Columbus Native Receives Special Tony Award for Excellence in Theatre Education

Columbus native and Freddie Hendricks, a graduate of George Washington Carver High School, has received the 2026 Excellence in Theatre Education Award, a national honor presented by the Tony Awards and Carnegie Mellon University recognizing outstanding achievement in theater education.

Hendricks, a middle school drama teacher at Utopian Academy for the Arts, was selected for his more than three decades of dedication to developing young artists and mentoring future performers through arts education. He is also the founder of the acclaimed Youth Ensemble of Atlanta.

He will be formally recognized during the 79th Annual Tony Awards ceremony on June 7 at Radio City Music Hall.

Throughout his career, Hendricks has helped shape the careers of numerous performers who have gone on to success in Broadway, television and entertainment. Among his former students is Kenan Thompson, who recently surprised his former teacher during Tony Awards Press Day. Other former students include Tony Award-nominated artists Saycon Sengbloh and Justin Ellington.

As part of the recognition, Utopian Academy for the Arts will receive a $10,000 award to support its theater arts programming.

The Excellence in Theatre Education Award honors educators who have demonstrated a lasting impact on students’ lives and exemplify the highest standards of the profession.

Hendricks earned a degree in Speech and Theatre Arts from Lincoln Memorial University before launching a professional acting career that included performances with theater companies across the United States. His teaching career began through the Upward Bound program at Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College and Morehouse College.

In 1990, Hendricks founded the Freddie Hendricks Youth Ensemble of Atlanta, which became internationally recognized for its youth theater productions and performances in countries including Holland, Belgium, China and South Africa. He also directed the Cultural Olympiad in Rotterdam, Holland.

Over the course of his career, Hendricks has directed numerous theater productions and created more than 30 original works centered on themes including youth empowerment, HIV/AIDS awareness, sexuality, apartheid in South Africa and self-empowerment.

In 1992, he became director of drama at Tri-Cities High School School of Performing Arts, where he helped develop one of the nation’s most respected performing arts programs. Hendricks has received numerous honors, including recognition from the Children’s Theatre Foundation of America and the National Foundation for the Arts, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Abby Award.

He also mentored two Presidential Scholars and was recognized as one of America’s distinguished teachers during the administration of Bill Clinton.

Hendricks is a two-time Tony Award nominee for Excellence in Theatre Arts Education and is featured in the bestselling book “Black Acting Methods” for what is known as the Hendricks Method, which is now taught at colleges and universities around the world.

In 2023, he was inducted into the Georgia Theatre Hall of Fame.

Hendricks said his lifelong mission has been not only to develop successful artists, but to help create successful human beings and ultimately “change the face of theatre.”