DRAMA DESK Announces 2018-2019 Broadway and Off-Broadway Award Nominees

The Drama Desk has announced its nominees for the best of Broadway and Off Broadway, 2018-19.

Note that many aspects of this season's Broadway productions of Hadestown, Choir Boy, and Torch Song were not considered after being eligible in previous years for their Off-Broadway premieres.  So, be careful in your own thinking with respect to the upcoming Tony nominations, which will consider all Broadway productions but none of the Off Broadway ones. 

With that in mind, here is the list.  As an FYI, nominees in BLUE also received nominations from the Outer Critics Circle in their respective categories.  



Outstanding Play

Fairview
The Ferryman
Lewiston/Clarkson
Usual Girls
What the Constitution Means to Me

Outstanding Musical

Be More Chill
The Hello Girls
The Prom
Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Tootsie

Outstanding Revival of a Play

Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine
Henry VI: Shakespeare’s Trilogy in Two Parts
Our Lady of 121st Street
Summer and Smoke
The Waverly Gallery
Uncle Vanya

Outstanding Revival of a Musical

Carmen Jones
Fiddler on the Roof
Kiss Me, Kate
Merrily We Roll Along
Oklahoma!

Outstanding Actor in a Play

Jeff Biehl, Life Sucks
Edmund Donovan, Lewiston/Clarkston
Raúl Esparza, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui
Russell Harvard, I Was Most Alive With You
Jay O. Sanders, Uncle Vanya

Outstanding Actress in a Play

Midori Francis, Usual Girls
Zainab Jah, Boesman and Lena
Elaine May, The Waverly Gallery
Laurie Metcalf, Hillary and Clinton
Heidi Schreck, What the Constitution Means to Me

Outstanding Actor in a Musical

Brooks Ashmanskas, The Prom
Andrew R. Butler, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Damon Daunno, Oklahoma!
Santino Fontana, Tootsie
Steven Skybell, Fiddler on the Roof

Outstanding Actress in a Musical

Stephanie J. Block, The Cher Show
Beth Leavel, The Prom
Rebecca Naomi Jones, Oklahoma!
Anika Noni Rose, Carmen Jones
Stacey Sargeant, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play

Charles Browning, Fairview
Arnie Burton, Lewiston/Clarkston
Hampton Fluker, All My Sons
Tom Glynn-Carney, The Ferryman
Brandon Uranowitz, Burn This

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play

Harriett D. Foy, The House That Will Not Stand
Megan Hill, Eddie and Dave
Celia Keenan-Bolger, To Kill a Mockingbird
Ruth Wilson, King Lear
Alison Wright, Othello

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical

Corbin Bleu, Kiss Me, Kate
André De Shields, Hadestown
Sydney James Harcourt, Girl from the North Country
George Salazar, Be More Chill
Patrick Vaill, Oklahoma!

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical

Stephanie Hsu, Be More Chill
Leslie Kritzer, Beetlejuice
Soara-Joye Ross, Carmen Jones
Sarah Stiles, Tootsie
Ali Stroker, Oklahoma!
Mary Testa, Oklahoma!

Outstanding Director of a Play

Sarah Benson, Fairview
Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, The Jungle
Sam Mendes, The Ferryman
Tyne Rafaeli, Usual Girls
Taylor Reynolds, Plano
Jeff Wise, Life Sucks

Outstanding Director of a Musical

Noah Brody, Merrily We Roll Along
Rachel Chavkin, Hadestown
Scott Ellis, Tootsie
Daniel Fish, Oklahoma!
Joel Grey, Fiddler on the Roof

Outstanding Choreography

Camille A. Brown, Choir Boy
Warren Carlyle, Kiss Me, Kate
Denis Jones, Tootsie
Lorin Latarro, Twelfth Night
Rick and Jeff Kuperman, Alice by Heart
David Neumann, Hadestown

Outstanding Music

Andrew R. Butler, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Joe Iconis, Be More Chill
Peter Mills, The Hello Girls
Mark Sonnenblick, Midnight at the Never Get
Shaina Taub, Twelfth Night
David Yazbek, Tootsie

Outstanding Lyrics

Chad Beguelin, The Prom
Andrew R. Butler, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Joe Iconis, Be More Chill
Peter Mills, The Hello Girls
David Yazbek, Tootsie

Outstanding Book of a Musical

Scott Brown and Anthony King, Beetlejuice
Andrew R. Butler, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Robert Horn, Tootsie
Bob Martin and Chad Beguelin, The Prom
Dominique Morisseau, Ain’t Too Proud

Outstanding Orchestrations

Larry Blank, Fiddler on the Roof
Simon Hale, Girl From the North Country
Daniel Kluger, Oklahoma!
Charlie Rosen, Be More Chill
Daryl Waters, The Cher Show

Outstanding Music in a Play

Paul Castles and Jongbin Jung, Wild Goose Dreams
Justin Ellington, Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie
Justin Ellington, The House That Will Not Stand
Nick Powell, The Lehman Trilogy
Jason Michael Webb and Fitz Patton, Choir Boy

Outstanding Set Design of a Play

Miriam Buether, The Jungle
Es Devlin, Girls and Boys
Maruti Evans, The Peculiar Patriot
Mimi Lien, Fairview
Matt Saunders, Daddy

Outstanding Set Design for a Musical

Rachel Hauck, Hadestown
Laura Jellinek, Oklahoma!
Laura Jellinek, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
David Korins, Beetlejuice
Rae Smith, Girl From the North Country

Outstanding Costume Design for a Play

Dede M. Ayite, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark
Dede M. Ayite, If Pretty Hurts Ugly Must Be a Muhfucka
Ásta Bennie Hostetter, Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie
Toni-Leslie James, Bernhardt/Hamlet
Nicole Slaven, Henry VI: Shakespeare’s Trilogy in Two Parts

Outstanding Costume Design for a Musical

William Ivey Long, Beetlejuice
William Ivey Long, Tootsie
Bobby Frederick Tilley II, Be More Chill
Michael Krass, Hadestown
Bob Mackie, The Cher Show
Paloma Young, Alice by Heart

Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play

Amith Chandrashaker, Boesman and Lena
Amith Chandrashaker, Fairview
Jiyoun Chang, Slave Play
Jon Clark, The Jungle
Simon Cleveland, Spaceman
Yi Zhao, The House That Will Not Stand

Outstanding Lighting Design for a Musical

Adam Honoré, Carmen Jones
Bradley King, Hadestown
Jamie Roderick, Midnight at the Never Get
Barbara Samuels, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future
Scott Zielinski, Oklahoma!

Outstanding Projection Design

Peter England, King Kong
Katherine Freer, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark
Luke Halls, The Lehman Trilogy
Alex Basco Koch, Be More Chill
Peter Nigrini, Beetlejuice
Joshua Thorson, Oklahoma!

Outstanding Sound Design in a Play

Tyler Kieffer, Plano
Fitz Patton, Choir Boy
Nick Powell, The Ferryman
Jane Shaw, I Was Most Alive With You
Mikaal Sulaiman, Fairview

Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical

Simon Baker, Girl from the North Country
Drew Levy, Oklahoma!
Brian Ronan, Tootsie
Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz, Hadestown
Mikaal Sulaiman, Rags Parkland Sings the Songs of the Future

Outstanding Wig and Hair Design

Campbell Young Associates, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus
Cookie Jordan, Eddie and Dave
Paul Huntley, Tootsie
Charles G. LaPointe, Beetlejuice
Charles G. LaPointe, The Cher Show

Outstanding Solo Performance

Mike Birbiglia, The New One
Carey Mulligan, Girls and Boys
Liza Jessie Peterson, The Peculiar Patriot
Erin Treadway, Spaceman
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag

Unique Theatrical Experience

All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914
Love’s Labor’s Lost
The B-Side: Negro Folklore from Texas State Prisons
What to Send Up When it Goes Down

Outstanding Fight Choreography

U. Jonathan Toppo, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Claire Warden, Daddy
Claire Warden, Slave Play

Outstanding Puppet Design

Michael Curry, Beetlejuice
Sonny Tilders, King Kong
Tschabalala Self, Daddy

The Drama Desk Awards will be presented on June 2, 8:00 at Town Hall.  

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OUTER CRITICS CIRCLE: Nominees for 2018-19 Awards for the Best of Broadway and Off Broadway

Michael Urie and Julie Halston
Photo by Howard Miller

The Outer Critics Circle today announced the nominees for the 2018-19 awards for the best of Broadway and Off Broadway.  

The nominees were announced in a ceremony at the Algonquin Hotel.  Julie Halston, who opens tonight in the Broadway musical Tootsie, and Michael Urie, who starred in Torch Song in its recent Off Broadway and Broadway productions, did the honors.

After voting by its membership (and here I proudly raise my hand) the winners will be announced on Monday, May 13.  The annual Gala Awards Dinner and presentation of awards to the winners will be held on Thursday, May 23 at Sardi's. 

Here are the nominees:

Outstanding New Broadway Play

The Ferryman

Ink

Network

To Kill A Mockingbird

What the Constitution Means to Me

Outstanding New Broadway Musical

Be More Chill

Hadestown

Head Over Heels

The Prom

Tootsie

Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play

Fairview

The House That Will Not Stand

Lewiston/Clarkston

The Light

White Noise

Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical

The Beast in the Jungle

Black Light

Girl from the North Country

The Hello Girls

Midnight at the Never Get

Outstanding Book Of A Musical

Robert Horn, Tootsie

Conor McPherson, Girl from the North Country

Peter Mills & Clara Reichel, The Hello Girls

Anais Mitchell, Hadestown

Jeff Whitty & James Magruder, Head Over Heels

Outstanding New Score

Matthew Sklar & Chad Baguelin, The Prom

Joe Iconis, Be More Chill

Peter Mills, The Hello Girls

Anais Mitchell, Hadestown

David Yazbek, Tootsie

Outstanding Revival of a Play

All My Sons

By the Way, Meet Vera Stark

Juno and the Paycock

Our Lady of 121st Street

The Waverly Gallery

Outstanding Revival of a Musical

Carmen Jones

Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish)

Kiss Me, Kate!

Oklahoma!

Smokey Joe’s Cafe

Outstanding Director of a Play

Rupert Goold, Ink

Sam Mendes, The Ferryman

Jack O’Brien, All My Sons

Bartlett Sher, To Kill A Mockingbird

Logan Vaughn, The Light

Outstanding Director of a Musical

Rachel Chavkin, Hadestown

Scott Ellis, Tootsie

Daniel Fish, Oklahoma!

Joel Grey, Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish)

Cara Reichel, The Hello Girls

Outstanding Choreographer

Warren Carlyle, Kiss Me, Kate!

Christopher Gattelli, The Cher Show

Denis Jones, Tootsie

David Neumann, Hadestown

Sergio Trujillo, Ain’t Too Proud

Outstanding Scenic Design

Beowulf Boritt, Bernhardt/Hamlet

Bunny Christie, Ink

Rachel Hauck, Hadestown

Rob Howell, The Ferryman

David Korins, Beetlejuice

Outstanding Costume Design

Rob Howell, The Ferryman

Bob Mackie, The Cher Show

William Ivey Long, Beetlejuice

William Ivey Long, Tootsie

Arianne Phillips, Head Over Heels

Outstanding Lighting Design

Neil Austin, Ink

Stacey Derosier, Lewiston/Clarkston

Bradley King, Hadestown

Jadon Lyons, Sugar in Our Wounds

Peter Mumford, King Kong

Outstanding Projection Design

Peter England, King Kong

Alex Basco Koch, Be More Chill

Peter Nigrini, Beetlejuice 

Jeff Sugg, All My Sons

Tal Tarden, Network

Outstanding Sound Design

John Gromada, All My Sons

Peter Hykenski, King Kong

Drew Levy, Oklahoma!

Eric Sleichim, Network

Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz, Hadestown

Outstanding Orchestrations

Michael Chorney & Todd Sickafoose, Hadestown

Simon Hale, Girl from the North Country

Joseph Joubert, Carmen Jones

Daniel Kluger, Oklahoma!

Harold Wheeler, Ain't Too Proud!

Outstanding Actor in a Play

McKinley Belcher III, The Light

Bryan Cranston, Network

Daveed Diggs, White Noise

Bill Irwin, On Beckett

Jeremy Pope, Choir Boy

Outstanidng Actress in a Play

Glen Close, Mother of the Maid

Edie Falco, The True

Glenda Jackson, King Lear

Mandi Masden, The Light

Elaine May, The Waverly Gallery

Outstanding Actor in a Musical

Brooks Ashmanskas, The Prom

Reeve Carney, Hadestown

Damon Daunno, Oklahoma!

Santino Fontana, Tootsie

Steven Skybell, Fiddler on the Room (in Yiddish)

Outstanding Actress in a Musical

Stephanie J. Block, The Cher Show

Kelli O'Hara, Kiss Me, Kate!

Beth Leavel, The Prom

Anika Noni Rose, Carmen Jones

Mare Winningham, Girl from the North Country

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play

Bertie Carvel, Ink

John Clay III, Choir Boy

Hugh Dancy, Apologia

John Procaccino, Downstairs

Benjamin Walker, All my Sons

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play

Joan Allen, The Waverly Gallery

Stephanie Berry, Sugar in Our Wounds

Fionnula Flanagan, The Ferryman

Harriett D. Foy, The House That WIll Not Stand

Celia Keenan-Bolger, To Kill a Mockingbird

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical

John Behlmann, Tootsie

André De Shields, Hadestown

Reg Rogers, Tootsie

George Salazar, Be More Chill

Ephraim Sykes, Ain't Too Proud!

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical

Amber Gray, Hadestown

Leslie Kritzer, Beetlejuice

Bonnie Milligan, Head Over Heels

Sarah Stiles, Tootsie

Ali Stroker, Oklahoma!

Outstanding Solo Performance

Mike Birbiglia, The New ONe

Maddie Corman, Accidentally Brave

Jake Gyllenhaal, A Life

Carey Mulligan, Girls and Boys

Renée Taylor, My Life on a Diet

John Gassner Award

For an American play, preferably by a new playwright

Jeremy O. Harris, Slave Play

Jeremy Kareken and David Murrell and Gordon Farrell, 

The Lifespan of a Fact

Donja R. Love, Sugar in Our Wounds

Mingg Peiffer, Usual Girls

Charly Evon Simpson, Behind the Sheet

SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS WENT TO

The Puppetry Team that Created and Operates King Kong

The York Theatre Company, for 50 years of producing new musicals and classics from the past

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OKLAHOMA!: New Production Explores the Show's Dark Underbelly With a Country and Western Flair

If you think you know Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic musical Oklahoma!, think again. Because the new Broadway production at Circle in the Square in an eye-opening humdinger of a show that explores the darker side to the story and even reshapes the score into music that might very well have been performed in Oklahoma Territory, circa 1907, just before it joined the Union and became a state. 

The last time I saw this old warhorse was in 2002.  Coincidentally, that production, imported from London though with most of the cast replaced (alas, no Hugh Jackman as Curly), played right next door to the show's current home, at the Gershwin Theatre, where Wicked has become a seemingly permanent fixture.

That was an enjoyable production, but it mostly stuck to the tried and true.  But hold on to your spurs and chaps, folks, because director Daniel Fish has rethought just about every aspect.  

Some will find it unacceptably different, what with the on-stage musicians performing as if at a hoedown and with many of the songs being given a country and western flair.  

But the new orchestrations by Daniel Kluger are just right for this production, and the youthful cast is just about perfectly suited for capturing the heart of the show.  Damon Daunno is full of cocky charm as Curly, and Rebecca Naomi Jones is both scrappy and dreamy as Laurey. James Davis and Ali Stroker make for a perfect comic team as the goofy Will Parker and Ado Annie, the gal who cain't say no. Mary Testa as Aunt Eller is kind, tough, eminently practical yet fixated on making sure things stay within the boundaries she sees as uncrossable. And Patrick Vaill gives us a Jud Fry who is psychologically complex, as much a threatening figure as he is a victim of the society that has shunned him all his life. 

I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that there is an unexpectedly disturbing ending that takes us out of the naturalism of the story and into a more symbolic realm, and the famous dream ballet has been completely rethought by choreographer John Heginbotham so that it bears not the slightest resemblance to Agnes de Mille's original version. 

But, truly, I don't recall ever having such a thrilling experience at a revival of an old familiar musical as I had in seeing this production of Oklahoma! It makes me wonder what the director, Mr. Fish, might do with Carousel.

Rebecca Naomi Jones and Damon Daunno as Laurey and Curly
Photo by Little Fang Photo

Ali Stroker and James Davis as Ado Annie and Will Parker
Photo by Little Fang Photo

Damon Daunno as Curly and Mary Testa as Aunt Eller
Photo by Little Fang Photo

The Cast

Photo by Little Fang Photo

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Feel free to share this blog with your friends, and to offer up your own theater stories by posting a comment. I also invite you to check out the website Show-Score.Com, where you will find capsule reviews of current plays from Yours Truly and many other New York critics.