Mark your calendars for Monday, January 23, 2017 when the 26th annual St. Louis Arts Awards will take place at the Chase Park Plaza beginning with a cocktail reception at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner and awards at 7:00 p.m. This year’s awards will be co-chaired by Susan Block, founder of The Designing Block, and John Russell, Senior Vice President and Branch Manager at Stifel.

The St. Louis Arts Awards is the area’s preeminent event honoring individuals, organizations and businesses that achieve a legacy of artistic excellence and enrich St. Louis’ arts and cultural community. Proceeds from the event benefit the Arts and Education Council’s annual campaign, which provides financial support, professional development, incubator space and collaborative opportunities for nearly 70 arts and arts education organizations throughout the 16-county, bi-state region. World Wide Technology, Inc. and the Steward Family Foundation have generously renewed their support as Presenting Sponsors of the event, while Edward Jones and Emerson renewed their commitment as Principal Sponsors.

The 2017 Honorees are:

Lifetime Achievement in the Arts – Steven Woolf, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis

Steven Woolf has been with The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis (The Rep) for nearly 35 years, starting in 1982 as the managing director and becoming artistic director in 1986. He has directed numerous productions at The Rep, and will take the helm once again at the end of November when “A Christmas Carol,” opens (Nov. 30-Dec. 24) as part of The Rep’s 50th anniversary season. Woolf has also done extensive work in New York, serving as the project producer on the original productions of “The Robber Bridegroom” and “The Red Blue-Grass Western Flyer Show” and was co-producer of Tom Griffin’s “Workers.”  In 2011, Woolf received the “Kevin Kline Award for Outstanding Direction” for his work on The Rep’s production of “Red.” His production of “Awake and Sing!” at The New Jewish Theatre tied with “Red” for the “Kevin Kline Award for Best Production of a Play.” In addition to his work with The Rep, Woolf has served as a panelist and an on-site evaluator for the theater program for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and served on an advisory panel for the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis (RAC).

Excellence in Philanthropy – Jim and Cathy Berges, The Berges Family Foundation

Jim Berges is a partner at Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Inc. and served as president at Emerson Storage Solutions from 1999-2005. Cathy Berges serves on the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’s board of directors and the Missouri Botanical Gardens’ board of trustees. Together, they founded the Berges Family Foundation in 2012 with the goal of supporting the institutions and organizations that make St. Louis a great place to live, visit and invest.  The Foundation funds initiatives that involve cultural engagement, youth empowerment and support for our nation’s military heroes and first responders. The Bergeses have provided generous, leadership financial support to many arts and culture organizations in the St. Louis, including the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Missouri Botanical Gardens, St. Louis Symphony and the Arts and Education Council.

Excellence in the Arts – Mike Isaacson, The Muny and Fox Theatricals

Mike Isaacson is artistic director and executive producer of The Muny, St. Louis’s legendary outdoor theater. Isaacson is also a Tony Award-winning Broadway producer - winning the prestigious award for Fox Theatricals production of “Fun Home,” which was nominated for twelve Tony Awards and won five, including “Best Musical.” Since being named executive producer of The Muny in 2010, Isaacson has worked to reinvent the institution, while maintaining its tradition and connection to the community. After his first season at the helm, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch awarded him “Theatre Artist of the Year.” Prior to The Muny, Isaacson spent 15 years at the Fox Theatre where he was responsible for bringing more than 100 musicals and plays to St. Louis. He also was an active officer and producer in the Independent Presenters Network, a national organization of Broadway producers and presenters and has served on the Board of Governors, the Executive Committee and the Governance Committee of The Broadway League.

Excellence in the Arts – Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum

Part of Washington University’s Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum was founded in 1881 as the St. Louis School and Museum of Fine Arts. Today, it remains the oldest art museum west of the Mississippi River. The Museum contains impressive collections of 19th-, 20th-, and 21st-century European and American paintings, sculptures, prints, installations, and photographs. In the past nine years the Museum’s exhibit schedule has been international in scope, bringing influential artists to St. Louis and developing groundbreaking scholarly exhibitions for the entire community to enjoy. In addition to its outstanding curatorial program, the Museum’s education and outreach programs have expanded to include record numbers of visits by area elementary and high schools as well as social service program participants.

Art Educator of the Year – Harvey Lockhart, Riverview Gardens School District

An arts educator for more than a decade, Harvey Lockhart is currently the band director at Riverview Gardens High School and the performing arts coordinator for the entire Riverview Gardens School District. Since 2010, Lockhart has rebuilt the District’s music department, revitalizing the band program from ten students to 60; re-establishing concert, marching and jazz bands; and building an inventory of more than 80 new and used instruments. In 2015, Lockhart envisioned creating a community jazz big band for North County students and other underserved districts to serve and support talented high school musicians after the tragic events in Ferguson. With the help of jazz pianist Peter Martin and The Sheldon Arts Foundation, the North County Big Band (NCBB) was formed. Now in its second year, this collaborative big band is made up of some of the most talented and dedicated students from several St. Louis area high schools.

Arts Innovator – Pianos for People

Pianos for People describes itself as a St. Louis non-profit that connects people who need pianos with pianos that need people. Established in December of 2012, the organization has collected, restored, and delivered an average of one piano a week, for a total 150 pianos, all to people who otherwise couldn’t afford one. In the fall of 2014, Pianos for People opened a teaching space on Cherokee Street to provide free piano lessons to St. Louisans and now has over 80 students, of all ages, enrolled in group classes, private lessons and piano camps - all at no cost to the students or their families. Pianos for People’s goal is to break down the financial barriers that keep many families from providing music lessons for their children -- something that has been proven to increase intelligence, creativity, critical thinking and focus among a long list of other essential skills for future success.

Corporate Support of the Arts – U.S. Bank

The way U.S. Bank sees it, investing in the arts helps to ensure vitality and accessibility for the entire St. Louis region to enjoy. As a result, U.S. Bank funds numerous arts education programs that bring visual and performing arts programming to low-and moderate-income K-12 schools and youth centers. It also has supported the Arts and Education Council for more than 37 years through annual corporate support and employee workplace campaigns.  In total, U.S. Bank has provided over $1,000,000 to A&E which has, in turn, helped fund hundreds of arts organizations and impact millions of adults and children across the bi-state area. Additionally, U.S. Bank is the current title sponsor of the Fox Theater's “U.S. Bank Broadway Series” and serves as a significant sponsor of arts organizations like Center of Creative Arts (COCA), Dance St. Louis, Laumeier Sculpture Park, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, St. Louis Symphony, St. Louis ArtWorks, Saint Louis Art Museum Foundation and The Muny.

Tickets and tables for the 2017 St. Louis Arts Awards are available at KeepArtHappening.org/2017ArtsAwards.  For sponsorship opportunities, contact Kate Francis, vice president of development, at Kate-F@KeepArtHappening.org or 314-289-4003 for more information.