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San Diego Theatre Critics Circle honor Darko Tresnjak, DJ Sullivan at 2009 Craig Noel Awards Old Globe's "Cyrano," Playhouse's "Bonnie & Clyde," "Creditors" among top honorees SAN DIEGO -- Productions by the Old Globe Theatre and La Jolla Playhouse dominated as the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle on Jan. 25, 2010, presented the eighth annual Craig Noel Awards for Theatrical Excellence, honoring the best stage work of 2009. The ceremony was dedicated to Noel, the 94-year-old founding director of the Old Globe. He's in frail health and, for the first time since the awards were renamed in his honor in 2002, was unable to attend his namesake awards. They were given out at the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, in La Jolla, at a ceremony attended by more than 450 members of the theater community and their supporters. "Although the troubled economy affected some of the programming choices local theaters made in 2009, critics association members were pleased to see risk-taking plays and several new musicals produced at San Diego theaters, both large and small," said Pam Kragen, president of the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle. Nine San Diego County professional and semi-professional companies took home a total of 37 awards, given in 27 categories, including a new one, Outstanding Young Artist. Also, the critics presented three special awards. Topping the winners’ list was the Playhouse’s world premiere of “Bonnie & Clyde,” which took five awards in the musical categories: new musical, direction, musical direction, female lead performance and female featured performance. Next in line, taking four Noels, was the Playhouse’s fresh version of Strindberg’s “Creditors.” It won for lighting design, set design, music for a play and for Tony-winning playwright Doug Wright’s pungent new adaptation. The Globe’s summer production of “Cyrano de Bergerac” garnered three major awards: dramatic production, direction of a play and lead male performance, which went to Patrick Page in the title role. Two nationally known actors were among the winners present to accept their awards. Obba Babatundé, who won the Lead Actor in a Musical award for his tour-de-force performance as Sammy Davis Jr. in "Sammy," thanked Davis for inspiring him and paving the way for other entertainers. And veteran television actor Armin Shimerman ("Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") was honored for his featured performance in San Diego Rep's "The Seafarer." Four productions received two apiece: the Globe’s “Sammy,” “Opus” and “Twelfth Night,” and Cygnet Theatre’s “Bed and Sofa.” Other plaques went to artists at Diversionary Theatre, San Diego Repertory Theatre, ion theatre company, Compass Theatre and North Coast Repertory Theatre. The first Outstanding Young Artist award went to Ian Brininstool for his performance as a questioning young teen in the bittersweet “Over the Tavern” at North Coast Rep. Darko Tresnjak, winning director for “Cyrano,” also received one of the evening's special awards for his body of work in San Diego, especially reviving and helming the Globe’s Summer Shakespeare Festival. Also honored was DJ Sullivan, for her decades of acting on stage and screen, for her union activities on behalf of actors, and for teaching and directing local actors, many of whom have gone on to illustrious careers. An Outstanding Special Event Award went to the Ira Aldridge Repertory Players, for its doo-wop musical revue, “Looking for an Echo.” Read all about it! National coverage of our 2009 awards: Local coverage:
_________________________________________________________ Arthur Wagner, Jonathan McMurtry, Steve Karo earn special honors at San Diego Theatre Critics Circle’s 2008 Craig Noel Awards ceremony La Jolla Playhouse, Old Globe, Cygnet among multiple honorees at annual ceremony honoring professional theater in 2008 SAN DIEGO -- “Fences,” a February 2008 production by Cygnet Theatre, was the big winner as the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle on Monday, Jan. 26, 2009, presented the seventh annual Craig Noel Awards for Theatrical Excellence, honoring the best stage work of 2008. Noel, the 93-year-old founding director of the Old Globe Theatre, was in attendance for his namesake awards, which were presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego, in La Jolla, attended by some 350 theater industry members and supporters. The August Wilson classic “Fences” won in five categories, including dramatic production, direction and ensemble. Its other two awards went to Antonio T.J. Johnson and Sylvia M’Lafi Thompson in the categories of male and female leads in a play. Thirty-two plaques were presented in 23 categories, with awards going to work (production, direction, technical and acting achievements) at 13 different professional and semi-professional theater companies throughout San Diego County. "The troubled economy had a great impact on San Diego County theaters in 2008,” said Pam Kragen, president of the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle, “but many companies rose to the occasion, producing adventurous, thought-provoking work, regardless of its commercial potential. We were excited to see a balance of strong work at theaters both large and small, and a rich variety of new and revived musicals." La Jolla Playhouse productions also fared well, winning a total of six Noels. Moises Kaufman’s “33 Variations,” about to open on Broadway with Jane Fonda in the lead role, was honored for David Lander’s lighting and Derek McLane’s set. The Playhouse’s premiere of Joe DiPietro and David Bryan’s “Memphis” (now in production at Seattle’s Fifth Avenue Theatre) was honored as outstanding new musical and for Chad Kimball’s lead performance. “Xanadu,” which Playhouse artistic director Christopher Ashley first directed on Broadway, was named outstanding resident musical, and Bill T. Jones won for his choreography in “The Seven.” Old Globe productions garnered four mentions. “Dancing in the Dark” won for Patrick Page’s featured performance and Larry Hochman’s orchestrations. “The Women” was honored for Anna Oliver’s costumes, and Steven Drukman’s boxing-themed “In This Corner” was named outstanding new play. The small Ion Theatre Company won in three categories: Tim Boyce for his sound design in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” Linda Libby for her solo work in “Request Programme” and Rachael VanWormer for her featured performance in “Bash” (as well as in Diversionary’s “Corpus Christi”). Four other companies took two awards each. Three different theater companies shared in the achievement of San Diego actor Tom Andrew, who earned a “body of work” prize for his lead performances in three different 2008 plays: Inukshuk Productions’ “Terra Nova,” Cygnet’s “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play” and Mo’olelo Performing Arts’ “Night Sky.” Special awards were given to Jonathan McMurtry, Arthur Wagner and Steve Karo. McMurtry is a veteran San Diego actor with nearly 48 years onstage at the Old Globe. Wagner founded the Department of Theatre & Dance at UC San Diego, was a longtime board member for La Jolla Playhouse and, with his wife, Molli, is a generous supporter of the arts in San Diego County. And Karo led the drive to renovate the historic Balboa Theatre in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. Filmmaker Martin Morawski created 10-minute tribute films in honor of McMurtry and Wagner. McMurtry’s tributes included comments from his longtime friend and two-time Tony Award-winning director Jack O’Brien, who ran the Old Globe for 25 years. Founded in 1983, the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle is a non-profit collective of print and online theater critics covering live, professional theater in San Diego County. In 2002, the awards program was renamed in honor of Craig Noel, founding artistic director of San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre, acclaimed regional theater innovator and 2007 recipient of the National Medal of Arts. For information on the awards and members of the organization, visit the Web site at www.sdcriticscircle.org. Read all about it! National coverage of our 2008 awards: Local coverage:
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San Diego Theatre Critics Circle honors Jack O’Brien, Floyd Gaffney honored at San Diego Theatre Critics Circle’s 2007 Craig Noel Awards LA JOLLA -- Two 1950s-themed, Broadway-bound musicals dominated the musical categories and plays based on African-American themes were multiple award winners on Jan. 21, 2008, as the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle presented the sixth annual Craig Noel Awards for Theatrical Excellence, spotlighting the best stage work of 2007. Of the 41 awards presented in 27 categories to 14 theater companies, San Diego’s Old Globe captured 14. In addition, Jack O’Brien, leaving his post as Globe artistic director, received a special tribute and was honored with a perpetual award named in his honor, the Jack O’Brien Award for Excellence in Directing. Its first recipient was Esther Emery for her direction of three notably different plays at Cygnet and Moxie Theatres in 2007. As in years past, the namesake for the awards program, 94-year-old Craig Noel handed out all of the evening's awards. Seven of the Globe’s wins went to the musical “A Catered Affair,” a world premiere penned by Harvey Fierstein. It was named outstanding musical and honored in the categories of direction (John Doyle), score (John Bucchino), orchestrations (Don Sebesky), lighting (Brian MacDevitt) and lead performances, female (Faith Prince) and male (Tom Wopat). “A Catered Affair” will open in previews in New York in March. La Jolla Playhouse was also a multiple winner for its Broadway-bound musical “Cry-Baby.” Based on the John Waters film, the musical was honored for its choreography (Rob Ashford) and its lyrics (David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger). Alli Mauzey, who played the kooky character Lenora, won for featured performance in a musical. Another Globe production was cited in two categories. The company’s reprise of August Wilson’s “Two Trains Running” captured awards for lead actor (Chuck Cooper) and costume design (Karen Perry). Another multiple winner was Carlsbad’s New Village Arts Theatre, honored for its dance-filled work “Sailor’s Song.” The play won for direction (Kristianne Kurner), ensemble, choreography (Robin Christ and Kathy Meyer) and costumes (Jessica John). "Sailor" set designer Nick Fouch was honored for this production as well as for Cygnet’s Theatre’s “Yellowman” and Moxie Theatre’s “Devil Dog Six.” Cygnet Theatre’s “Yellowman” was named outstanding drama, and Monique Gaffney was honored for her performance in the production. Other Cygnet commendations went to Ron Choularton, for solo performance in “St. Nicholas,” and Sandy Campbell, for featured performance in “Communicating Doors.” Outstanding resident musical awards went to Moonlight Stage Productions for “West Side Story” and Starlight Theatre for “Ragtime.” In the latter musical, Deborah Gilmour Smyth was honored for her lead performance as Mother. “Jersey Boys,” produced by Broadway/San Diego, was named outstanding touring production. O’Brien’s tribute included a film featuring Fierstein, Tom Stoppard, Des McAnuff, Sheldon Epps, David Yazbek, Norbert Leo Butz, the casts of O'Brien-directed "The Coast of Utopia" and "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas," along with many others important in his life and career. The critics also gave a posthumous salute to Dr. Floyd Gaffney, who for decades was San Diego’s driving force in African-American theater. Founded in 1983, the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle is a non-profit collective of print and
online theater critics covering live, professional theater in San Diego County. In 2002, the
awards program was renamed in honor of Craig Noel, founding artistic director of San Diego’s
Old Globe Theatre, acclaimed regional theater innovator and 2007 recipient of the
National Medal of Arts.
________ Craig Noel wins 2007 National Medal of Arts WASHINGTON, D.C. (Nov. 15, 2007) -- Old Globe Founding Artistic Director Craig Noel, for whom the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle's annual awards are named, was honored at the White House on Nov. 15 with the 2007 National Medal of Arts, the highest award for the arts given by the United States government. Members of the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle helped lobby the National Endowment of the Arts to honor Noel for his achievements. To read more about Noel's award, click here and here.
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