Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Event: Women in the Arts & Media Coalition Presents 6th Annual Biennial Awards in NYC - Alysia Reiner Hosts

By Suzanne Ordas Curry

When women collaborate, good - no - great things happen! The Women in the Arts and Media Coalition, which is a coalition of dozens of entertainment and female-related organizations, held its bi-ennial Collaboration Awards Gala the SVA Theater in NYC on March 30, 2019 to recognize collaborative works of excellence by females.

Hosting the event with a smile was Alysia Reiner, from the films Equity and Egg and the TV shows Orange is the New Black, The Deuce and Better Things. Alysia was ubiquitous during the event, which she ackowledged early on with humor. Her team from Egg won the Acclaimed Collaboration Award and she also read an act from the winning play Preservation at the end of the event. The event started with a Red Carpet and cockail reception in the lobby. Leaders and members from many of the member organizations mingled and talked new projects.



Avis Boone, Yvonne Curry and Shellen Lubin started off the evening.

The ceremony started with an Intro by Avis Boone, Yvonne Curry, Co-Priesdents and Shellen Lubin, First Vice President.

The Acclaimed Collaboration Award was presented by Amy Emmerich, Chief Content Officer of Refinery 29 to EGG. Accepting the awards were Marianna Palka, Director, Risa Mickenberg, Writer, Alysia Reiner and David Alan Basche, Actors and Producers and Michele Ganeless, Executive Producer. Egg was made with more than 70% females.

The Team from Egg the Film                                                                          Photo Suzanne Ordas Curry           

The Yvonne Curry Student Collaboration Award was presented by Yvonne and Mary Lee Grisanti to Shelby Hougui and Julia De Santis of The Bread Machine.

The following Collaboration Awards were given by Brenda Gardner and Holli Harms:

Special Mention: Ophira Eisehberg and Maggie Cino, Scars
Charissa Bertels, Ayumi Okada- The Uncivil Ones

Honored Finalists:
Melissa Bell, Tannis Kowalchuk- Courage
Katherine M. Carter, Jacqueline Goldfinger - Click
Venessa Stalling, Brenda Barrie - United Flight 232

6th Biennial Collaboration Award Winners
Deborah Yarchun, Jess Chayes  - Preservation

The team from the Preservation.
Much was said about the continued lack of stories about and by women, but that there is progress being made and that is to be celebrated. Ayumi Okada said to have patience, that our "stories WILL be told."

All winners represented works by women that were made by more than one woman, often in different disciplines or from different backgrounds.


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The ceremony ended with a reading of an act from Preservation by Alysia Reiner, David Alan Basche and Lynn Cohen Luckily this writer was sitting next to the Preservation play writer and asked how the play ended, because you can't just hear one act of a great play and leave us hanging!

The After Glow party followed in the lobby.

Event Photos:






Amy Emmerich from Refinery 29 presented.

Risa Mickenberg originally wrote Egg as a play.

Alysia Reiner and Lynn Cohen read from Preservation.



Winners and presenters.                                        Photo Courtesy Facebook Women in Arts