The 2017 recipients of Special Recognition Honors include animal director and trainer Bill Berloni— a 2011 Tony Honoree for Excellence in Theatre—who will receive the Unique Contribution to the Theater Award, and Tony Award-nominated Rent, Next to Normal, and Grey Gardens director Michael Greif, who is represented this season on Broadway by Dear Evan Hansen and War Paint; he will receive The Founders Award for Excellence in Directing. A third honoree for Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater will be announced shortly.

These honors are in addition to the five competitive categories: Outstanding Play, Outstanding Revival of a Play, Outstanding Musical, Outstanding Revival of a Musical, and the Distinguished Performance Award. Nominations for the competitive awards will be announced April 19 at 11 AM at Sardi’s.

First awarded in 1922 and formalized in 1935, The Drama League Awards are the oldest theatrical honors in America. The first Drama League Award was presented to Katharine Cornell in 1935; since then, the Distinguished Performance Award has been awarded to Lin-Manuel Miranda, Chita Rivera, Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Lane, Audra McDonald, Liam Neeson, Hugh Jackman, Patti LuPone, Glenn Close, Liev Schreiber, Sir John Gielgud, Harvey Fierstein, Cherry Jones, Alec Guinness, James Earl Jones, Helen Hayes, Jeremy Irons, Mary-Louise Parker, Sir Ian McKellen, Bernadette Peters, and Christopher Plummer.

For more information about the Drama League Awards, call (212) 244-9494 or visit dramaleague.org.