Follow Us On Twitter
At a star-studded gala on Monday, October 29, The Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee presented 32 awards to celebrate excellence in Chicago-area Equity theatre. Over 700 gathered at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie to honor 122 nominees from Equity theatrical productions which opened between August 1, 2006, and July 31, 2007.
Steppenwolf Theatre led all Play recipients with 6 Awards for Tracy Letts' new work, “August: Osage County,” a powerful and sardonic epic of a dysfunctional family in Oklahoma, which is currently in previews on Broadway. Awards to Steppenwolf included Production-Play, Ensemble, Principal Actress Deanna Dunagan, Director Anna D. Shapiro, Scenic Designer Todd Rosenthal and New Work-Play for playwright Tracy Letts. Goodman Theatre collected 3 awards for “Mirror of the Invisible World” for Costume Design (Mara Blumenfeld), Lighting Design (John Culbert), and Original Incidental Music (Michael Bodeen). Richard Woodbury received the Sound Design award for Goodman’s “King Lear.”
In the Musical honors, Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago led with 5 awards, including 4 for “Ragtime - The Musical“, which transferred for an extended run to the Apollo Theatre. “Ragtime” honors included Production-Musical, Director L. Walter Stearns, Music Director Eugene Dizon, and Supporting Actor- Musical Aaron Graham. Sara R. Sevigny received the Supporting Actress-Musical honor for her performance in Porchlight’s “Assassins.”
“The All Night Strut!,” a Marriott Theatre production, garnered 3 awards for Production-Revue, Director Marc Robin, and Choreographers Robin, Beverly Durand, Mark Stuart Eckstein, Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi, and Sasha Vargas. David Hess received the Principal Actor-Musical honor for Marriott’s “Shenandoah.” Northlight Theatre's revue “Fire on the Mountain” received awards for Actor "Mississippi" Charles Bevel and Actress Molly Andrews.
New Works recognized with Jeff Awards included the highly acclaimed chamber musical “The Adding Machine” at Next Theatre, written by Joshua Schmidt and Jason Loewith, and, for New Adaptation, Goodman Theatre's stunningly beautiful “Argonautika: The Voyage of Jason and the Argonauts,” by Mary Zimmerman.
Acting award recipients in Play categories included Ben Carlson as the tragic prince in “Hamlet” at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Deanna Dunagan as the flawed matriarch in Steppenwolf's “August: Osage County,” veteran Maury Cooper as the appraiser in Shattered Globe Theatre’s “The Price,” and Penny Slusher as the doddering wife in Writers' Theatre's “Another Part of the Forest.” A rare tie in the Solo Performance category resulted in 2 recipients: Matt Sax, the hip-hop principal in Lookingglass Theatre's “Clay,” and Lance Stuart Baker in “Thom Pain (based on nothing)” produced by Theater Wit. Musical acting awards honored New York favorites David Hess in Marriott Theatre's “Shenandoah” and Ernestine Jackson in Court Theatre's “Raisin.” Douglas Vickers received the Cameo Performance award for his role as a muckraking pawn in “The Best Man” at Remy Bumppo Theatre Company.
Hosts Mark David Kaplan and Renee Matthews presided over a spirited ceremony, which included scenes and musical numbers from the 14 nominated productions. Presenters included many past Jeff Award recipients, including artistic directors Barbara Gaines of Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Charles Newell of Court Theatre. Michael Weber, himself a nominee for Director-Musical, directed the ceremony, and Equity Chair Diane Hires produced the gala on behalf of the Jeff Awards Committee.
Jackie Taylor, Black Ensemble Theater's Founding Executive Director, received a Special Award for her lifetime of dedicated leadership in celebrating the contributions of African-Americans through theatre and related arts.
The Jeff Awards Committee sent judges to the opening nights of 123 Equity productions offered by 49 producing organizations. From these openings, 93 were “Jeff Recommended,” which made them eligible for Jeff Award nominations and Awards. Additional information and photographs are available at www.jeffawards.org. The Jeff Awards are given annually by The Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee to honor excellence in professional theatre produced in the immediate Chicago area. The committee, organized in 1968, consists of up to 45 men and women with varying backgrounds in theatre, united by an active interest and concern for the advancement of Chicago theatre. Jeff members come to the committee with an academic background in theatre, significant professional experience, a history of theatre involvement, and/or years of consistent theatre attendance in Chicago and in other major theatre capitals of the world. The committee evaluates approximately 250 theatrical productions and holds two awards ceremonies annually. Originally chartered to recognize only Equity productions, the committee established the Citations (non-Equity) wing in 1973 to celebrate outstanding achievement in non-union Chicago theatre. The next Citations awards ceremony will be held on Monday, June 9, 2008, at the Park West in Chicago.
COMPLETE LIST OF JEFF AWARDS
Production – Play
“August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Production – Musical
“Ragtime,” Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago
Production – Revue
“The All Night Strut!,” Marriott Theatre
Ensemble
“August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
New Work – Play
Tracy Letts, “August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
New Work – Musical
Joshua Schmidt & Jason Loewith, “The Adding Machine,” Next Theatre Company
New Adaptation
Mary Zimmerman, “Argonautika: The Voyage of Jason and the Argonauts,” Lookingglass Theatre Company
Director – Play
Anna D. Shapiro, “August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Director – Musical
L. Walter Stearns, “Ragtime,” Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago
Director – Revue
Marc Robin, “The All Night Strut!,” Marriott Theatre
Actor in a Principal Role – Play
Ben Carlson, “Hamlet,” Chicago Shakespeare Theater
Actor in a Principal Role – Musical
David Hess, “Shenandoah,” Marriott Theatre
Actress in a Principal Role – Play
Deanna Dunagan, “August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Actress in a Principal Role – Musical
Ernestine Jackson, “Raisin,” Court Theatre
Solo Performance (2 recipients)
Lance Stuart Baker, “Thom Pain (based on nothing),” Theater Wit
Matt Sax, “Clay,” About Face Theatre and Lookingglass Theatre Company
Actor in a Supporting Role – Play
Maury Cooper, “The Price,” Shattered Globe Theatre
Actor in a Supporting Role – Musical
Aaron Graham, “Ragtime,” Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago
Cameo Performance
Douglas Vickers, “The Best Man,” Remy Bumppo Theatre Company
Actress in a Supporting Role – Play
Penny Slusher, “Another Part of the Forest,” Writers’ Theatre
Actress in a Supporting Role – Musical
Sara R. Sevigny, “Assassins,” Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago
Actor in a Revue
"Mississippi" Charles Bevel, “Fire on the Mountain,” Northlight Theatre
Actress in a Revue
Molly Andrews, “Fire on the Mountain,” Northlight Theatre
Choreography
Marc Robin, Beverly Durand, Mark Stuart Eckstein, Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi, & Sasha Vargas,
“The All Night Strut!,” Marriott Theatre
Scenic Design
Todd Rosenthal, “August: Osage County,” Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Costume Design
Mara Blumenfeld, “Mirror of the Invisible World,” Goodman Theatre
Sound Design
Richard Woodbury, “King Lear,” Goodman Theatre
Lighting Design
John Culbert, “Mirror of the Invisible World,” Goodman Theatre
Music Direction
Eugene Dizon, “Ragtime,” Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago
Original Incidental Music
Michael Bodeen, “Mirror of the Invisible World,” Goodman Theatre
Artistic Specialization
Michael Montenegro, Puppet Design, “The Puppetmaster of Lodz,” Writers' Theatre
2007 EQUITY RECIPIENT STATISTICS (NUMBERS OF AWARDS)
PRODUCTIONS
“August: Osage County” – 6
“Ragtime” – 4
“Mirror of the Invisible World” – 3
“The All Night Strut!” – 3
“Fire on the Mountain” – 2
“Another Part of the Forest” - 1
“Argonautika: The Voyage of Jason and the Argonauts” – 1
“Assassins” – 1
“Clay” – 1
“Hamlet” – 1
“King Lear” – 1
“Raisin” – 1
“Shenandoah” – 1
“The Adding Machine” - 1
“The Best Man” – 1
“The Price” - 1
“The Puppetmaster of Lodz” - 1
“Thom Pain (based on nothing)” - 1
PRODUCING ORGANIZATIONS
Steppenwolf Theatre Company – 6
Porchlight Music Theatre Chicago – 5
Goodman Theatre – 4
Marriott Theatre - 4
Northlight Theatre – 2
Writers’ Theatre – 2
About Face Theatre and Lookingglass Theatre Company – 1
Chicago Shakespeare Theater – 1
Court Theatre - 1
Lookingglass Theatre Company – 1
Next Theatre Company - 1
Remy Bumppo Theatre Company – 1
Shattered Globe Theatre - 1
Theater Wit - 1
Black Ensemble Theater - Special Award Jackie Taylor, Founding Executive Director