The Jerry Harper Service Award

The Award was created in 2007 to honor people who have been instrumental in the development and success of the Last Frontier Theatre Conference. It was named after Jerry Harper, one of the true icons of Alaska’s theatre for his work with Cyrano’s Theatre and elsewhere. At the Conference, Harper performed in numerous evening productions, including the Dick Reichman’s two-person play Money!, Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance, and Love Letters with Oscar-winning actress Patricia Neal.

The 2010 recipient is the Artistic Director of Anchorage’s TBA Theatre, Shane Mitchell. Shane has been attending the event since 1996. His own plays have been presented both in the Play Lab and on the mainstage, and he is one of the most requested actors in the Play Lab. He won the Patricia Neal Acting Award and the Panelists Choice Award for his readings in 2001. TBA Theatre has been presenting shows in the evening productions at the Conference since 2005, every year presenting an evening of full productions of shows that were developed in previous years in the Play Lab. TBA Theatre is also half of the producing team on the Alaska Overnighters, which has started off the week in Valdez every year since 2005. He has also appeared as a mainstage performer in productions by Kokopelli, Cyrano’s, and Once-a-Year Theater.

The 2009 recipient is Ron Holmstrom. Ron has attended the Conference every year since its inception in 1993, participating in many capacities. He has worked on the Play Lab as an actor, director, and one of the people in charge of deciding which of the hundreds of plays submitted will be presented at the Conference. He has served as the reporter on the event for the Valdez Star since 1997.Ron started working with Cyrano's Off Center Playhouse, then called Eccentric Theatre Company, on their production of The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Ron served as the Managing Artistic Director of Anchorage Community Theatre for three years, and is a partner with Ric Davidge and Jan Welt of North Star Productions, the first motion picture/theatre company in Alaska. He recently became the first representative in Alaska for the Screen Actors Guild, and presently serves on the board of the Alaska Fine Arts Academy. His most recent film work was playing Oscar in Godspeed, currently in post-production. Ron is a member of the Alaska Film Group and the Anchorage Cultural Council, and is the Vice President of the Alaska Fine Arts Academy.

The 2008 award will be presented to the Conference 14-year Technical Director, Jim Cucurull. A resident of Alaska for 40 years, Jim Cucurull has been involved with theater at almost every level for over 33 years. He has trained as an actor, director, designer and technician, and has worked and/or performed throughout the state for such groups as Perseverance Theatre, Alaska Repertory Theatre, TOAST Theater, Anchorage Opera, UAA Theatre, Pacific Rim Theatre, and numerous others. He has produced and directed several independent productions including Lee Blessing’s Eleemosynary, which received best of the year honors from both the Anchorage Daily News and The Anchorage Times, and which was the first independent production at Jerry and Sandy Harpers’ fledgling Cyrano’s Playhouse. Recent work has included several projects with Perseverance Theatre including How I Learned to Drive (with Paula Vogel and Molly Smith), Short Stories (a Perseverance / SITI joint production), and the touring productions of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Moby Dick, and (Tlingit) Macbeth.

In 2007, the first Jerry Harper Service Award was presented to Michael Warren Powell, the founder of the Play Lab. Tributes were paid to him by playwright Ann Reddig, Tony award-winning director Marshall Mason, and Conference Coordinator Dawson Moore. The award was presented to him for his life-long commitment to fostering playwrights and his role in turning the Play Lab into a vital part of the Conference.

The Jerry Harper Service Award was created in 2007 to honor people who have given their time, energy and spirit to making the Last Frontier Theatre Conference a success. It is named after Cyrano’s Theatre Company founder, the late Jerry Harper, who spent his life in service to the greater good of the Alaska Theatre community, whether it was as a producer, performer, or father figure. Jerry served on the Conference Advisory Board from the event’s inception.