Jeff Awards Non-Equity Nominations Celebrate Outstanding 2012 Productions
Griffin Theatre Company and Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Top List of Most Nominated Companies
The Jeff Awards today announced 124 nominations in 25 categories for Non-Equity Jeff Awards for productions that opened between April 1, 2011, and March 31, 2012. The Non-Equity Awards honor excellence in Chicago theatres not under a union contract. Jeff Awards judges covered opening nights of 154 productions offered by 71 Non-Equity producing organizations. The judges recommended 64 of those shows, making them eligible for Non-Equity Jeff Award nominations. Thirty-two theatre companies received nominations.
Theo Ubique, with another bold season of musicals in their tiny Glenwood Arts District storefront, earned 14 nods, the most of any theatre company. “The Light in the Piazza,” a musical love story set in Italy, received eight mentions; “Pump Boys and Dinettes,” about patrons and waitresses at the Double Cupp Diner, had 6 nominations.
The 2012 nominations also recognized the strong seasons at Griffin Theatre Company, the new Bailiwick Chicago, and Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co. Griffin Theatre scored 11 nominations for two works: six for “Punk Rock,” a British play about issues of contemporary high school students; and five for “Spring Awakening,” a musical about teenage repression in 19th century Germany. Bailiwick Chicago scored 10 nominations, including five for “Passing Strange,” a rock musical about an African American’s artistic self-discovery, and five for “Violet,” a musical about a disfigured woman on a journey of healing. Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co. scored eight nominations: four with their hit “Superior Donuts,” the Tracy Letts play about an Uptown donut shop; and four for a tale of a complicated love triangle, ”Red Light Winter,” soon to be released as a motion picture. The Hypocrites’ bold adaptation of the “Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses” cycle garnered six nominations, tying with Griffin’s “Punk Rock” for most play nominations.
More Non-Equity theatres achieved eligibility this season, with 71 companies represented, up from 65 last year, and 61 in 2010, while two venerable Non-Equity companies, The House Theatre of Chicago and Profiles Theatre, moved to Equity contracts.
This year’s nominations also highlight the strength and diversity of artistic specializations that theatres have available to draw upon. This year there were sufficient nominations to merit separate awards categories for fight design and dialect coaching, while the broader “artistic specialization” category includes nominations for a range of skills such as gore design and percussion.
The 39th Annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards Ceremony will be held on Monday, June 4, 2012, at the Park West, 322 W. Armitage, Chicago, IL. Doors open for a cash bar at 6:00 p.m., with a light buffet at 6:30 p.m., and the presentation ceremony at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $40 in advance, $45 at the door. A group rate of $35 is available for parties of 10 or more. Festive cocktail attire is suggested, and the public is cordially invited. Tickets may be purchased online with a credit card at www.jeffawards.org or by mail with the downloadable mail-order form. For more information contact Doug Bradburd, Non-Equity Wing Chair, at nonequitywing@jeffawards.org. Follow live twitter feeds from the ceremony and behind the scenes at @josephjefferson.
The Jeff Awards has been honoring outstanding theatre artists annually since it was established in 1968. With an active contingent of 50 members representing a wide variety of backgrounds in theatre, the Jeff Awards is committed to celebrating the vitality of Chicago area theatre by recognizing excellence through its recommendations, awards, and honors. The Jeff Awards fosters the artistic growth of area theatres and theatre artists and promotes educational opportunities, audience appreciation, and civic pride in the achievements of the theatre community. The Jeff Awards evaluates over 250 theatrical productions and holds two awards ceremonies annually. Originally chartered to recognize only Equity productions, the Jeff Awards established the Non-Equity Wing in 1973 to celebrate outstanding achievement in non-union theatre. The next Equity Awards Ceremony, honoring productions presented under union contracts, will be held on Monday, October 15, 2012, at the Drury Lane Oakbrook in
Oakbrook Terrace.
2012 Non-Equity Jeff Award Nominees:
Production — Play
"Opus" — Redtwist Theatre
"Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
"Red Light Winter" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
"Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
"Superior Donuts" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
"The Word Progress on My Mother's Lips Doesn't Ring True" — Trap Door Theatre
Production — Musical
"The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
"Passing Strange" — Bailiwick Chicago
"Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
"Spring Awakening" — Griffin Theatre Company
"Violet" — Bailiwick Chicago
Director — Play
Jonathan Berry — "Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
Seth Bockley — "The Ugly One" — Sideshow Theatre Company
Jason W. Gerace — "Opus" — Redtwist Theatre
Sean Graney — "Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
Halena Kays — "Six Characters in Search of an Author" — The Hypocrites
Blake Montgomery — "Moby-Dick" — The Building Stage
Director — Musical
Fred Anzevino — "Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Fred Anzevino and Brenda Didier — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Jonathan Berry — "Spring Awakening" — Griffin Theatre Company
Lili-Anne Brown — "Passing Strange" — Bailiwick Chicago
Elizabeth Margolius — "Violet" — Bailiwick Chicago
Ensemble
"Moby-Dick" — The Building Stage
"Opus" — Redtwist Theatre
"Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
"Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
"Shakespeare's R&J" — Idle Muse Theatre Company
"Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
Principal Actor — Play
Dan Behrendt (Matt) — "Red Light Winter" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Joey DeBettencourt (William Carlisle) — "Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
Brian Grey (Ned Lawrence) — "The Oxford Roof Climber's Rebellion" — Caffeine Theatre
Peter Oyloe (Kjell) — "Elling" — Redtwist Theatre
Brian Plocharczyk (Stephen) — "Farragut North" — Stage Left
Andrew Burden Swanson (Gerry) — "The Last Duck" — Jackalope Theatre Company
Preston Tate, Jr. (Franco Wicks) — "Superior Donuts" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Principal Actor — Musical
Jayson "JC" Brooks (Narrator) — "Passing Strange" — Bailiwick Chicago
Courtney Crouse (Jim) — "Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Steven Perkins (Youth) — "Passing Strange" — Bailiwick Chicago
Creg Sclavi (Bobby Strong) — "Urinetown the Musical" — Circle Theatre
Chuck Sisson (Aimable Castagnet) — "The Baker's Wife" — Circle Theatre
Principal Actress — Play
Jacqueline Grandt (Agnes) — "Bug" — Redtwist Theatre
Katherine Keberlein (Jan) — "Fifty Words" — Profiles Theatre
Melanie Keller (Sonya/Sarah) — "East of Berlin & The Russian Play" — Signal Ensemble Theatre
Eileen Niccolai (Lady) — "Orpheus Descending" — Shattered Globe Theatre
Stacy Stoltz (Anne) — "Assisted Living" — Profiles Theatre
Principal Actress — Musical
Harmony France (Violet) — "Violet" — Bailiwick Chicago
Kelli Harrington (Margaret Johnson) — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Rachel Klippel (Clara Johnson) — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Supporting Actor — Play
Barth Bennett (Jefferson) — "A Lesson Before Dying" — Lincoln Square Theatre
Eric Burgher (Mervyn) — "A Behanding in Spokane" — Profiles Theatre
Dereck Garner (Davis) — "Red Light Winter" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Ryan Heindl (Chadwick Meade) — "Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
Aaron Kirby (Adam) — "Dark Play or Stories for Boys" — Collaboraction
J.P. Pierson (Bunce) — "One Flea Spare" — Eclipse Theatre Company
Supporting Actor — Musical
Justin Adair (Fabrizio Naccarelli) — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Michael Kingston (Charlemagne) — "Pippin" — Bohemian Theatre Ensemble
Evan Tyrone Martin (Flick) — "Violet" — Bailiwick Chicago
Jeremy Rill (Count Carl-Magnus Malcolm) — "A Little Night Music" — Circle Theatre
Supporting Actress — Play
Sasha Gioppo (Christina) — "Red Light Winter" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Vanessa Greenway (Rosaura/Astrea) — "Life Is A Dream" — Premiere Theatre & Performance i/a/w Vitalist Theatre
Susan Monts-Bologna (Lady Boyle) — "Superior Donuts" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Caroline Neff (Helen) — "Under the Blue Sky" — Steep Theatre Company
Supporting Actress — Musical
Anita Hoffman (Denise) — "The Baker's Wife" — Circle Theatre
Khaki Pixley (Petra) — "A Little Night Music" — Circle Theatre
Danni Smith (Rhetta) — "Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Dana Tretta (Catherine) — "Pippin" — Bohemian Theatre Ensemble
New Work
Shepsu Aakhu — "Speaking in Tongues: The Chronicles of Babel" — MPAACT
Keith Josef Adkins — "The Last Saint on Sugar Hill" — MPAACT
Scott Barsotti, Molly Each, Laura Eason, Brian Golden, Kristin Idaszak, Kim Morris, Nick Ward and Doug Whippo — "We Live Here" — Theatre Seven of Chicago
Lucas Neff — "The Last Duck" — Jackalope Theatre Company
Deirdre O'Connor — "Assisted Living" — Profiles Theatre
New Adaptation
Sean Graney — "Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
Matt Hawkins — "Cyrano" — The House Theatre of Chicago
John Hildreth — "Watership Down" — Lifeline Theatre
Blake Montgomery — "Moby-Dick" — The Building Stage
Steve Moulds — "Six Characters in Search of an Author" — The Hypocrites
Choreography
Kevin Bellie — "Urinetown the Musical" — Circle Theatre
Brenda Didier — "Pippin" — Bohemian Theatre Ensemble
Nicole Pellegrino — "Spring Awakening" — Griffin Theatre Company
Original Incidental Music
Andrew Hansen — "Hunger" — Lifeline Theatre
Michael Huey — "The Spirit Play" — The Strange Tree Group
Ovidiu Iloc — "The Word Progress on My Mother's Lips Doesn't Ring True" — Trap Door Theatre
Christopher Kriz — "The Count of Monte Cristo" — Lifeline Theatre
Kevin O'Donnell — "Moby-Dick" — The Building Stage
Kevin O'Donnell, Shawn Pfautsch and Matt Hawkins — "Cyrano" — The House Theatre of Chicago
Music Direction
Jim DeSelm — "Pump Boys and Dinettes" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Allison Kane — "Spring Awakening" — Griffin Theatre Company
James Morehead — "Passing Strange" — Bailiwick Chicago
Jeremy Ramey — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Andra Velis Simon — "Violet" — Bailiwick Chicago
Scenic Design
Bob Knuth — "The Women" — Circle Theatre
Jack Magaw and Kimberly Senior — "Bug" — Redtwist Theatre
Amanda Rozmiarek — "The Price" — Raven Theatre
Ray Toler — "Bus Stop" — Raven Theatre
Adam Veness — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Lighting Design
Kevin D. Gawley — "Hunger" — Lifeline Theatre
Lee Keenan — "Spring Awakening" — Griffin Theatre Company
Lee Keenan — "The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek" — Eclipse Theatre Company
Jared Moore — "Lighthousekeeping" — New Leaf Theatre
Jared Moore — "Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
Mac Vaughey — "The Ugly One" — Sideshow Theatre Company
Costume Design
Aly Renee Amidei — "The Count of Monte Cristo" — Lifeline Theatre
Jacqueline Firkins — "Cyrano" — The House Theatre of Chicago
Jesus Perez — "Urinetown the Musical" — Circle Theatre
Elizabeth Wislar — "A Little Night Music" — Circle Theatre
Elizabeth Wislar — "The Women" — Circle Theatre
Sound Design
Thomas Dixon — "The Sea" — Theatre Mir
Mikhail Fiksel — "Watership Down" — Lifeline Theatre
Christopher Kriz — "Bug" — Redtwist Theatre
Christopher Kriz — "The Count of Monte Cristo" — Lifeline Theatre
Christopher Kriz — "Opus" — Redtwist Theatre
Fight Design
Matt Hawkins — "Cyrano" — The House Theatre of Chicago
R&D Choreography — "Watership Down" — Lifeline Theatre
David Woolley — "Superior Donuts" — Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co.
Dialect Coaching
Eva Breneman — "The Light in the Piazza" — Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
Anita Deely — "Old Times" — Strawdog Theatre Company
Elise Kauzlaric — "Punk Rock" — Griffin Theatre Company
Artistic Specialization
Casey Baker, Kevin O'Donnell and Mike Pryzgoda — Percussion — "Moby-Dick" — The Building Stage
Zhanna Bullock — Music Coach — "Opus" — Redtwist Theatre
Joanna Iwanicka — Puppet, Mask and Video Design — "Watership Down" — Lifeline Theatre
Mary O'Dowd — Properties/Set Dressing — "The Price" — Raven Theatre
Brett Schneider — Magic Design — "The Spirit Play" — The Strange Tree Group
Mary Williamson and Christine Conley — Makeup/Gore Design — "Sophocles: Seven Sicknesses" — The Hypocrites
Nivan Yahaghi — Video Design and Cinematography and Amanda Clifford -- Cinematography — "We Live Here" — Theatre Seven of Chicago
SPECIAL NOTICE TO NEWS MEDIA
Your complimentary ticket to the 39th Annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards Ceremony will be held at the News Media Table at the Park West only if you make a reservation in advance with Jeffrey Marks at 312.606.0400 or media@jeffawards.org.
Names of award recipients will be released immediately following the presentation ceremony June 4\ by email and on our website. Photos from the event will be available on our website.
A Media Curtain is available for your own photos. We will also have an interview area available to you, and will assist in bringing interviewees to that area. If you need a quote or interview with any Jeff Awards committee member, please call or e-mail Jeffrey Marks at 312-606-0400 or media@jeffawards.org.
The Jeff Awards Committee website, www.jeffawards.org, lists all the current Non-Equity nominees and statistics, along with previous recipients and nominees and other Jeff Awards information and news.
Contact:
Jeffrey Marks – Media Chair, 312-606-0400
or media@jeffawards.org, or
Doug Bradburd – Non-Equity Wing Chair,