Funny Girl.” The category was created to recognize a student who excelled in a role that is not eligible for adjudication in the leading or supporting categories.

This year, the recipient of the Judges’ Choice Award was The Greek Chorus from Shelter Island’s “Legally Blonde.” Best Choreography was awarded to Megan McGuinness and Jennifer Navarrete from Eastport-South Manor for “The Music Man,” and Ryan Schaefer from Center Moriches for “The Wiz.” The Outstanding Ensemble Award> went to Longwood for “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.”

Amanda Tomasello from Eastport-South Manor was awarded with the best Playbill/Poster Art for “Inherit the Wind.”

Mariah Brengel from Shoreham-Wading River, Jesse Buchter from Westhampton Beach, Ian Byrne and Quinn Carey from McGann-Mercy, Helen Chen from Mattituck, Jaclyn Conway from Southold-Greenport were recognized for their invaluable contributions as stage managers.

Jaclyn Conway from Southold, Emily Fey from Center Moriches, Mayra Gonzalez and Anne O’Rourke from Mattituck, Melissa Hickox from Mattituck, Julie Lindell and Stephen Spinelli from Shoreham-Wading River, Kyra McAlary from Eastport-South Manor, Rae LaBorne, Zoë Vatash, Kerrie Vila, Jennifer Hall, and Shelly Matthers from Pierson, Scott McVetty and Kevin O’Brien from Center Moriches, Solomon Polshek from Ross, Christine Seppala from Longwood, Jerilyn Toole and Rachel Williams from Riverhead, and Sean Walden were awarded for co-production.

In the Technical Design Recognition category, Set Design went to Savannah Calderale from Southold for “Grease” and Denis Hartnett from Pierson for “Funny Girl.” Lighting Design was awarded to and Shane Hennessey from Pierson for “Funny Girl” and Daniel Lilley from Longwood for “M*A*S*H*.” Catherine Penn from Westhampton Beach won Costume Design for “Arsenic and Old Lace” and “Footloose.”

Bridgehampton High School won the Innovations in Theatre Education Award for its production of “A Night on Broadway: A Musical Revue.”

For more information about the Teeny Awards visit www.eastendarts.org.