Finalists for the fifth annual Bobby G Awards were released this morning. The awards program, which culminates in a Tony Awards-style ceremony and performance on Thursday, May 25, at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, celebrates outstanding achievement in high-school musical theatre in Colorado. This year the program included participation from a record 42 high schools across Colorado, and 30 of those received at least one nomination. That’s up nearly double from 16 a year ago.

While the nominations were more spread out than ever, Lakewood High School emerged with the most nominations, with 11 for Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.  Boulder High School earned eight for Rent and Chaparral High School eight for The Scarlett Pimpernel.

Those three productions are all up for Outstanding Production of a Musical, along with In the Heights, a co-production between Denver North High School and STRIVE Prep Excel High School; and Valor Christian High School’s Pippin.

All five productions will be invited to perform at the May 25 Bobby G Awards ceremony, as well as the 10 individuals nominated for Outstanding Actor or Actress.

(Pictured above right: Mountain Vista’s Anything Goes wins Outstanding Musical at the 2016 Bobby G. Awards. Photo by John Moore for the DCPA NewsCenter.)

Adjudicators, made up of professional working theatre artists in the Denver area, attended the participating schools’ musical theatre productions. Using the standards set by The Bobby G Awards training and criteria, as well as their own professional experience, these adjudicators completed extensive evaluation forms, offering schools detailed feedback on various elements of their musical productions. Participating schools receive each adjudicator’s comments, praise and constructive criticism as a way of recognizing accomplishments and motivating future growth.

(Story continues after the following list of nominations)

2016-17 Bobby G Awards Finalists:

Outstanding Achievement in Hair and Make-Up Design

Devan Green
Fiddler on the Roof
Brighton High School

Cierra Denning and Izze Sajdak
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Katie Kostenik
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Lydia Cole, Averi Davis, Emma Smith and Hannah Tester
Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

Maya Julien, Christina Larez and Simone Rodriguez
In the Heights
North High School and STRIVE Prep Excel High School

Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design

Joe Kennedy and Anne Murphy
Aida
Fairview High School

Mollie Beck, Nikki Habestad and Rebecca Spafford
The Addams Family
Fossil Ridge High School

Camille Gionet, Kaila Govan and Alyssa Mader
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Jen Bleem, Lauryn Starke, Cynthia Vega and Ramses Vega
Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

Mona Lucero, Simone Rodriguez and Sarah Davies-Schley
In the Heights
North High School & STRIVE Prep Excel High School

Outstanding Achievement in Lighting Design

Demian Detweiler and Scott Nelson
Pippin
Aspen High School

Brian Morgans
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Jude Franco, Dennis Gilsdorf and Nich Gilsdorf
Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

Ethan Thomas and T.J. Thomas
The Little Mermaid
Ralston Valley High School

Karley Durate, Anthony Heredia, Joylene Quintana and Travis Roth
Tarzan
Westminster High School

Outstanding Achievement in Scenic Design

Hannah Freeman and Tom Ward
Pippin
Aspen High School

Katya Hirsch and Chris Sweeney
Rent
Boulder High School

Clare Buntrock, Rachel Barckholtz, Taylor Dykstra and Jace Smykil
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Josh Belk and Starr Samkus
Starlight Express
Palmer Ridge High School

Tori Byam & Liam Southwick
Beauty and the Beast
Durango High School

Outstanding Performance by an Orchestra

Cabaret
Bear Creek High School

Rent
Boulder High School

Fiddler on the Roof
Brighton High School

The Producers
Denver School of the Arts

Aida
Fairview High School

Outstanding Achievement in Musical Direction

Duncan Cooper
Cabaret
Bear Creek High School

Mary Bateman
Rent
Boulder High School

Steve Hinman and Luke Tredinnic
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Bryce Melaragno and Debbie Miller
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street  
Lakewood High School

Marty Magehee, Rick Paswaters and Jenny Timmons
Pippin
Valor Christian High School

Outstanding Performance by a Chorus

Rent
Boulder High School

Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street  
Lakewood High School

Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

Pippin
Valor Christian High School

The Pirates of Penzance
Wheat Ridge High School

Outstanding Achievement in Choreography

Lindsey Solano
Fiddler on the Roof    
Brighton High School

Angie Dryer
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Caitlin Parets
Guys and Dolls
Loveland High School

Evan DeBord, Tammy Johnson, Cydney Kutcipal and Rachel Miller
Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

John DeYoung and Jamie Geary
Pippin
Valor Christian High School

Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Will Coleman
Lumiere
Beauty and the Beast
Arvada West High School

Brandon Michael
Herr Schultz
Cabaret
Bear Creek High School

Adrian Clark
Farleigh
The Scarlett Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Luccio Dellepiane
Harold Bride
Titanic
Cherry Creek High School

Will Warner
Beadle Bamford
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Stella Martin
Andrea
Once on This Island
Conifer High School

McKinley Mueller
Grandma Addams
The Addams Family
Glenwood Springs High School

Anna Rosenthal
Grandma Addams
The Addams Family
Heritage High School

Alexa Hand
Sydney
It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman
Resurrection Christian  School

Libby Lukens
Jan
Grease
Steamboat Springs High School

Rising Star

Joe Robinson
Dewhurst
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Ana Lemus
Serena
Legally Blonde
D’Evelyn High School

Luke McKenzie
Theo
Pippin
George Washington High School

Sam Feng
Oz Guard
The Wizard of Oz
Lutheran High School

Ellie Hill
La Fou
Beauty and the Beast
Regis Jesuit High School

Outstanding Achievement in Direction

Shelly Cox-Robie
Rent
Boulder High School

Kate McRaith
The Addams Family
Glenwood Springs High School

Tami LoSasso and Yovana Milosevic
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Katie Marshall
Children of Eden
Mountain View High School

Lindsey Hutcheon and Kurt Muenstermann
Pippin
Valor Christian High School

Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Asha Romeo
Joanne Jefferson
Rent
Boulder High School

Grace Nolte
Marguerite St. Just
The Scarlett Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Cameron Marter
Mrs. Lovett
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Chantal King
Witch
Into the Woods
Niwot High School

Elleon Dobias
Catherine
Pippin
Valor Christian High School

Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Jesse Shafroth
Mark Cohen
Rent
Boulder High School

Chandler Carter
Chauvelin
The Scarlett Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Austin Hand
Gomez Addams
The Addams Family
Fossil Ridge High School

Trey Kochevar
Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

Gable Kinsman
Pippin
Pippin
Valor Christian High School

Outstanding Overall Production of a Musical

Rent
Boulder High School

The Scarlet Pimpernel
Chaparral High School

Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Lakewood High School

In the Heights
North High School & STRIVE Prep Excel High School

Pippin
Valor Christian High School

2017 Outstanding Special Achievement Award Winners:

In addition to the nominations, this year’s four Special Achievement winners also were announced today:

• Orchestra: Tim Costello, Cabaret, Bear Creek High School
• Scenic Design: Danielle Waldman, The Producers, Denver School of the Arts
• Technical Direction: Chris Brown, Into the Woods, Niwot High School
• Special Achievement for a Colorado premiere (at the high-school level): Starlight Express, Palmer Ridge High School (pictured above, photo by Jackie Burhans)

The Bobby G Awards, overseen and hosted by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, are Colorado’s regional representative within the larger Jimmy® Awards/National High School Musical Theatre Awards. The winners of Colorado’s Outstanding Actor and Actress awards not only will be invited to attend the Jimmy Awards in June at the Minskoff Theatre in New York, but to participate in a week-long series of intensive classes and workshops with Broadway actors, directors and designers. The national awards ceremony will be June 26.

Today’s announcement produced several return nominees, including Danny Miller of Arvada West, who was nominated as Outstanding Actor for his role as Valjean in Les Misérables. In 2014, Miller was nominated in the same category as a sophomore for playing the title role in The Phantom of the Opera.

Last year’s Bobby G Award winner for Outstanding Actor was Curtis Salinger for Durango High School’s Legally Blonde. Ponderosa High School’s Charlotte Movizzo was named Outstanding Actress for her starring role in Sweet Charity. Both are expected to perform at this year’s Bobby G Awards.

Luccio Dellepiane of Cherry Creek High School, who was named Rising Star as a sophomore for Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella, is nominated this year for Outstanding Supporting Actor for his role as Harold Bride in Titanic.

Elleon Dobias of Valor Christian High School, nominated in 2015 as a Rising Star for playing Madame de la Grande Bouche in Beauty and the Beast, and again last year as  Supporting Actress for playing Miss Andrew in Mary Poppins, is nominated for a third time, as Outstanding Actress for playing Catherine in Pippin.

Notables from Colorado theatre community:

• Rebecca Spafford, who recently played Karen in OpenStage’s August: Osage County in Fort Collins, is nominated as part of the costume team for Fossil Ridge High School’s The Addams Family.
• BDT Stage veteran Shelly Cox-Robie, nominated last year as part of a costume team, is nominated for directing Boulder High School’s Rent.

2016-17 Bobby G Awards participating schools:

Arvada West High School
Beauty and the Beast

Aspen High School
Pippin

Bear Creek High School
Cabaret

Boulder High School
Rent

Brighton High School
Fiddler on the Roof

Castle View High School
Aida

Chaparral High School
The Scarlet Pimpernel

Cherry Creek High School
Titanic

Conifer High School
Once On This Island

Denver School of the Art
The Producers

D’Evelyn High School
Legally Blonde

Durango High School
Beauty and the Beast

East High School
Hairspray

Erie High School
The Addams Family

Fairview High School
Aida Mary

Fort Collins High School
Poppins

Fossil Ridge High School
The Addams Family

Gateway High School
In the Heights

George Washington High School
Pippin

Glenwood Springs High School
The Addams Family

Heritage High School
The Addams Family

Lakewood High School
Sweeney Todd -The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Legend High School
Fiddler on the Roof

Lewis Palmer High School
Thoroughly Modern Millie

Liberty Classical Academy
Peter Pan

Loveland High School
Guys and Dolls

Lutheran High School
The Wizard of Oz

Monarch High School
Annie

Mountain View High School
Children of Eden

Niwot High School
Into the Woods

North High School & STRIVE Prep Excel High School
In the Heights

Palmer Ridge High School
Starlight Express

Ponderosa High School
Little Shop of Horrors

Poudre High School
Legally Blonde

Ralston Valley High School Regis Jesuit High School
The Little Mermaid Beauty and the Beast

Resurrection Christian School
“It’s a Bird…It’s A Plane…It’s Superman”

Steamboat Springs High School
Grease

Valor Christian High School
Pippin

Westminster High School
Tarzan

Wheat Ridge High School
The Pirates of Penzance