Mark Awards 2026 Honorees

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Please Join the Cultural Alliance of Fairfield County in Awarding

Spotlighting Those Who, Through Arts, Culture and Empowerment, Have Made a Distinctive Mark

Tuesday, June 16, 2026 | 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm

The Meadowlands at the Darien Community Association, 274 Middlesex Rd, Darien, CT

Making Their Mark: The 2026 Honorees

Each mark tells a story. Together, they form something greater. The arts don’t just reflect our community, they shape how we see, feel, and belong within it. This year’s honorees are part of that shared work.

The Dynamic Honorees:

Aisha Nailah

Aisha Nailah is a multidisciplinary artist working primarily in abstract and abstract figurative forms. Guided by intuition rather than rigid planning, her practice unfolds as a spiritual process rooted in authenticity, allowing each piece to emerge as a reflection of what she feels called to create. Her work is distinguished by vibrant color, layered textures, and intricate patterning that evoke emotion, memory, and movement. Largely self-taught, Aisha holds a Bachelor’s degree in Art Therapy and is a certified educator and teaching artist. She extends her creative practice into spaces of learning, healing, and community engagement, viewing art as both a personal and collective experience.

Her work is deeply informed by her lived experiences—growing up in a Costa Rican household, her identity as a Black woman raised in an inner city, and her connection to African diasporic culture and ancestral reverence. These influences shape a visual language that centers cultural memory, spirituality, and the layered complexity of identity, motherhood, and lineage. Aisha’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the National Black Theatre in Harlem, Aqua Art Miami, and the Fairfield University Art Museum. She has also created public art and murals throughout Bridgeport, Connecticut, and beyond, contributing to community-centered creative spaces. In addition to her studio practice, Aisha is an experienced curator and a recipient of the Connecticut Artists Respond Grant and the Korry Fellowship at Norwalk Art Space. Through her work, she creates space for spiritual continuity, cultural expression, and personal truth.

Aisha Nailah, Ignorance Is Bliss, acrylic mixed media on canvas

Ballet School of Stamford

The mission of the Ballet School of Stamford is to foster the Art of Dance by offering excellent dance training to all levels of students while promoting and encouraging cultural diversity in ballet training and performance. To present high quality performances to our local community to develop an awareness in the business community of the value of a disciplined dance education. We support universal access to the arts, and welcome individuals of all ages and abilities, whether audience members or artists, in all of our arts programs.

Westport Library’s VersoFest

We’re honored by the recognition, but what matters most is what it represents. VersoFest is part of a larger effort to expand the role of the public library, creating space for music, media, and cultural dialogue alongside traditional learning. It’s intentional work, it’s community-driven, and it’s gratifying to see it recognized.

Lifetime Achievement ACE Award:

Laurence Caso - Klein Memorial Auditorium

Laurence Caso became The Klein’s Executive Director in 2014 after serving on its board for 6 years. Following work as company manager at the Berkshire Theatre Festival, he joined CBS in comedy and drama series development. He later was Director of Specials and Vice President of Daytime Programs and was also VP of Programs for the start-up of the Disney Channel. As Executive Producer of As the World Turns, he received the Daytime Emmy and “Soap Opera Digest’s” Lifetime Achievement Award. Other credits include Jim Henson Company’s Donna’s Day and History Channel’s Inside Baghdad. At The Klein he wrote and produced Klein at 75, hosted by Paul Shaffer, and he produces the acclaimed drama, Frederick Douglass: An American Slave starring Tenisi Davis. During his tenure The Klein established a transformative arts education program, and the theater’s usage grew from being active 65 days a year to 356 days in 2025. A member of the Producers Guild, he also served as trustee of the National Television Academy.

ATWT set with Nicole Miller and Eileen Fulton

The Klein Memorial Auditorium is a 1437-seat performing arts center serving the greater Bridgeport region since 1940. The building and property (which once housed the mansion of P.T. Barnum) are owned by the City of Bridgeport, while the operations are managed by the Klein Memorial Auditorium Foundation. The Klein’s mission is to “enrich, educate, and entertain through arts and ideas”. It is home to such resident companies as: Greater Bridgeport Symphony, Fairfield County Children’s Choir, Greater CT Youth Orchestras, Bridgeport Film Festival, and numerous local dance studios. Among the well-known artists who have performed on The Klein stage are: Isaac Stern, Irving Berlin, Perry Como, Milton Berle, Leonard Bernstein, Van Cliburn, Bob Newhart, Duke Ellington, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Carly Simon, Mikhail Baryshnikov, BB King, Boz Scaggs, Chicago, Doobie Brothers, Beach Boys, Ziggy Marley, Vienna Boys Choir, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Lyle Lovett, Will Downing, Gerald Albright, Loretta Swit, Wynton Marsalis, Elizardi Castro, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King, Jr. In 2013, The Klein’s commitment to improve the community by increasing opportunities for success for underserved teens inspired Klein Theatre Arts (KTA), addressing the needs of students most likely to drop out of school or engage in risky activity while unsupervised. The program is entirely tuition-free and is available to any Bridgeport middle and high school student.