13th Annual Hunting-Tonys Celebrate School Musicals

TOWN OF HUNTINGTON, NY — The 13th annual Hunting-Tony Awards were held at Huntington High School on June 5, town councilmembers Joan Cergol and Dave Bennardo announced.

The "Hunting-Tonys" celebrate the fall plays and spring musicals from the Town of Huntington’s nine public high schools and honor the casts, crews, and school personnel that make them happen.

Each year, volunteer judges choose nominees and winners in various performance, technical,
and design categories. In addition to a red-carpet pre-show courtesy of Fred’s Carpet in East Northport, the show also featured live performances from two of the nominated musicals.

The ceremony opened with a lively medley of songs from "Little Shop of Horrors," performed by Elwood-John H. Glenn High School students Mairead Camas, Briana Ebinger, Quinn Hines, Eva Musgrove, Melina Neofitos, and Nolan Reinhardt.

Attendees were dazzled by Half Hollow Hills High School East students Annabelle Deaner, Deanne DeVilla, Jasmine Foster, Sammy Greenberg, Trien Song, and Sean Tran, who performed their own medley from the songbook of "Mean Girls: High School Version."

The two biggest awards of the night, Best Play and Best Musical, went to Huntington High School’s production of "Almost, Maine" by John Cariani and Commack High School’s production of "Into the Woods" by James Lapine and the late Stephen Sondheim.

"Passion for the performing arts is deeply woven into the fabric of our community and is reflected by this year’s amazing audience turnout and incredible level of talent and commitment shown by our nominees," Cergol said in a news release. "I am so proud of everyone in these casts and crews for making our lives more vibrant with their craft."

Bennardo called it a "blessing" to celebrate the students, saying many of them will "no doubt" have long, fruitful careers in theater.

"My thanks go out to the Huntington school district, our enthusiastic volunteer judges, and
everyone who helped make this night possible," Bennardo said.

The full ceremony will be available for viewing on the Town of Huntington website, as well as the
town’s TV channel (Optimum Channel 18 or Verizon Channel 38), in the near future.

The list of winners for the 13th Annual Hunting-Tony Awards can be found below, in order of presentation:

• Best Supporting Actor in a Play: Edward Peña – "Love of a Pig" (Walt Whitman High School)
• Best Supporting Actress in a Play: Gracie DeMarinis – "Love of a Pig" (Walt Whitman High School)
• Best Supporting Actor in a Musical: Nolan Reinhardt – "Little Shop of Horrors" (Elwood-John H. Glenn High School)
• Best Supporting Actress in a Musical: Julia Gordon – "Into the Woods" (Commack High School)
• Best Stage Crew for a Play: Huntington High School – "Almost, Maine"
• Best Stage Crew for a Musical: Elwood-John H. Glenn High School – "Little Shop of Horrors"
• Best Stage Set Design for a Play: Half Hollow Hills High School West – "The Man Who Came to Dinner"
• Best Stage Set Design for a Musical: Harborfields High School – "Newsies"
• Best Orchestra Pit: Half Hollow Hills High School West – "Guys and Dolls"
• Best Costumes in a Play: Cold Spring Harbor High School – "Miss Holmes"
• Best Costumes in a Musical: Half Hollow Hills High School West – "Guys and Dolls"
• Best Male Vocalist Dante DiGiorgio – "Guys and Dolls" (Half Hollow Hills High School West)
• Best Female Vocalist: Julia Crapanzano – "The Wizard of Oz" (Walt Whitman High School)
• Best Choreography: Harborfields High School – "Newsies"
• Best Technical Production for a Play: Huntington High School – "Almost, Maine"
• Best Technical Production for a Musical: Elwood-John H. Glenn High School – "Little Shop of Horrors"
• Best Lead Actor in a Play: Dylan Brinn – "Almost, Maine" (Huntington High School)
• Best Lead Actress in a Play: Annabelle Bryant – "Miss Holmes" (Cold Spring Harbor High School)
• Best Featured Actor in a Musical: Alex Blitzer – "Mean Girls: High School Version" (Half Hollow Hills High School East)
• Featured Actress in a Musical: Makayla Connolly – "The Little Mermaid" (Northport High School)
• Best Lead Actor in a Musical: Sean Tran – "Mean Girls: High School Version" (Half Hollow Hills High School East)
• Best Lead Actress in a Musical: Elif Daspinar – "Guys and Dolls" (Half Hollow Hills High School West)
• Best Ensemble in a Play: Commack High School – "The Bold, The Young, and The Murdered"
• Best Ensemble in a Musical: Half Hollow Hills High School East – "Mean Girls: High School Version"
• Best Play: Huntington High School – "Almost, Maine"
• Best Musical: Commack High School – "Into the Woods"