Sure, the Tony Awards are June 16, but any true Broadway fan knows the big event of the season is The Jimmy Awards, recognizing the best in high school musical theatre performers. Nominees, who have already won a state-level competition from across the country, will take the stage at Broadway's Minskoff Theatre June 24 to duke it out to win the much-coveted final, national Best Performance by an Actor and Actress titles. Broadway favorite Josh Groban is hosting this year.
And, now we know our nominees. Competing will be Breton Sego and Nori Kai Little of Albuquerque, New Mexico; Noah Rass and Jennifer Duarte Castillo of Appleton, Wisconsin; Hayden Poe and Ivy O'Neal of Atlanta, Georgia; Jamias Hughes and Ava Moak of Austin, Texas; Will Leavitt and Elliana McKean of Boise, Idaho; Gus Cook and Greta Cardoza of Boston, Massachusetts; Connor Hesch and Tori Gill of Buffalo, New York; Rylan Lowe and Lainey Gaston of Charlotte, North Carolina; Jazhel Arostegui and Gracia Wright of Chattanooga, Tennessee; George Spiegel and Jazmin Rhodes of Chicago, Illinois; Kyle McFalls and Lindsey Ross of Cleveland, Ohio; Christian Strong and Allie Gomez of Columbus, Ohio; Damson Chola Jr. and Fabiola Caraballo Quijada of Dallas, Texas; Connor Egloff and Sydney Korpusik of Dayton, Ohio; Caleb Kezeor and Gabi Karl of Denver, Colorado; Jackson A. Baker and Mackenzie Crawford of Des Moines, Iowa; Conor Kruger and Alex Fluker of Durham, North Carolina; Braeden Davis and Gretchen Shope of East Lansing, Michigan; Eliran Masti and Alyssa Dorsey of Houston, Texas; Peter Dessert and Mia Cabrera-Davila of Kansas City, Missouri; Max Mishler and Norah Younger of Knoxville, Tennessee; Robbie Troyan and Catherine Dosier of La Mirada, California; Luke Martin and Marie Munoz of Las Vegas, Nevada; Logan O'Donnell and Savannah Carrasco of Logan, Utah; Mauricio Lara and Marley Sol of Los Angeles, California; Nolan Travis and Ava Greenberg of Madison, Wisconsin; Aden Pettet and Hailey Brown of Memphis, Tennessee; Anderson Franco and Bella McKivigan of Midland, Pennsylvania; Jack Anderson and Lillian Hochman of Minneapolis, Minnesota; Jayden Murphy and Alyssa Freeze of Nashville, Tennessee; James Thibault and Kate Morton of New Haven, Connecticut; Isaiah Baston and Ashlee Fucarino of New York, New York; Presley Harrington and Leah Hughes of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Derek Penner and Samara Follette of Omaha, Nebraska; George Eastman and Emma Cate Davis of Orlando, Florida; Ben Van Dijk and Rachel Rogstad of Palm Springs, California; Cameron Krauss and Caroline Vollmer of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Kai Sachon and Emma Hopf of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Sebastian Rosa and Abby Tuchon of Providence, Rhode Island; Ian Royse and Katiclaire Dobbins of Rochester, New York; Kruz Maldonado and Victoria Martinez of San Antonio, Texas; Spencer Kearns and Mia Rivera of San Diego, California; Mitchell Henderson and Venice Ella Mayor of San Jose, California; Daniel Cormie and Abby DeGregory of Schenectady, New York; Will Kinsella and Theo Rickert of St. Louis, Missouri; Dylan Saavedra and Alana Hogan of Tampa, Florida; Max Antonio Perez and Nora Palermo of Tempe, Arizona; Lance Jacobson and Samia Posadas of Tucson, Arizona; Dawson Fullingim and Sophie Rose of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Jonah Uffelman and Meera Ayyar of Washington, D.C.; and Lucas Brown and Sage Sorenson of West Palm Beach, Florida.
This year's ceremony will stream for free beginning at 7:30 PM via the Jimmy Awards official Facebook and YouTube channels. The stream will also be available on Playbill.
The Jimmy Awards honor the best in high school musical theatre performers from across the country, ultimately bestowing the title of Best Performance by an Actor and Actress to two students. Past winners include Andrew Barth Feldman and Renée Rapp.
Presented by the Broadway League Foundation and named in honor of the late producer and theatre owner James M. Nederlander, the Jimmy Awards see nominees partaking in a week of events, workshops, and master classes with industry professionals. The week culminates in the ceremony itself, a performance held on a Broadway stage at which the nominees compete for the top titles.
This year's ceremony is being directed by Van Kaplan and will feature music supervision by Geoffrey Ko, choreography by Kiesha Lalama, and group direction and choreography by Luis Salgado.
The teachers of last year's winners will receive the Inspiring Teacher Award at this year's ceremony, with the honor going to Jacqueline McLean of Le Roy Jr. Sr. High School in Rochester, New York, and Paul Fillingim of Ronald Reagan High School in San Antonio, Texas.
The Jimmys are also welcoming two student reporters to NYC to cover the awards: Nicole Scimeca from Chicago, Illinois, and Richard "Ricky" Ragazzo from Houston, Texas. Both will get to visit WABC's studios to observe production of an upcoming news segment, along with covering The Jimmy Awards on social media.
In-person tickets for the ceremony are available at BroadwayDirect.com.
