In just two years, the NJ Stage Awards have developed quite a following throughout the Garden State arts community. Designed to help shine a spotlight on arts organizations throughout the state, the complete list of winners for 2016 were announced in New Jersey Stage magazine. New Jersey Stage will be highlighting the winners of each category until the end of the year. This article takes a look at the Best Place To See Live Dance Performances category.
“The Jay and Linda Grunin Center For The Arts received our gold award as the best place to see live dance performances,” said Gary Wien, publisher. “Located on the campus of Ocean County College in Toms River, the Grunin Center is a performing arts center dedicated to providing art and entertainment to Ocean County. Their dedicated fanbase also earned them a bronze in the music category for best place to see emerging artists."
The silver award for second place went to Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, which often features dance performances by the New Jersey Ballet and touring companies from around the world.
Earning the bronze was Strand Theatre in Lakewood, which has become the home away from home for the Atlantic City Ballet.
Awards were chosen by the public via a month-long online vote to find the best places to experience art in New Jersey. Categories included art, comedy, dance, film, music, theatre, and best town for an arts night out. Over 10,000 votes were cast.
“The public was allowed to vote once a day per IP address,” explained Wien. “This allowed the smallest of arts organizations the same opportunity as the largest. We saw venues push voting on their websites, social media pages, and at the venues themselves.”
The top 3 vote getters for each category were listed in New Jersey Stage magazine and on a permanent page of the NewJerseyStage.com website. In addition, the website features a rotating graphic highlighting one winner at a time and linking back to their website (the graphics will run until the 2017 NJ Stage Award winners are announced). Individual press releases for each genre will also point a spotlight on the top 3 winners in each category.
For the complete list of 2016 NJ Stage Award winners click here.
