The honorees illustrate the broad reach of the arts, from volunteerism and activism to various mediums and the impact of the arts as an economic engine.

Serving as special guest MC will be Ann Citron, Theatre Arts Director at the Rosendale Theatre. A founding member of the Rosendale Theatre, Ann is an actor, director, and producer and has worked in theatres all over the Hudson Valley, including County Players in Wappingers Falls, The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck, SUNY New Paltz Summer Repertory, Denizen Theatre in New Paltz, and Ulster County Community College in Stone Ridge. Ann has also taught Improvisation throughout the Hudson Valley, as well as at New York University’s Clive Davis School of Performing Arts in Manhattan.

Performing music at the awards ceremony will be Lara Hope’s Gold Hope Duo, which features Lara Hope and her husband, Matt Goldpaugh, of Lara Hope & the Ark-Tones. Veterans of touring with Brian Setzer of Stray Cats fame, Lara and Matt are well known for their unique brand of stripped-down, upbeat, rockabilly, rhythm & blues, country, folk and more than a pinch of humor.

The Ulster County Executive’s Arts Awards build on the success and endurance of the Dutchess County Executive’s Arts Awards, which have been recognizing artistic excellence since 1986. Arts Mid-Hudson is a regional arts organization that distributes funding and serves as an advocate for the arts, artists and arts organizations in Ulster, Dutchess and Orange counties. Visit artsmidhudson.org for information.