Special Tony for educators goes to NYC high school teacher who urges students to ‘step out the box’
May 29, 2025
The special Tony Award that honors educators is going to a New York public high school teacher who shows how theater skills can apply to a career in the arts and also far away from it. Gary Edwin Robinson says he tries to show how theater can “help develop you in whatever area you’re going into.” Robinson teaches five drama classes a day, offering an average of 95-100 students a three-year sequence of 45-minute sections. The award includes a $10,000 prize and a pair of tickets to the Tony ceremony and gala. Robinson’s students will also receive a visiting master class taught by Carnegie Mellon drama professors. The Tony Awards will be held June 8.