Ashlee Fucarino and Isaiah Baston were named Outstanding Performers at the 14th Annual Roger Rees Awards for Excellence in Student Performance on Sunday, May 19, at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College in Manhattan, hosted by Tony Award-winner Bonnie Milligan (Kimberly Akimbo). Fucarino won Outstanding Performer for her for her role of Lucy in Jekyll & Hyde at Wantagh High School (Nassau County) and Baston won Outstanding Performer for his role of Father in Children of Eden at Bay Shore Senior High School (Suffolk County). Playwright Rick Elice, 2024 Tony Award nominee for Water for Elephants and partner of actor/director Roger Rees for more than 30 years, announced the winners, who will represent the Greater New York region at The Broadway League Foundation’s 15th annual Jimmy Awards (also known as the National High School Musical Theatre Awards) at the Minskoff Theatre on June 24.
This year’s winners for Outstanding Performer were selected from the nearly 400 student actors who performed in a qualifying role in an officially licensed high-school production presented during the 2023-2024 academic year at one of 70 high schools in the New York metropolitan area. Also named were Emerging Artist Winners Rosabella Procario-Soler, for her role of Alice Beane in Titanic at Professional Performing Arts School (Manhattan), and Anthony Lerro, for his role of Jekyll and Hyde in Jekyll & Hyde at Wantagh High School (Nassau), who will represent the Rogers Rees Awards at the Jimmy Awards if either Fucarino or Baston is unable to be there.
The Awards opened with “It’s Only a Matter of Time” from Broadway’s Back to the Future, choreographed by program Artistic Director Theo Lencicki and accompanied by W.T. Clarke High School’s Pit Orchestra, winner of the inaugural New York City Center High School Orchestra Award, under the direction of Rick Hip-Flores (Bad Cinderella; Ain’t Too Proud). Out of the 50 Outstanding Performer nominees, twelve finalists were chosen to perform a solo from their musical for a panel of Broadway luminaries comprised of Erich Bergen, Kiara Brown Clark, Jenny Gersten, Baayork Lee, Merri Sugarman, and Tom Viertel. The Royal Crown Players from Rosyln High School (under the direction of Christina Cinnamo), winners of the Harmony Helper Outstanding Choral Performance Award presented by the Goren Family Foundation, also performed for the sold-out audience.
Congratulations to all the nominees and winners and best wishes for a promising future in the theater!
