Besides actors, directors, producers, playwrights, composers and designers, the Tony Awards honors theater educators. Two from Dallas made the 2026 list: Anné Hughes, a drama teacher who directs the fine arts program at the private, nonprofit Shelton School; and Curtis King, founder and president of the nearly 50-year-old Black Academy of Arts and Letters.
They were among 18 who received honorable mentions in the category of Excellence in Theatre Education, King for the second consecutive year. The winner was Freddie Hendricks of the Utopian Academy for the Arts in Ellenwood, Ga.
The award recognizes K-12 theater educators who have made “a monumental impact on students’ lives and embodies the highest standards of the profession.” The 79th annual Tony Awards ceremony takes place Sunday at Radio City Music Hall.
Former students and Broadway performer Sandy Duncan supported Hughes’ nomination. She has taught for 28 years at Shelton, a primary and secondary school for students with learning differences.
“As a student with ADHD, dyslexia and a language disorder, I often joked that ‘I barely know English’ because words are hard for me,” Hayley Taub, Shelton Class of ’16, wrote in a nomination letter for her former teacher. “She helped build a belief in my abilities, which then shaped the adult and the educator I am today.”
Hughes says she has had a lot of help shaping the fine arts program at Shelton.
“I am fortunate to be part of a remarkable team of students, theater faculty, supportive parents and administrators who work together to create productions that inspire our learning-different students to reach their highest potential. … Our students have an astonishing work ethic and are creative problem solvers who strive for excellence in each production.”
“I’m so incredibly pleased to be acknowledged by my peers,” he said at the time. “To see all my mentees on Broadway — that is the Tony for me. … They are the ones that I hold up in my hand and sit on the shelf of my heart.”