Among nominees announced on Feb. 5 is Dolly Parton, for her music and lyrics for the Broadway tryout of 9 to 5: The Musical. Choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler was also nominated. The musical opens on Broadway this spring.
Tim McNeil's play Anything, the rock opera Lovelace and Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara were among productions snagging multiple nominations.
The 40th Annual Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards ceremony — hosted by Vicki Lewis (TV's "NewsRadio" and Ovation award winner for Hotel C'est L'Amour) and critic Wenzel Jones — will take place March 16 at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood.
For reservatons and more information, visit www.ladramacriticscircle.com.
Awards will be given in 19 categories, honoring excellence in theatre over the past year. Five special awards will also be given. The 2008 Special Award Recipients
The Ted Schmitt Award for the world premiere of an outstanding new play will be awarded to EM Lewis for Song of Extinction. The award is accompanied by an offer to publish and a $1,000 check funded by Samuel French, Inc.
The Polly Warfield Award for an excellent season in a small to mid-size theatre will be awarded to Sacred Fools Theater Company. The award is accompanied by a $500 check, funded by the Nederlander Organization.
The Angstrom Award for career achievement in lighting design will be awarded to Lisa D. Katz. The award is accompanied by a $1,000 check, funded by Angstrom Lighting.
The Margaret Harford Award for sustained excellence in theatre will be awarded to the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company. The Joel Hirschhorn Award for outstanding achievement in musical theatre will be awarded to Nick DeGruccio.
Nominees for the 2008 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards
Production
Anything, Elephant Theatre Company
As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company
Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, A Noise Within
Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, Havok Theatre Company
Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company
McCulloh Award for Revival (shows written between 1920 and 1980)
Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
Of Mice and Men, Theatre Banshee
The Time of Your Life, Pacific Resident Theatre
Direction
Jeremy Aldridge, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company
Ben Bradley, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Heidi Helen Davis, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
David Fofi, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company
Ken Sawyer, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Writing
Athol Fugard, Victory, the Fountain Theatre
Alex Lyras and Robert McCaskill, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E
Tim McNeil, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company
Writing (Adaptation)
Neil Bartlett, Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, A Noise Within
Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus, Crime and Punishment, Actors Co-op
Sean T. Cawelti with Miles Taber and the Rogues, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble at Bootleg Theater
Music Direction
Andy Einhorn and David Loud, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
Dennis Kaye, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company
Michael Paternostro, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company at Bootleg Theatre
Choreography
Andy Blankenbuehler, 9 to 5: The Musical, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
Christine Lakin, As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company
Lee Martino, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company
Lee Martino, All Shook Up, Musical Theatre West
Musical Score
Michael Friedman, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Center Theatre Group at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
Dolly Parton, 9 to 5: The Musical, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
Anna Waronker and Charlotte Caffey, additional lyrics by Jeffery Leonard Bowman, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Lead Performance
Chad Borden, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company
Sean Branney, Of Mice and Men, Theatre Banshee
Jake Broder, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company
Joe Egender, He Asked for It, Theatre of NOTE
Ellen Geer, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
John Glover, Secrets of the Trade, the Black Dahlia Theatre
Louis Jacobs, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company
Judy Kaye, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
Katrina Lenk, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Libby West, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, International City Theatre
Featured Performance
JD Cullum, Don Juan, A Noise Within
Beth Kennedy, As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company at the Falcon Theatre
Sharon Lawrence, Orson's Shadow, Pasadena Playhouse
Irene Roseen, Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
Joseph Ruskin, The Last Seder, Ensemble Studio Theatre—LA and the Greenway Arts Alliance
Jimmy Swan, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Adolphus Ward, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Ensemble Performance
Assassins, West Coast Ensemble at The El Centro Theatre
Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, Havok Theatre Company
Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
The Kentucky Cycle Part II, California Repertory Company
Stupid Kids, Celebration Theatre
Set Design
Danny Cistone, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company
Joel Daavid, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble
Laura Fine Hawkes, Snake in the Grass, Salem K Theatre Company
Lighting Design
Christian Epps, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Derrick McDaniel, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company
Steven Young, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company
Steven Young, Thrill Me: The Leopold & Loeb Story, Havok Theatre Company
Costume Design
Audrey Eisner, Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
Sharon McGunigle, Alice in One-Hit Wonderland 2: Through the Looking Glass, Troubadour Theater Company
Nailia Aladdin Sanders, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Shigeru Yaji, An Italian Straw Hat: A Vaudeville, South Coast Repertory
Sound Design
David B. Marling, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Ken Rich, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E
Eric Snodgrass, Snake in the Grass, Salem K Theatre Company at The Matrix Theatre
Solo Performance
Alex Lyras, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E
Nilaja Sun, No Child…, Center Theatre Group at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
CGI/Video
Marc Rosenthal, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Brian White, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble
Puppet and Mask Design
Joyce Hutter and Patrick Rubio, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble
Fight Choreography
Ned Mochel, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company
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The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle was founded in 1969. It is dedicated to excellence in theatrical criticism, and to the encouragement and improvement of theatre in Greater Los Angeles.
