The 32nd annual Helen Hayes Awards will be celebrated at the historic Lincoln Theatre on May 23, with Washington favorites E. Faye Butler and Lawrence Redmond as hosts. A Dance Party follows at the world-renowned 9:30 Club, just blocks away. Both events honor 236 Helen Hayes Award nominees drawn from the 202 eligible productions presented in 2015. Included among those productions are a staggering 59 world premieres. Also in the spotlight this year is the inaugural Women’s Voices Theater Festival, with a range of plays and musicals that received 13 nominations.

Tickets for the combined Awards Ceremony and Dance Party are $275 for premium seating, $150 for balcony seating, and can be purchased via Lincoln Theatre-Ticketfly. Doors will open at 6 pm, and the show starts at 7:30 pm.

Dress: Creative Evening Attire.

theatreWashington President and CEO Amy Austin commented, “We’re excited to be returning to the Lincoln Theatre because of it’s amazing history in our city, and we’re thrilled to be taking over the 9:30 Club for a celebratory Dance Party. There’s so much phenomenal work produced every night in area theatres, this is the one night of the year we gather together to toast the excellent work of 2015 and the community as a world-class theatre destination!”

TodayTix’s sponsorship includes announcements of the Helen Hayes Award recipients in real time through push notifications via their mobile app. Opt-in for the live updates will become available in the coming weeks. “It says a lot that TodayTix has joined us as our sponsors,” Austin commented. They’ve changed the way theatres do business – and we’re always eager to look ahead.”

Named for actor Helen Hayes – a Washington native and legendary First Lady of the American Theatre – the Helen Hayes Awards honors excellence in professional theatre throughout the Washington region. Over the last three decades it has set a standard for artistic accomplishment recognized by theatre makers and theatre lovers far beyond the Beltway. Awards are given in parallel “Helen” or “Hayes” cohorts, depending on the number of Equity members involved in a production, for a total of 47 award categories, plus the John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company

Coordination of the nominations process is a year-round and demanding endeavor. Over the course of 2015, a pool of 40 Helen Hayes Awards Judges submitted a total of 21,936 scores for 2,940 individual pieces of work (design, direction, choreography, etc.). Of those scores, 1,499 were for acting performances alone. The result this year is a roster of 236 nominations drawn from 79 productions at 35 theatres. A complete list of nominees past and present can be found at theatreWashington.org.

The Lincoln Theatre, built in 1922, is the cultural center of the dynamic U Street neighborhood. Washington natives Duke Ellington and Pearl Bailey performed on its stage, along with such acclaimed artists as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, and Sarah Vaughn. The 9:30 Club has an equally stellar history. Its stage has been home to the likes of R.E.M., the Go-Go's, Cyndi Lauper, 10,000 Maniacs, Bob Dylan, Rufus Wainwright, Adele, and David Bowie.

TodayTix is the first and only free mobile app for iOS and Android that provides access to the best prices on last minute theater tickets, booked same-day or within a week’s time. Operating in the world’s most iconic theater markets, TodayTix secures the best discounted and full price tickets available for the hottest shows in Washington DC, New York City, London’s West End, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Chicago. The company now has partnerships with more than 180 theater institutions globally including Shakespeare Theatre Company, Arena Stage, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Studio Theatre, Folger Theatre, Signature Theatre, The Public Theater, Roundabout Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Club, The Metropolitan Opera, Nimax, Really Useful Theatres, Shaftesbury Theatre, SHN, American Conservatory Theater, Center Theatre Group, Geffen Playhouse, and LA Opera. To learn more, please visit www.todaytix.com or download TodayTix for iOS, Android and Amazon devices.

About theatreWashington
The administration and celebration of the Helen Hayes Awards is just one element of theatreWashington’s mission, which is to strengthen, represent, and support all segments of Washington’s professional theatre community, including theatre companies, artists, staff, and diverse audiences of all ages. Over more than three decades of support and advocacy, theatreWashington has played a vital role in the transformation of the city’s cultural identity, with the resulting revitalization of the community as a whole.

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