Distinguished Merit Award
|
2015 Honoree
|
|
|
2015 Honoree
|
|
|
Previous Recipients |
|
| 1979 Norman Carver (Kalamazoo, MI) 1980 Douglas Cook (University Park, PA) 1981 Henry Fonda (Omaha, NE) 1982 David Gooder (Downers Grove, IL) 1983 Bea Miller (Memphis, TN) 1984 Alaska State Community Theatre Association 1985 National Multicultural Theatre Association of Canada 1987 Twink Lynch (Topeka, KS) 1988 Kalamazoo Civic Players (MI) 1989 Charles Jones (Omaha, NE) 1990 Hiroshi Koizumi (Toyama City, Japan) 1991 Target Stores 1992 Paul Ebert (Oak Ridge, TN) 1993 Jon Kerkhoff (Omaha, NE) 1994 Theatre Midland (TX) 1995 Sherwood Lohrey & Theatre Memphis (TN) 1996 Steve Spiegel & Music Theatre International (New York, NY) 1997 William Talbot (New York, NY) 1998 Stage Directions Magazine 1999 David Young (Gainesville, FL) |
2000 Charles Jeffers (Hickory, NC) 2001 Jim Sohre (US Army, Europe) 2002 Enid Holm (Odessa, TX) Harv Thompson (Madison, WI) 2003 Ohio Community Theatre Association 2004 Shirley Cockrell (Oneida, NY) Hap Ryder (Fairbanks, AK) Pat White (Amherst, NH) 2005 Jerry Zimmerman (Ft Jennings, OH) 2006 John Rich (Pullman, WA) 2007 Morrie Enders (Kalamazoo, MI) 2008 Jim Buckley (Cambria, CA) 2009 Bonnie Daniels (US Army) Andre Bruce Ward (Memphis, TN) 2010 Penelope Notter (Grand Rapids, MI) 2011 April Cochran (Paducah, KY) Ginny Morrison (Seville, OH) 2012 Dennis Assaf & Jefferson Performing Arts Society (Metairie, LA) Linda McClane (Fernandina Beach, FL) 2013 Anthony Del Rosso & Gwendolyn Whitney (SHAPE Perf. Arts Centre NATO Base) Carolyn Pitman (Whitefish, MT) 2014 Melanie Cornelison (Ashland, KY) Lisa Garza (Houston, TX) SCERA Center for the Arts (Orem, UT) |
Aubrey had a gift for seeing San Diego community theatres not as competitors, but as partners. In the early 1960's he created a network allowing disparate theatres to share resources, skills, and materials. His efforts demonstrated, through example, how cooperation and sharing could make all theatre groups stronger. In 1963, under Mr. Dunne's leadership, the Associated Community Theatres (ACT) of San Diego was born. The group organized workshops and one-act festivals, creating opportunities for varied theatre groups to come together, share ideas, and learn to rely on one another. In 1965 the group had its first awards celebration, using judging criteria developed by Mr. Dunne. The member theatres voted to call the awards "The Aubreys” in honor of their founder. Mr. Dunne remained active in ACT, supporting San Diego community theatres for more than 40 years. In August 2015 ACT will celebrate its 50th Aubrey Awards with a gala in Mr. Dunne's honor. Although no longer with us, Mr. Dunn's legacy of community theatre ideals, high quality, and spirit of cooperation lives on.
OCTA was founded in 1969 by 15 community theatre groups. OCTA's mission of promoting excellence in Oklahoma's community theatres is accomplished through an on-line newsletter, a library/resource center with over 2,000 theatre related materials, networking, festivals, summer conferences, and educational and performance opportunities. OCTA's officers have completed the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits "Standards of Excellence" training benefitting both OCTA and local community theatre boards. OCTAFest allows Oklahoma theatres to share their work and knowledge, and OCTA leads the nation with the most first and second place awards at regional and national festivals. Oklahoma theatres have also performed at four international festivals. OCTA efforts to provide theatre related opportunities for young people include a youth conference and assisting with the creation of theatre-related curriculum available to theatres and school districts. OCTA, with a current membership of 36 theatres, five universities, and eighty individuals was honored with the 2014 Governor's Arts Award in recognition of its unique contributions in support of the arts.
