Wellesley Summer Theatre Wins Moss Hart Award for Excellence

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley Summer Theatre has won the 2004 Moss Hart Memorial Award for theatrical excellence in the professional division for the third year in a row. The honor will be bestowed at New England Theatre Conference in Portland, Maine, in November.

“It is being awarded this year for our summer production of Jane Eyre,” said Nora Hussey, director of Wellesley Summer Theatre and theatre studies at Wellesley College. “This represents the fifth time overall, as we won it twice in the college division in prior years. The award is extremely meaningful because it not only recognizes high artistic achievement and a fresh visionary approach to a script but is considered a reflection of the ideals exemplified by (playwright) Moss Hart.”

In making the annual award, the New England Theatre Conference, seeks to encourage artistic growth and the highest standards of excellence in theatre. The award honors the memory of dramatist and director Moss Hart by recognizing outstanding productions that “present affirmative views of human dignity and courage, which have strong literary and artistic merit, and which in their productions exemplify fresh imaginative treatment within the intent of the playwright.”

“Because our mission at Wellesley Summer Theatre is to ‘present works that challenge and move our audiences to new understanding of the world and ourselves within it,’ this is a true honor,” Hussey said. “I feel we are accomplishing what we set out to do seven years ago. The company is strong and dedicated to idea of theatre as a transformative element in the lives of audiences and participants.”

Since 1875, Wellesley College has been a leader in providing an excellent liberal-arts education for women who will make a difference in the world. Its 500-acre campus near Boston is home to 2,300 undergraduate students from all 50 states and 68 countries. For more information, go to www.wellesley.edu.

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