The New Jewish Theatre has earned nine Kevin Kline Award nominations — a record number for the troupe.

The nominees for the third annual Kevin Kline Awards were announced on Jan. 25. The awards were established by the Professional Theatre Awards Council to honor professional theatre in St. Louis. Twenty-four professional local theatres received nominations in 22 categories, with the New Jewish Theatre recieving nominations for nine awards in six of those categories. Only the Rep, Stages and the Muny earned more award nominations. The awards ceremony is scheduled for Monday, March 31 at the Loretto-Hilton Theatre in Webste Groves. The event is open to the public.

In the first two years of the awards, the NJT received a combined total of nine nominations (five in 2005, four in 2006) and won one award in each of those years. In 2005, Gary Wayne Barker won the award for Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Boolie in the classic Driving Miss Daisy . Last year’s winner for Outstanding Performance by an Actress was Donna Weinsting for her portrayal of Bess in From Door to Door , which told the poignantstory of three generations of Jewish women.

The nominations New Jewish Theatre has received for 2007are:

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE IN A PLAY:

* Kindertransport

* Women’s Minyan

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A PLAY

* John Kinney – What’s Wrong With This Picture

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A PLAY

* Nancy Lewis – Womenas Minyan

* Meg Rodd – Kindertransport

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY

* Kari Ely – Kindertransport

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY

* Deanna Jent – Women’s Minyan

* Doug Finlayson – Kindertransport

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

* Women’s Minyan

For information on the March 31 Awards Ceremony, call the New Jewish Theatre at 314-442-3283 or check the Kevin Kline Awards website at www.kevinklineawards.org.