Local high schools win big at the Tommy Tunes

The Tommy Tune Awards ceremony was held last night, and several high schools walked away with armfuls of very tall statuettes. We're just kidding, but Klein High School did rule the night with five awards for their production of Oklahoma.

If you're not familiar with the high stakes game of high school musicals (not High School Musical), then you might not know what the Tommy Tunes are. Let us inform you. The Tommy Tunes are awards given annually to Houston-area high schools for their outstanding musical productions that rival Broadway shows themselves. The awards are named after Houstonian and nine-time Tony award winner Tommy Tune. Schools are nominated in 15 categories, then a panel of theatre professionals choose the winners, who are announced at a very glamorous awards ceremony near the end of the school year.

The Tommy Tunes mean more than the jealous glares of your theatre kid peers though. They also offer scholarships to outstanding participants, which are also announced at the awards ceremony. Additionally, each year, one individual wins the Ruth Denney Award for a lifetime of achievement in theatre education. Ruth Denney was Tommy Tune's drama teacher when he attended Lamar High School. She also founded Houston's High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.

Last night's ceremony featured appearances by "You're the One That I Want" finalist and Alvin native Austin Miller, along with Fiddler on the Roof composer and Pulitzer Prize winning author Jerry Bock. Fancy fancy. Like we mentioned, Klein High School was the night's top winner. Multiple awards also went to Morton Ranch, Klein Forest, and Stratford for Fiddler on the Roof; You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown; and Thoroughly Modern Millie, respectively. Congratulations to all the participants and future Broadway stars!