Our Mission

To recognize and reward exceptional accomplishments in the production and performance of musical theater in high schools in Lehigh and Northampton Counties, Pennsylvania, and Warren County, New Jersey.

On May 22, 2003, the State Theatre Center for the Arts made history by becoming the first performing arts center in the country to produce, along with broadcast partner WFMZ Channel 69, a three-hour, live television show to recognize and reward outstanding achievement in local high school musical theater. It was an extraordinary triumph for creator and executive producer Shelley Brown and her dedicated staff. Regional high schools from the Lehigh, Northampton and Warren County, NJ region now had their own TONY®’s – The FREDDY© Awards.

In a society where performing arts are given far less attention than sports and academics, the State Theatre is committed to bringing attention to these talented students and preserving the future of theater. It is estimated that this program directly affects over 2,900 students in our area each year. In addition, hundreds of thousands of people experience the students’ hard work and dedication to theater arts by enjoying the FREDDY© Awards Ceremony, which is broadcast live on WFMZ Channel 69. Over $2 million in Scholarships, Internships, and Community Awards have been distributed through the FREDDY© Awards program since 2003. The FREDDY© Awards Program has been awarded several community awards including the 2008 Two Rivers Area Chamber of Commerce Award, 2011 Allentown Arts Ovation Award, 2015 United Way: Air Products Leonard Pool Award, the 2016 Bethlehem Fine Arts Tribute Awards and the 2017 Northampton County Council of Teachers: Friends of Education Award.

The broadcast has been honored with threee regional EMMY Awards, in 2005, 2011 & 2019, and has also received 6 additional EMMY Nominations, 8 Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters Awards, including the 2024 Judge’s Merit Award for Television, and 6 Associated Press Awards for Public Affairs. The 2008 FREDDY© program was the subject of a feature-length film documentary, Most Valuable Players, by Canyon Back Films, Los Angeles. Released in 2010, the documentary was part of Oprah Winfrey Network’s (OWN) documentary film club which premiered in 2011.

The FREDDY© Awards are named after J. “Fred” Osterstock, the legendary “Fred the Ghost” of the State Theatre, who managed the company that owned the theatre from 1936 until his death in 1957. The 2025 FREDDY© Awards Ceremony will take place on Thursday, May 22nd.

Because of the FREDDY© Awards programs strong educational value, is an approved Educational Improvement Organization under the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Education Improvement Tax Credit program (EITC). Companies that receive EITC allocations can direct them in support of the FREDDY© program. We thank our 2024 EITC supporters, PPL Corporation, Capital BlueCross, Fulton Bank, Weis Markets, Truist, and Embassy Bank for the Lehigh Valley.