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The New York Innovative Theatre Awards announced their Honorary Awards for 2012, one of which,  the 2012 The Ellen Stewart Award, will be given to Theatre Development Fund.  The Ellen Stewart Award is presented to an individual or organization demonstrating a significant contribution to the Off-Off-Broadway community through service, support and leadership. 

"We are honored to be recognized with this prestigious award," said Michael Naumann, TDF's Managing Director.  "We have been thrilled by the response to our Off-Off@$9 program for our members and are looking forward to opening the program up to the general public in the next few weeks, allowing adventurous theatre goers to discover the riches of Off-Off Broadway."

Other Honorary Awardees include: 5 Lesbian Brothers, who will receive the Artistic Achievement Award and the Astoria Performing Arts Center which will receive the Caffé Cino Fellowship Award.

The Honorary Awards will be presented at the Eighth Annual IT Awards ceremony held on Monday, September 24, 2012 at 7 pm (Location TBA). Hosted by Harrison Greenbaum, tickets are $25 and are available at www.nyitawards.com/shop. If you are unable to attend, you can join the OOB theatre community's biggest night of the year online at www.nyitawards.com/live.

The New York Innovative Theatre Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, which recognizes the great work of New York's Off-Off-Broadway—honoring its artistic heritage and providing an alliance for this extensive and richly varied community. As advocates for Off-Off-Broadway, they recognize its unique and essential role contributing to global culture. Each season, The Innovative Theatre Foundation publicly recognizes excellence in Off-Off-Broadway, with a high-profile awards ceremony. The New York Innovative Theatre Awards celebrate the community and honor some of the previous year’s greatest achievements. The IT Awards heighten audience awareness and foster greater appreciation of the New York theatre experience. For more information, go to: www.nyitawards.com

Theatre Development Fund (TDF): Theatre Development Fund was created in the conviction that the live theatrical arts afford a unique expression of the human condition that must be sustained and nurtured. It is dedicated to developing diverse audiences for live theatre and dance and strengthening the performing arts community in New York City. Since being founded in 1968, it has become the largest nonprofit performing arts service organization in the United States, returning over $130 million to hundreds of productions annually through a variety of programs. TDF’s programs have provided over 80 million people with access to performances at affordable prices. Best known for its TKTS Discount Booths, TDF’s membership, outreach, access and education programs — as well as its Costume Collection — help to make the unique experience of theatre available to everyone. Other recent TDF honors include a 2011 Mayor’s Award for Arts and Culture and a 2012 Tony Honor for Excellence for its Open Doors Program. For more information about TDF, go to: www.tdf.org.