Tony Awards: Brian Stokes Mitchell to Receive 2016 Isabelle Stevenson Award
Regardless of how the imminent nominations for the 2016 Tony Awards turn out, Brian Stokes Mitchell already knows he’s going home with a trophy. The actor, currently appearing in “Shuffle Along,” has been named the recipient of the annual Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award.
Named after the woman who was president of the American Theater Wing for some 30 years, the Stevenson Award honors members of the theater community for significant contributions to charitable and humanitarian causes. Mitchell, who won a 2000 Tony for his performance in “Kiss Me, Kate,” will receive the honor for his work with the Actors Fund, the nonprofit social services organization that provides care and service to professionals across the entertainment industry.
Mitchell became a trustee of the Actors Fund in 1998, and was elected its board chairman in 2004. During his tenure in that role, he helped spearhead the 2010 establishment of the Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation, which provides senior housing and other support for members of the performing arts community.
Mitchell will receive the Stevenson Award during the Tony telecast June 12. Prior recipients of the trophy have included Rosie O’Donnell, Larry Kramer and, most recently, Stephen Schwartz.
The Tony nominations for this year’s competitive races — for which Mitchell is considered eligible in the featured actor in a musical contest — will be announced later this morning, in an event hosted by Nikki M. James and Andrew Rannells.
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