The Bay St. Louis Little Theatre has been chosen for the coveted 2013 Governor’s Arts Award. The Mississippi Arts Commission announced the winners of the 25th annual awards and the Little Theatre won “Excellence in Community Arts.” The Little Theatre was recognized for its many contributions to the arts in Mississippi and beyond. The Bay St. Louis Little Theatre is the first community theater in the state to be selected to receive this award. “We are proud to announce the five deserving recipients to be honored at the 25th celebration of the Governor’s Arts Awards. The nominations submitted this year were absolutely outstanding and I am constantly amazed by the abundant supply of deserving individuals, organizations, enterprises and communities grown right here in this rich Mississippi soil,” stated Malcolm White, Executive Director of the Mississippi Arts Commission.
Awards are made to individuals and organizations for the excellence of their work in a wide variety of art forms. Nominations are made by the general public, and a group of industry peers serves as judges to review the submitted information and to determine the recipients.
The 2013 Award recipients are Kathryn Lewis for Arts in Education, Bay St. Louis Little Theatre for Arts in Community, Eddie “Chank” Willis for Excellence in Music, Beth Henley for Excellence in Literature, and Bobby Rush for Lifetime Achievement. Previous Award recipients include Eudora Welty, B.B King, Bo Diddley, John Grisham, Stephen E. Ambrose, and Malcolm White.
The Governor’s Art Awards ceremony will be held in Jackson, Mississippi, on February 21, 2013. The Little Theatre Board of Directors and Bay St Louis mayor, Les Fillingame will be honored guests at the event. The ceremony will be held at the Belhaven University Performing Arts Center. The Little Theatre Board of Directors are Cheryl Grace, President; John Anderson, Vice-President; Kelly Everett, Richard O’Briant, Larry Clark, and Donna Oakley, and Charles Dessommes.
The Mississippi Arts Commission is a state agency, funded by the Mississippi Legislature, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Riley Foundation, The Phil Hardin Foundation, and the Mississippi Endowment for the Arts. MAC is the official grants-making and service agency for the arts in Mississippi.
“This is such an honor for our Theatre and such a positive event for our community,” said Cheryl Grace, Theatre Board President. “So many hours and effort from so many in our community has been recognized with this award. Our community deserves this accolade. The Mississippi Public Broadcasting station has been taping a piece about the Little Theatre for an upcoming program. This award will bring state-wide interest and recognition to our Bay St. Louis community.”
Little Theatre President, Cheryl Grace,and Vice-President, John Anderson, standing on the balcony of the Bay St. Louis Little Theatre, the winner of the 2013 Governor’s Award for Arts in Excellence by the Mississippi Arts Commission.