(RED BANK – FEBRUARY 5) The Basie Awards, the Count Basie Center’s annual celebration of Monmouth County high school theatre, has revealed the complete slate of student productions under consideration for this year’s program.

A total of 57 high school productions will vie for nominations at this year’s ceremony, set for May 19^th at the Basie Center’s Hackensack Meridian Health Theatre. Nominations will be made public on April 27, with tickets going on sale on Friday, May 1 at 10am.

“When it’s all said and done, our evaluators will attend nearly sixty high school productions,” said Anthony Greco, the Count Basie Center’s Senior Manager Arts Education and Outreach and director of this year’s Basie Awards. “It’s an incredible task, but it’s one that consistently demonstrates to us that Monmouth County is unique in its support and enthusiasm for high school theatrical programs.”

“The Basie Awards are one of our favorite nights of the year, and as we celebrate the Basie Center’s centennial, we’ll celebrate not only our nominees, but the history and future of theatre itself.”

Here are the productions being evaluated for this year’s Basie Awards:

• Allentown High School – Bright Star (Spring)
• Biotechnology High School – Freaky Friday (Spring)
• Christian Brothers Academy – Our Town (Fall), Grease (Spring)
• Collier School – This Murder Was Staged (Fall)
• Colts Neck High School – Play On! (Fall), A Chorus Line (Spring)
• Communications High School – Love, Esme (Fall)
• Freehold High School – Curse of the Cobra’s Kiss (Fall), Footloose (Spring)
• Freehold Township High School – CLUE (Fall), The Little Mermaid (Spring)
• Henry Hudson Regional School – Be More Chill (Fall)
• High Technology High School – This Murder was Staged (Fall), Little Shop of Horrors (Spring)
• Holmdel High School – Puffs (Fall), Cinderella (Spring)
• Howell High School – Blithe Spirit (Fall), Twelfth Night (Fall), Chicago (Spring)
• Keansburg High School – Dracula (Fall), Ride the Cyclone (Spring)
• Keyport High School – RENT (Spring)
• Long Branch High School – The Addams Family (Spring)
• Manalapan High School – The Matchmaker (Fall), The Addams Family (Spring)
• Manasquan High School – An Exceptional Childhood Center (Fall), Little Women (Spring)
• Matawan Regional High School – Blithe Spirit (Fall), Leap of Faith (Spring)
• Middletown High School North – The Diary of Anne Frank (Fall), Once Upon a Mattress (Spring)
• Middletown High School South – Iphigenia in Tauris (Fall), Guys and Dolls (Spring)
• Monmouth Regional High School – CLUE (Fall), Seussical! (Spring)
• Neptune High School – Songs for a New World (Fall), Chicago (Spring)
• Ocean Township High School – Rumors (Fall), Once Upon a One More Time (Spring)
• Ranney School – Little Women (Fall), Anything Goes (Spring)
• Raritan High School – CLUE (Fall), The Wizard of Oz (Spring)
• Red Bank Catholic High School – Peter and the Starcatcher (Fall), Grease (Spring)
• Red Bank Regional High School – Little Women (Fall), Legally Blonde (Spring)
• Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School – Frozen Jr. (Fall), Evil Dead the Musical (Spring)
• St. John Vianney High School – Christmas One Act Festival (Fall), Godspell (Spring)
• St. Rose High School – CLUE (Fall), Mary Poppins (Spring)
• Trinity Hall – The Book of Will (Fall), Come from Away (Spring)
• Wall High School – Eurydice (Fall), Into the Woods (Spring)

Each year, the Basie Awards program invites all Monmouth County high schools to submit their musical and drama productions for consideration. Adjudicators are sent to each presentation and assess scores in categories ranging from acting, directing and choreography, to technical categories such as set and costume design and lighting.

As is tradition, an annual Lifetime Achievement Award is also bestowed upon a figure central to the preservation and celebration of arts in the community. This year’s recipient, as well as this year’s official nominees, will be announced April 27.

For more information on the 2026 Basie Awards, visit www.thebasie.org/basieawards