An array of cultural champions are set to be celebrated at this year's Norfolk Arts Awards, and today we can reveal the final nine who have been shortlisted for special awards voted for by our readers.
The EDP People's Choice Awards are part of the Norfolk Arts Awards which will take place in October during the annual Hostry Festival. There are three EDP People's Choice Awards categories, and following an online public vote we can now announce the three finalists for each of them.
Artist Gennadiy Ivanov, performer Hayley Evenett, and comedy duo The Nimmo Twins are in the running for best individual.
Sheringham Little Theatre, Norwich Arts Centre and the Maddermarket Theatre are up for best small organisation, and Cinema City, King's Lynn Festival and Norfolk and Norwich Festival are the final three contenders for best large organisation.
The winners will be announced at the Norfolk Arts Awards at Norwich Cathedral's Hostry on Friday, October 21.
The Hostry Festival will this year run from October 15 to 30. For more information, visit www.hostryfestival.org
For more about the Norfolk Arts Awards, visit www.norfolkartsawards.com
• Top three for best large organisation (in no particular order)
Cinema City – the Norwich cinema offers film fans a wide-ranging programme to enjoy. A new screen heritage and film education centre, called the John Hurt Centre, has just opened at the venue and aims to make Cinema City Education's activities more accessible to people of all ages.
Norfolk & Norwich Festival – the arts extravaganza is a previous EDP People's Choice Award winner. It brings 17 days of weird and wonderful entertainment to the city and county each May. Featuring acts from around the world and closer to home, it is one of the biggest international arts festivals in the UK.
King's Lynn Festival – the festival presents high-quality music performances as well as talks, comedy, films and more. This year's event broke box office records, attracting thousands of people to more than 40 events.
• Top three for best small organisation (in no particular order)
Sheringham Little Theatre – the north Norfolk venue presents a wide variety of plays, music, live screenings and films. It is home to one of the last surviving summer repertory seasons in the country, and its Christmas pantomimes are always extremely popular.
Norwich Arts Centre – the city venue is a previous EDP People's Choice Award winner.
It presents a vibrant programme of live music, theatre, dance, live art, visual art and more, and it is committed to supporting the development of artists.
Maddermarket Theatre – the Norwich theatre stages 12 in-house plays each year, alongside having a busy programme of classes and workshops and hosting an array of visiting companies and artists. Its most recent in-house plays have included Return to the Forbidden Planet and Absurd Person Singular.
• Top three for best individual (in no particular order)
Artist Gennadiy Ivanov - the Norwich-based artist organised the thought-provoking exhibition Asylum, which was at the Undercroft behind Norwich Market in the summer. It saw artists explore ideas around asylum and migration
Hayley Evenett, co-founder of REDuck ProDUCKtions - since moving to Norwich in 2015 Hayley has starred in A Midsummer Night's Dream and many other productions, and she has also co-founded REDuck ProDUCKtions which aims to promote new writing and creativity.
The Nimmo Twins – the comedy duo comprising Owen Evans and Karl Minns are legendary for their Norfolk-inspired shows. They recently performed their latest show to sell-out audiences at Norwich Playhouse and Norwich Theatre Royal.
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