THEATER J WINS A MAYOR’S ARTS AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN AN ARTISTIC DISCPLINE

Contact: Rebecca Ende, (202) 777-3230, rebeccae@washingtondcjcc.org       FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  March 18, 2008

(Washington, DC) – Last night at the Mayor’s Arts Award, Theater J was selected as the winner of the award for Excellence in an Artistic Discipline, which is awarded to an individual artist or an organization that has demonstrated a substantial history of extraordinary achievement in an artistic discipline. 

After being nominated last year, Theater J is thrilled to have been honored with this award for the continued production of outstanding work, including an ongoing commitment to new work,  and chosen from such an esteemed group of nominees which included the Washington Ballet's Septime Webre, CityDance Ensemble, Studio Theatre, the Cathedral Choral Society and Dr. Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey and the Rock. 

After Artistic Director Ari Roth was presented with the award, Robert Prosky and Andy Prosky presented a seven-minute scene from Theater J’s current production of The Price on the Millennium Stage in the Concert Hall at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which was followed by a rousing ovation.  

Theater J is honored to be included in such company of previous winners of the Mayor's Art Award for Excellence in an Artistic Discipline including local theater leaders such as Zelda Fichandler, Joy Zinoman, and Howard Shalwitz and outstanding companies such as Source Theatre Company, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, The Shakespeare Theater and Arena Stage.

Since 1968, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities has supported community development through the arts by promoting artistic excellence in the nation's capital. Since its inception in 1981, the Mayor's Arts Awards has honored some of the most outstanding artists and art patrons in our area. The program brings awareness to the presence and vitality of the arts community in the city through on-stage performances by some of the finest talent in DC.

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