And the Nominees Are...

Just wanted to shout out some family props! My cousin, Ryan Schnell, accomplished and rockin' local actor, got nominated for an Elly Award here in Sac for his performance in A Midsummer Night's Dream! The Elly awards are a local Sacramento thing, where SARTA (Sacramento Area Regional Theater Alliance) judges high schools, community colleges, universities and private acting theaters throughout the area each year. This year Ryan got the nod for Leading Actor, Adult: Young Person's Play. Actually, of the five nominees in the category, three of them were from Ryan's acting troupe - Take Note Troupe. Also, three of the actress nominations went to Take Note gals.

Winners were announced at a ceremony at the Crest Theater downtown on September 23rd, and while Ryan didn't take the award, the nomination cred is AWEsome. You know from previous posts how I feel about Shakespeare, and I'm sorry I missed out on seeing Ryan's performance this one. I'm just glad to see the continuing streak of creative talent in my family, and that we're representing in the arts (even low-brow ones like comic writing...okay, so I'm not the Shakespearian one in the family). Big congrats to Ryan for the well-deserved recognition from those in the know in Sacramento theater. They know rising stars when they see them. Obviously!