SCHENECTADY, NY (April 21) – The Collaborative School of the Arts is thrilled to announce the 9th annual High School Musical Theatre Awards nominees, celebrating outstanding student achievement in high school musical theatre across the Capital Region. This year’s nominees represent the immense talent, passion, and creativity of local high school performers, musicians, designers, and crews.
Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony, modeled after the Tony Awards, which will be held 7 p.m. Saturday, May 10, on the MainStage at Proctors in Schenectady. The ceremony will showcase live performances from the schools nominated for Best Musical in each of the three tiers and honor the 12 categories of nominees overall.
This year, the award names changed to reflect Proctors Collaborative’s commitment to inclusivity. Best Actor and Actress are now combined into one category: Outstanding Lead Performer. The two winners of that category will represent the region at the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (The Jimmy Awards) in New York City this June.
The nominees for the 2025-26 HSMTA are:
Backstage Excellence
- Amsterdam High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
- Glens Falls High School – “The Prom”
- Queensbury High School – “The Wizard of Oz”
- Shenendehowa High School – “Legally Blonde”
- South Glens Falls High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
Outstanding Orchestra
- Albany High School – “Bring It On”
- Ballston Spa High School – “Catch Me If You Can”
- Columbia High School – “Into the Woods”
- Niskayuna High School – “Sunset Boulevard”
- Shenendehowa High School – “Legally Blonde”
Outstanding Choreography Execution
- Amsterdam High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
- Colonie Central High School – “Mary Poppins”
- Niskayuna High School – “Sunset Boulevard”
- Saratoga Springs High School – “Legally Blonde”
- South Glens Falls High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
Outstanding Ensemble
- Albany High School – “Bring It On”
- Amsterdam High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
- Ballston Spa High School – “Catch Me If You Can”
- Schenectady High School – “School of Rock”
- South Glens Falls High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
Outstanding Supporting Performers
- Mason Calarco at Michael Banks in “Mary Poppins,” Colonie Central High School
- Julia Davies as Wilbur Turnblad in “Hairspray,” Catskill High School
- Rae Philips as Jay in “Disney’s Descendants the Musical,” Cohoes High School
- Olivia Storms as Kevin G. in “Mean Girls,” Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk High School
- Carmen Tarlo as Carlos in “Disney’s Descendants the Musical,” Cohoes High School
Outstanding Supporting Performers
- Serenity Palmer as Tomika Spencer-Williams in “School of Rock,” Schenectady High School
- Sarah Pipino as Brooke Wyndham in “Legally Blonde,” Saratoga Springs High School
- Elizabeth Signoretti as Penny Pingleton in “Hairspray,” Catskill High School
- Lily Sinnott as Serena in “Legally Blonde,” Shenendehowa High School
- Holly Thorpe as Rapunzel in “Into the Woods,” Columbia High School
Outstanding Lead Performer
- Mea Cleary as The Baker’s Wife in “Into the Woods,” Hoosick Falls Jr./Sr. High School
- Abigail DeGregory as Elle Woods in “Legally Blonde,” Saratoga Springs High School
- Ileana Jackson as Dewey Finn in “School of Rock,” Schenectady High School
- Hannah Marsh as Eurydice in “Hadestown: Teen Edition,” South Glens Falls High School
- Lianelys Oviedo Roman as Eurydice in “Hadestown: Teen Edition,” Amsterdam High School
- Sophia Plante as DeeDee Allen in “The Prom,” Glens Falls High School
Outstanding Lead Performer
- Peter Hinckley as Carl Hanratty in “Catch Me If You Can,” Ballston Spa High School
- Shane LaBounty as Trent Oliver in “The Prom,” Glens Falls High School
- Roman Mangino as Frank Abagnale Jr. in “Catch Me If You Can,” Ballston Spa High School
- Macklin McGrath as Barry Glickman in “The Prom,” Glens Falls High School
- Brandon Reisner as Hermes in “Hadestown: Teen Edition,” South Glens Falls High School
Outstanding Musical Tier A
- Albany High School – “Bring It On”
- Colonie Central High School – “Mary Poppins”
- Glens Falls High School – “The Prom”
Outstanding Musical Tier B
- Ballston Spa High School – “Catch Me If You Can”
- Saratoga Springs High School – “Legally Blonde”
- South Glens Falls High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
Outstanding Musical Tier C
- Amsterdam High School – “Hadestown: Teen Edition”
- Cohoes High School – “Disney’s Descendants the Musical”
- Schoharie High School – “Mamma Mia”
Tickets for the High School Musical Theatre Awards are available through the Box Office at Proctors in-person, via phone at (518) 346-6204 Tuesday-Saturday 12.-6 p.m., or online by visiting atproctors.org. Groups of 10 or more can get tickets by calling (518) 382-3884 x 139.
The High School Musical Theatre Awards are sponsored by Daily Gazette and the trip to the Jimmys is sponsored by M/E Engineering. For a complete list of nominees and more information, visit collaborativeschoolofthearts.org.