Tickets Still Available; Chris Moore to emcee
Performances from nominated musicals “A Chorus Line” by Hawthorne Players, “Bonnie and Clyde” and “Something Rotten!” by Gateway Center for the Performing Arts, “Bright Star” and “The Pajama Game” by Monroe Actors Stage Company, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” by Christ Memorial Productions, “The Addams Family” by Spotlight Productions and “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” by Goshen Theater Project will be showcased at Arts For Life’s 23rd Best Performance Awards.
Tickets are still available for the presentation on Sunday, July 2, at 2 p.m. at the Florissant Performing Arts Center, 1 James J. Eagan Drive, Florissant, Mo. 63033.
Awards will be presented in 30 categories. The BPAs have honored musical theater in community and youth productions beginning a year after the nonprofit organization AFL was founded in 1999.
“Arts For Life provides a community recognition program to spotlight the incredible talent we have in St. Louis community theater and honor the passion and dedication of those who build this amazing and unique theatrical community,” said Mary McCreight, AFL president.
Local singer-actor-dancer-director Chris Moore will be the master of ceremonies.
Nominations are listed on the website, www.artsforlife.org.
Event Tickets
Lobby and house doors open at 1 p.m. All tickets are reserved seating.
Formal attire/black tie is requested.
A cash bar with beer and wine will be available, as will soft drinks, water, and snacks.
BPA tickets are available online at $30 with a service fee of $2 added, which can be purchased at: https://arts-for-life-2.square.site/.
Tickets will be available for pickup/purchase in the theatre lobby from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 1, and starting at 1 p.m. on Sunday, July 2. AFL accepts cash or credit/debit cards.
Contact us at afltrg@artsforlife.org if you have any special seating needs or questions.
A “Red Carpet” banner will be available as a backdrop for photos, which you can share on social media using the hash tag #AFLBPA2023.
Be aware of construction and traffic in the area, so plan accordingly.
Nancy Bortosky to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award
Nancy Bortosky, executive director of DaySpring Arts and Education, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. She founded DaySpring in 1993 as a daytime arts program for homeschoolers and an after-school arts program for the community; she retired this year.
Under her direction the past 29 years, DaySpring has grown into a community organization offering dance, musical theatre, drama, fine arts, and music classes and performances, as well as offering an accredited Pre-K through 12th grade hybrid model Academy.
This year DaySpring will have produced five musicals, a mixed-bill ballet, a drama, numerous instrumental and vocal music recitals, and end-of-the-year drama, musical theatre, and dance recitals. Nancy has been instrumental in growing these programs.
About Chris Moore
Last year’s winner for the Best Actor in a Comedic Role Award for playing the Donkey in “Shrek,” which was produced by the Kirkwood Theatre Guild.
He directed “Godspell” for Take Two Productions this spring and recently played Hysterium in New Line Theatre’s “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.” Other recent theatrical credits include Cutler in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” at Clayton Community Theatre; in the ensemble of New Line Theatre’s “Urinetown” and “Head Over Heels,” and as a minstrel and Peter Quince in “Something Rotten!”; “Dreamgirls,” “Guys and Dolls,” and in the Polar Express event at Union Station.
Award Nominations
Four youth musicals presented by Gateway Center for the Performing Arts — “13” (8), “Bonnie and Clyde” (10), “A Christmas Story” (2), and “Something Rotten!” (13) — combined for 35 nominations, the most of any community theater or youth group.
Monroe Actors Stage Company in Waterloo, Ill., led all St. Louis area – metro-east Illinois community theater groups, with 25 — 14 for the classic musical “The Pajama Game” and 11 for the Steve Martin-Edie Brickel musical “Bright Star.”
Christ Memorial Productions received 13 nominations for “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Goshen Theatre Project in Collinsville, Ill., earned 12 – 11 nominations for “Percy Jackson: Lightning Thief” and 1 for “Meet Me in St. Louis.” Spotlight Productions had 12 nominations for “The Addams Family.”
The Kirkwood Theatre Guild had nine BPA nominations for “Little Shop of Horrors,” as did Hawthorne Players in Florissant for “A Chorus Line.”
Act Two in St. Peters had eight BPA nominations for “The Full Monty.”
Other groups receiving nominations included Looking Glass Players, 6; Over Due Theatre, 6; Curtain’s Up Theater, 2; DaySpring Arts and Education, 2; and Young People’s Theatre, 1.
Arts For Life is dedicated to the healing power of the arts through its work with youth, the underserved, and the community, with its goal of “Making a Dramatic Difference.”
AFL is dedicated to promoting public awareness of local community theatre, encouraging excellence in the arts, and acknowledging the incredible people who are a part of it.
Lynn (Zipfel) Venhaus has had a continuous byline in St. Louis metro region publications since 1978. She writes features and news for Belleville News-Democrat and contributes to St. Louis magazine and other publications.
She is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic, currently reviews films for Webster-Kirkwood Times and KTRS Radio, covers entertainment for PopLifeSTL.com and co-hosts podcast PopLifeSTL.com…Presents.
She is a member of Critics Choice Association, where she serves on the women’s and marketing committees; Alliance of Women Film Journalists; and on the board of the St. Louis Film Critics Association. She is a founding and board member of the St. Louis Theater Circle.
She is retired from teaching journalism/media as an adjunct college instructor.
