Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre honors Ike, West Valley drama students

SEATTLE -- Three teen drama students from Eisenhower and West Valley high schools walked away with 5th Avenue High School Musical Theatre Awards on Monday night during a ceremony in Seattle.

Presented by Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre, the awards recognize exceptional musical theater productions presented during the 2008-09 school year.

This year, 82 schools entered their productions for judging. Schools from the Yakima Valley that earned nominations were Ike for "Honk!;" West Valley for "Oklahoma!;" Davis High School for "My Fair Lady;" and Sunnyside High School for "Willy Wonka, Jr."

And the Yakima Valley winners are:

* Outstanding Choreography -- Ike's Johnny Wilson, who was nominated in the same category last year for his work on Ike's production of "High School Musical." This year he was also nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role as Ugly in "Honk!"

* Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Featured Ensemble Role -- Ike's Matt Kincannon as Bullfrog in "Honk!"

* Outstanding Performance by an Actor or Actress in a Non-Singing Role -- West Valley's Jacob Andrew Almanza as Ali Hakim in "Oklahoma!"

Also, Ike was one of four schools to receive Special Honors for Educational Impact; and Adam Cleghorn from Sunnyside High School was one of 12 students to receive Special Honors for Student Achievement for his work on the school's second musical of the year, "Once Upon a Mattress." Cleghorn designed and built all the sets for the show.

The awards were presented at the 5th Avenue Theatre, and nominees in select categories presented numbers from their shows and performed song medleys.