ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence

08/06/2026

Don't miss your chance to save! ⏰ For a limited time through August 17, you automatically get $3 OFF your tickets to this year's Zoni Awards. This special offer won't last long, so grab your seats today in the link below before this offer is gone! 🎟️
https://scottsdalearts.org/whats-on/events/arizoni-theatre-arts-awards-of-excellence-annual-ceremony/

08/05/2026

The 2026 ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence Nominees!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOC9C7Nzalw

08/05/2026

Thanks to the close to 200 people who joined us for the reading of this year’s Zonis nominees and for the premiere of the short film about Phoenix arts journalist legend Kyle Lawson. A complete list of nominees will be posted on our socials and website tomorrow. Tickets for this years ceremony, which takes place on Tuesday October 6, are on sale now. Congratulations to this year’s nominees!

08/03/2026

The 2026 ariZoni Award Nominees will be announced next Tuesday, live and in-person, at the Tempe Center for the Arts and we'd like to introduce one of the individuals who will be reading the nominees! (RSVP for this free event at the link below)

NOAH DELGADO (He/Him) is the Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Valley Players AZ — a nonprofit theatre organization specializing in staging bold and challenging works of theatre in the Valley while supporting meaningful charitable causes both here and across the country! Born and raised in Arizona, Noah has worked extensively both on and off the stage for 11 years, working in service of bold, innovative and exciting theatre that pushes boundaries and engages audiences in moving and honest ways. He received dual B.A. degrees in Journalism and Theatre (Acting) from Arizona State University. Most recently he directed Twelve Angry Jurors as well as the regional premiere of Plague Play, both with Valley Players AZ. In 2021, he served as both the Marketing and Communications Assistant at the Phoenix Center for the Arts as well as the Assistant Dramaturg for the ariZoni award-winning play Anthropocene by Dr. Rachel Bowditch. Select credits include Frankie in Forever Plaid (Hale Theatre Arizona), Luigi Gaudi in Lucky Stiff (Arizona Regional Theatre), Perchik in Fiddler on the Roof (Hale Theatre Arizona), and Emilio u/s in The Comeuppance (Stray Cat Theatre). IG: &

https://purchase.tempecenterforthearts.com/EventAvailability?EventId=52601&fbclid=IwY2xjawTYqP5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFBRG5OemRQRFo2TVZXc1hFc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHo9wfY6nG1z8PzPTLmIobx2nqg7zp_-mhud1zESTdWoSOQY2CqBrRybOLs1__aem_c7mHVmwD5K20YYhfxhxO3g

08/02/2026

The 2026 ariZoni Award Nominees will be announced next Tuesday, live and in-person, at the Tempe Center for the Arts and we'd like to introduce one of the individuals who will be reading the nominees! (RSVP for this free event at the link below)

DAVID STALLINGS is a Phoenix-based writer, director, actor, and producer, and the founder of Stalled Productions. His short films include A Modern Guide To Dating, Bunker, Incel, and Struggle. He also produces the annual Stalled Short Film Showcase, celebrating Arizona’s independent filmmaking community, now in its third year. David most recently appeared on stage in 5th Wall Playhouse’s production of Gloria and continues to train at Dearing Acting Studio. He is honored to serve as a reader for the ariZoni Awards this year.

https://purchase.tempecenterforthearts.com/EventAvailability?EventId=52601&fbclid=IwY2xjawTYqP5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFBRG5OemRQRFo2TVZXc1hFc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHo9wfY6nG1z8PzPTLmIobx2nqg7zp_-mhud1zESTdWoSOQY2CqBrRybOLs1__aem_c7mHVmwD5K20YYhfxhxO3g

07/31/2026

The 2026 ariZoni Award Nominees will be announced next Tuesday, live and in-person, at the Tempe Center for the Arts and we'd like to introduce one of the individuals who will be reading the nominees! (RSVP for this free event at the link below)

HOPE KALIN is so excited for the opportunity to be reading the nominations for the AriZoni Awards! Hope has performed and choreographed in many shows around the Valley such as: Campbell in Bring It On (VCP), Heather Chandler in Heathers: Teen Edition (AYT) Riley in We Are the Tigers (VCP), Elle Woods in Legally Blonde (LFPA), Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg in Ride The Cyclone (VCP), Anne Boleyn and K Howard in Six: The Musical! (VCP), Ruth Fleming in Nerdy Prudes Must Die (VCP), Karen Smith in Mean Girls (Limelight Performing Arts), Beth in Little Women (LFPA), Janet in The Drowsy Chaperone (LFPA). She is currently performing Ilse in Spring Awakening and choreographing the show! Other shows she has choreographed are Ride The Cyclone, Nerdy Prudes Must Die, SIX: The Musical, and The Lightning Thief. She is also the Arizona Solo State Champion for CAA 2024 and 2025.

https://purchase.tempecenterforthearts.com/EventAvailability?EventId=52601&fbclid=IwY2xjawTYqP5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFBRG5OemRQRFo2TVZXc1hFc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHo9wfY6nG1z8PzPTLmIobx2nqg7zp_-mhud1zESTdWoSOQY2CqBrRybOLs1__aem_c7mHVmwD5K20YYhfxhxO3g

07/30/2026

The 2026 ariZoni Award Nominees will be announced next Tuesday, live and in-person, at the Tempe Center for the Arts and we'd like to introduce one of the individuals who will be reading the nominees! (RSVP for this free event at the link below)

PAUL YOUNT (he/him) is the Artistic Director and Founder of Emerald City Players— a community theatre that uplifts and challenges our community, placing bravery at the heart of every performance, honoring empathy and connection in every character, and championing intelligence and creativity in every story we tell. Paul grew up in the Pacific Northwest before moving to Arizona in 2021. He has been choreographing and directing musicals for 10 years! In recent years, he directed BARE: a pop opera and Next to Normal. He has also choreographed several productions including Heathers (MET), Legally Blonde (UP Performing Arts), Wizard of Oz & Little Shop of Horrors (Pinnacle HS) and the Arizona debut of The Clockmaker’s Daughter (PVCC). Notable roles include Lewis in Pippin (MET), Annas in Jesus Christ Superstar (Rising Artists’ Collective), Adult Male in Spring Awakening (DST), and Prince Edward in Richard III (SFCC Spartan Theatre). Paul is an AriZoni nominee for his choreography of Something Rotten (Greasepaint Youth Theatre) and he received the 2023 BroadwayWorld Phoenix Award for Best Choreography of a Musical for his work in Kinky Boots at PVCC. IG: &

https://purchase.tempecenterforthearts.com/EventAvailability?EventId=52601&fbclid=IwY2xjawTYqP5leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFBRG5OemRQRFo2TVZXc1hFc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHo9wfY6nG1z8PzPTLmIobx2nqg7zp_-mhud1zESTdWoSOQY2CqBrRybOLs1__aem_c7mHVmwD5K20YYhfxhxO3g

07/22/2026

Have you RSVP'd for the live in-person reading of this year's Zoni nominees on Tuesday, August 4?

We are less than two weeks away for the in-person reading of this year's ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence Nominees and seating is limited.

Join us at the Tempe Center for the Arts on Tuesday, August 4th at 7pm to hear the nominees for the 2025-2026 season announced live! RSVP at the link below

The evening will also include the premiere screening of the short, 20-minute documentary film "The Constant Teacher" about Kyle Lawson, former arts and theatre critic of the Arizona Republic, who published thousands of reviews over his four-decade career in Arizona journalism, and which features many theatre artists from the Valley.

We anticipate the evening to run 90 minutes or less.

While this is a free event, RSVPs are strictly encouraged in order for us to plan for the appropriate seating arrangements!

The list of nominees will be posted online approximately 24 hours after the event,

The 2026 ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence will take place on Tuesday, October 6th at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, with the Youth Ceremony at 5:30 and the Adult ceremony at 8pm. Tickets will go on sale for both ceremonies on August 4.

This year's Zoni Celebration is sponsored by Queen Creek Performing Arts, Actors PLAYGROUND Theater Company, Greasepaint Youth Theatre/Scottsdale Community Players, and Ghostlight Theatre. We want to thank each of them for their support!

We look forward to seeing you on August 4th as we kick off this year's ariZoni Celebration!

RSVP HERE: https://purchase.tempecenterforthearts.com/EventAvailability?EventId=52601

07/08/2026

Save the Date! Please mark your calendars for four weeks from today, on Tuesday, August 4th, as the ariZoni Theatre Association is proud to bring back the return of the live, in-person, reading of this year's ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence Nominees for the first time since 2019!

Join us at the Tempe Center for the Arts on Tuesday, August 4th at 7pm to hear the nominees for the 2025-2026 season announced live!

The evening will also include the premiere screening of the short, 20-minute documentary film "The Constant Teacher" about Kyle Lawson, former arts and theatre critic of the Arizona Republic, who published thousands of reviews over his four-decade career in Arizona journalism, and which features many theatre artists from the Valley.

We anticipate the evening to run 90 minutes or less.

While this is a free event, RSVPs are strictly encouraged in order for us to plan for the appropriate seating arrangements, and a follow up link to RSVP will be posted as soon as the TCA box office has it ready to go, so check back here!

The list of nominees will be posted online approximately 24 hours after the event,

The 2026 ariZoni Theatre Awards of Excellence will take place on Tuesday, October 6th at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, with the Youth Ceremony at 5:30 and the Adult ceremony at 8pm. Tickets will go on sale for both ceremonies on August 4.

We look forward to seeing you on August 4th as we kick off this year's ariZoni Celebration!

05/09/2026

Remembering Laura Durant on Caturday! We miss you, Laura!

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