Tveit and Bernstine named 2009 Derwent winners
By Associated Press
May 12, 2009 5:28 PM CDT
In this image released by Arena Stage Press Department, Aaron Tveit, left, Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer, right, are shown in a scene from the recent Arena Stage production of the musical "Next to Normal." (AP Photo/Arena Stage Press Department, Joan Marcus)   (Associated Press)

Aaron Tveit (TUH'-vate) of "Next to Normal" and Quincy Tyler Bernstine of "Ruined" are winners of the 2009 Clarence Derwent Awards, given each year to the most promising performers on the New York stage.

In "Next to Normal," Tviet plays the son of a woman dealing with bipolar disorder, while Bernstine portrays a young prostitute in Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Ruined."

The winners were announced by Actors' Equity Foundation, which administers the prizes.

Among the past winners of the Derwent are George C. Scott, Calista Flockhart, Annette Bening, Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman. The prizes were established in 1944 by Derwent, a president of Actors' Equity Association.