PRINCESS GRACE FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES 2005 CULTURAL ARTS AWARD WINNERS

Mikhail Baryshnikov to Receive Inaugural Prince Rainier III Award

NEW YORK, NY - The Board of Trustees of the Princess Grace Foundation USA and its Chairman, Hon. John F. Lehman, announced today the winners of the 2005 Princess Grace Awards. The Awards for Theater, Dance and Film, first instituted in 1984, are named in honor of Her Serene Highness Princess Grace of Monaco, who helped aspiring artists pursue their goals throughout Her lifetime.

Lehman also announced that this year's Black Tie Gala will be hosted by CNN’s Larry King and will be held on October 26 at Manhattan's Cipriani 42nd street. Mikhail Baryshnikov has been chosen as the inaugural recipient of the Prince Rainier III Award in honor of Baryshnikov’s outstanding contribution to the arts. “Establishing an ongoing commemoration to HSH Prince Rainier III was an important charge based on one overriding principal: to support and enhance the work Prince Rainier started to honor his wife,” says John Lehman. In selecting the first recipient, Lehman states that “Mikhail Baryshnikov’s dedication to nurturing talent is exemplary; his commitment to artistic excellence, unsurpassed. We are happy to honor/pay tribute to his efforts and support the creation of the Baryshnikov Arts Center.”

The Foundation, a public charity formed after the death of Princess Grace in 1982, awards grants, scholarships, apprenticeships and fellowships to assist artists with their training. Playwright Tony Kushner and "SpongeBobSquarePants" creator Stephen Hillenberg were previous Award winners. HSH Prince Albert of Monaco, the Foundation's Vice Chairman, together with other notables from the artistic world will preside over the Awards Gala.

This year also marks the addition of a new Choreography Fellowship to recognize the nation’s most promising young choreographers. “The primary intention of this new grant,” noted the Foundation’s Executive Director Toby E. Boshak, “is to identify and support the emerging, practicing choreographer who is poised at the next step toward important creative and artistic advancement.” Bonnie Oda Homsey, Chair of the Princess Grace Awards Dance panel presented the idea to fill a gap in the Dance Awards. “We expect that such a fellowship will encourage our professional dance companies to present new work,” Homsey noted.

The 2005 winners (listed below) represent 24 artists and 23 awards. They attend 19 colleges, universities, and professional performing and training institutions. To date, the Foundation has awarded over $4 million to more than 400 individuals nationwide in the areas of theater, dance, and film.

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