By Adam Hetrick
09 Oct 2009

Theatre artists Craig Bazan, Colin K. Bills and Ann Bartek have been named among the 2009 Princess Grace Award winners, which will be presented in Manhattan Oct. 21.

Presented at Cipriani 42nd Street, the awards and grants were created to assist emerging artists with their training. The companies hosting a 2009 honoree will also receive a General Operating Support grant, which help support general operating expenses for the institution.

Princess Grace Statue Awards, which honor distinguished previous Princess Grace Award recipients, will be presented to Classic Stage Company artistic director Brian Kulick and American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Gillian Murphy.

Tony and Emmy Award-nominated actress Martha Plimpton (Pal Joey, Coast of Utopia) will be on hand to present the Princess Grace Theatre Awards. The Gala, chaired by Tommy and Dee Hilfiger, will take place in the presence of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco.

“This year it seems, more than ever before, we all must strive to ensure that the arts do not become another casualty of the economic crisis,” said Princess Grace Foundation board chair John F. Lehman in a statement. “I am happy to report that thanks to our loyal supporters, The Princess Grace Foundation- USA continues its commitment to engaging and helping artists at the start of their careers, and beyond. I am proud to announce that we will bestow 22 Princess Grace Awards, 10 Honoraria, seven Special Project Grants, two Works in Progress Residencies at the Baryshnikov Arts Center and two Statue Awards. To me, these numbers mean everything -- they represent the good work of the Foundation to which we’ve all pledged our support.”

The 2009 Theatre and Playwrighting Award recipients follow:

Ann Bartek, Pierre Cardin Theater Award
Theater Fellowship, The Milk Can Theatre Company

Craig Bazan
Theater Apprenticeship, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey

Colin K. Bills, Fabergé Theater Award
Theater Fellowship, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

James Darrah, Robert and Gloria Hausman Theater Award
Theater Scholarship, University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Theater

Nicolette Robinson, Gant Gaither Theater Award
Theater Scholarship, University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Theater

Lily Whitsitt, Grace Le Vine Theater Award
Theater Scholarship, California Institute of the Arts

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Playwriting Fellowship, New Dramatists Inc.

Theatre Honoraria will be awarded to Denise Quiñones (Repertorio Espanol), Meghan Raham (Kansas City Repertory Theatre) and Tony Speciale (Classic Stage Company).

Special Project Awards recipients include Thang Dao, Andrew Okpeaha MacLean, Elliot Montague, Scott Turner Schofield, Dawn Marie Stoppiello, Nejla Yatkin and Susan Youssef; while Works in Progress Residencies at the Baryshnikov Arts Center will go to Eric Kupers and Pavel Zustiak.

Tickets begin at $1,000. For further information and a complete list of 2009 Princess Grace Award Recipients in Dance and Film visit Princess Grace Foundation-USA.