TOMORROW’S STARS
FINALS COMPETITION and AWARDS CEREMONY
March 14, 2026
Aronoff Center – Procter & Gamble Hall
Tickets on sale now
[CINCINNATI, OH] – The Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is proud to present the 2026 Overture Awards Finals Competition. The Overture Awards provides $4,000 to six area high school students for education and training expenses, with eighteen finalists each winning $1,500. The program also includes an Arts Educator Award for Excellence in Arts Instruction totaling $2,000.
The Overture Awards Finals Competition and Awards Ceremony will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2026, at 1:00 PM at the Aronoff Center’s Jarson-Kaplan Theater. Winners will be announced immediately following the competition. The Visual Art Finalists Exhibition will be showcased in the Aronoff Center’s Center Stage Room (adjacent to the Weston Art Gallery on 7th Street) from Tuesday, March 10 – Sunday, March 29, 2026.
Tickets are on sale now at www.CincinnatiArts.org, (513) 621-ARTS [2787], and the Aronoff Center Ticket Office.
This year, 189 students applied to compete in one of six artistic disciplines: Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater, Visual Art, and Vocal Music. The Overture Awards was developed to recognize, encourage, and reward excellence in the arts among Tri-state students in grades 9-12. It also provides students an opportunity to share their talents and interests among their peers in a supportive environment outside of their individual schools. There are three levels of competition: Regional, Semi-Final, and Final.
The Overture Awards Regional Competitions were held virtually in January 2026. The top twenty to thirty percent of competitors in each discipline advanced to the Semi-Finals, which were held at the Aronoff Center from February 5-12. Twenty-four finalists will compete in the Finals Competition at the Aronoff Center’s Jarson-Kaplan Theater on March 14.
Now in its 30th year, The Overture Awards was launched in 1996 by the Cinergy Foundation (now Duke Energy) and Leadership Cincinnati (a program of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber). The Overture Awards is funded and administered by the Cincinnati Arts Association, which operates and manages the Aronoff Center and Music Hall. The Overture Awards also relies on hundreds of volunteers from the community who help raise funds, adjudicate, manage the competitions, and nurture the program.
The Overture Awards are endowed by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation
THANK YOU to the following generous supporters of the Overture Awards and Dancing for the Stars (CAA’s annual fundraiser which benefits the Awards):
Accent on Cincinnati, Ryan Anderson, Arthur Murray-Cincinnati, Arthur Murray -West Chester, Baru, Douglas Beal, Doreen Beatrice, Karla Boldery, James Branham, Bonita Brockert, Carri Chandler, Bill Chappie, Dance Manor, DelightMore, eat well celebrations & feasts, Maura Garuccio, Heidelberg Distributing Company, KungFood AmerAsia, Lasting Impressions Event Rentals, Desiree Mainous, Erin Mignano, Moerlein Lager House, Dylan Morton, Jozsef Parragh, The Party Source, Pepsi, Prime Cincinnati, Punky’s Pixel’s, Stacy Sims, Sebastian Bakehouse, Street City Pub, Skyline, Josh Tilford, Alyenendrov Tsorokean, Vintage on Race, Willow Run Custom Bourbons
Chris O’Brien and Janeen Coyle (former hosts of “Married with Microphones,” 103.5 WGRR-FM), JD Hughes (popular DJ and 103.5 WGRR-FM personality)
Overture Scholarship Sponsors: The Eleanora C.U. Alms Trust, Fifth Third Bank, Trustee; Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.; Otto M. Budig Family Foundation; Summerfair Cincinnati; TriHealth
Printing Sponsor: Harlan Graphics
2026 Overture Awards Finalists
CREATIVE WRITING
- Lauren Ashelman, grade 12, Springboro High School
- Devi Kool, grade 11, Wyoming High School
- Olivia Landry, grade 11, Villa Madonna Academy
- Angela Tang, grade 11, William Mason High School
DANCE
- Brinkli Cox, grade 10, Homeschool/Studies with Hairston School of Dance
- Nora Doyle, grade 11, School for Creative and Performing Arts/Studies with Just Off Broadway
- Easton Gliebe, grade 11, Ohio Virtual Academy/Studies with Just Off Broadway
- Riley Neugebauer, grade 12, Turpin High School/Studies with Just Off Broadway
INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
- Autumn Rinaldi, grade 11, Cincinnati Country Day School/Studies with Dr. Sarah Kim
- Sophia Suwiryo, grade 11, Summit Country Day School/Studies with Professor Alvin Chow
- Mario Agustín Ynga Orellana, grade 10, Walnut Hills High School/Studies with Dr. Laura Sabo
- Grace Yu, grade 12, Indian Hill High School/Studies with Joyce Grabell
THEATER
- Maeve Bachman, grade 12, Sycamore High School/Studies with Andrea Davies
- Avery Fox, grade 12, Homeschool/Northern Kentucky University/Studies with Xan Jeffery
- Elliot Martin, grade 11, Highlands High School
- Jai’Den Pritchett, grade 11, Sycamore High School/Studies with Musical Arts Center
VISUAL ART
- Edie Anderson, grade 12, School for Creative and Performing Arts
- Jinming Gu, grade 11, Indian Hill High School/Studies with Yinyan Studio
- Riley Judd, grade 12, School for Creative and Performing Arts
- Ronan Wolfer, grade 12, Loveland High School
VOCAL MUSIC
- Genevieve Howard, grade 12, Newport Central Catholic High School/Studies with Talia Zoll Studio of Music
- Ray Muenzer, grade 12, Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy/Studies with Musical Arts Center
- Sahana Siddharth, grade 10, Seven Hills School/Studies with Allison Highland
- William Wittekind, grade 12, Saint Xavier High School/Studies with Musical Arts Center
Founded in 1992, the Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is a not-for-profit organization that oversees the programming and management of two of the Tri-state’s finest performing arts venues – the Aronoff Center for the Arts and Music Hall – and is dedicated to supporting performing and visual arts. Each year, CAA presents a diverse schedule of events; serves upwards of 700,000 people in its venues; features the work of talented local, regional, and national artists in the Weston Art Gallery (located in the Aronoff Center); and supports the work of more than one dozen resident companies. Since the inception of its acclaimed arts education programs in 1995, CAA has reached more than two million students and adults.
CAA is proud to be a member of Association of Performing Arts Presenters, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, Greater Cincinnati Alliance for Arts Education, Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau, Greater Cincinnati Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky African American Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce.
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CALENDAR INFORMATION
WHAT: 2026 Overture Awards – Finals Competition and Awards Ceremony
WHERE: Aronoff Center – Jarson-Kaplan Theater
WHEN: Saturday, March 14, 2026 – 1:00 PM
TICKETS: $15 • $10
INFO: The 2026 Overture Awards Competition provides $4,000 to six area high school students for education and training expenses with eighteen finalists each winning $1,500. Students compete in one of six artistic disciplines: Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater, Visual Art, and Vocal Music. The program also includes Arts Educator Awards for Excellence in Arts Instruction totaling $2,000. The Overture Awards was developed to recognize, encourage, and reward excellence in the arts among Tri-state students in grades 9-12.
TICKET INFORMATION – on sale now
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