MIDLAND — The Henry Mancini Awards return May 18, celebrating outstanding student achievement in high school musical theater in Beaver, Butler, Lawrence and Mercer counties.
The awards ceremony takes place at the Lincoln Park performing Arts Center.
The keynote speaker will be Pittsburgh-born actor Joe Serafini, best known for his role as Seb on the Disney+ hit, “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.” A graduate of Bethel Park High School, Serafini most recently returned home with his
holiday show, “Christmas Live! with Joe Serafini & Friends” at the Pittsburgh Playhouse and starred as Jack in Pittsburgh CLO’s “Into the Woods.”
Held at Lincoln Park since 2014, the Mancini Awards recognize individual artistry and honor the dedication and professionalism of students and educators and their schools’ commitment to performing arts education.
Seventeen schools joining this year are Ambridge Area High School, Beaver Area High School, Beaver Falls High School, Central Valley High School, Freedom Area High School, Freeport High School, Hopewell Area High School, Knoch High School, Laurel High School, Mars Area High School, New Castle High School, North Catholic High School, Riverside High School, Rochester High School, Slippery Rock High School,
and Western Beaver Jr./Sr. High School.
The 2025 nominees list:
Best Musical (Budget 1) Beaver Falls, “Tuck Everlasting”; Freeport Area, “Les Miserables”; North Catholic, “The Addams Family.”
Best Musical (Budget 2) Hopewell, “Anastasia”; Riverside, “Mame”; Slippery Rock, “Shrek the Musical.”
Best Musical (Budget 3) Knoch High, “Catch Me If You Can”; Mars Area, “Peter Pan”;
New Castle, “Something Rotten.”
Best Actor: Kash Stevenson, Beaver Falls High; Ethan Burkhammer, Central Valley; Troy Palochak, Hopewell High; Harrisyn Schlipp, Knoch High; Aidan Krepin, Mars;
Anderson Franco, Slippery Rock High.
Best Actress: LeReyne Wukawitz, Central Valley; Bella McKivigan, Freeport Area; Katelyn Biskup, Hopewell; Abby Brown, North Catholic; Morgan Myers, Riverside;
Madison Beckman, Western Beaver.
Best Supporting Actor: Rudy Young, Beaver; Stephen Boyd, Beaver; Joseph Barnes, Central Valley; Mario Lesko, Freeport; Jacob Franks, Freeport; Grant Kingston, Slippery Rock.
Best Supporting Actress Faith Aguirre, Ambridge; Italia Cercone, Central Valley; Anna Kruse, Freeport; Remmy Kovac, Knoch; Kelley Karavias, Laurel High; Jenna Smith, Mars.
Best Choreography (Budget 1) Beaver Falls, Freeport, Moniteau.
Best Choreography (Budget 2) Hopewell, Riverside, Slippery Rock.
Best Choreography (Budget 3) Central Valley, Knoch, Mars.
Best Costume Design (Budget 1) Beaver Falls, Freeport, North Catholic.
Best Costume Design (Budget 2) Hopewell, Riverside, Slippery Rock.
Best Costume Design (Budget 3) Laurel, Mars, New Castle.
Best Crew/ Technical: (Budget 1) North Catholic, Rochester, Western Beaver.
Best Crew/ Technical (Budget 2) Hopewell, Riverside, Slippery Rock.
Best Crew/ Technical (Budget 3) Mars, Laurel, Knoch.
Best Ensemble Budget 1 Beaver Falls, Freeport, Moniteau.
Best Ensemble Budget 2 Hopewell, Riverside, Slippery Rock.
Best Ensemble Budget 3 Central Valley, Knoch, Mars.
Best Lighting Design Budget 1 Beaver Falls, Freeport, Western Beaver.
Best Lighting Design Budget 2 Ambridge, Hopewell, Riverside.
Best Lighting Design Budget 3 Knoch, Mars, New Castle.
Best Scenic Design Budget 1 Beaver Falls, Rochester, Western Beaver.
Best Scenic Design Budget 2 Ambridge, Hopewell, Riverside.
Best Scenic Design Budget 3 Knoch, Mars, New Castle.
Best Student Orchestra Beaver, Freeport, Knoch, Mars.
CLO Academy Scholarship Winner TBD
CLO Academy Scholarship Winner TBD
RMU Scholarship Winner TBD
Special Judge Award: Rochester Area High School
Outstanding Student Artist: Kelsey Miller, Knoch.
Under the sponsorship of the Pittsburgh CLO, this year’s Mancini Awards are part of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (The Jimmy Awards). The Mancini winners for Best Actor and Best Actress will join the winners from the CLO’s Gene Kelly Awards as well as winners from across the nation in New York City for a nine-day experience including private coaching, master classes, and rehearsals with theatre professionals. Their journey concludes with a production on
stage at Broadway’s Minskoff Theater, home of Disney’s ‘The Lion King, ‘ with a panel of industry experts selecting
exceptional students for The Jimmy for Best Performance by an Actress and Actor. Jimmy nominees receive opportunities
The Mancini Awards ceremony will be held at Lincoln Park at 7 p.m. May 18, and will feature performances by the schools nominated for Best Musical, students nominated for individual awards, and two representatives
from each participating school in the show stopping finale number.