Last night, the Boston Theater Critics Association announced the 39th Elliot Norton Awards for more than two dozen outstanding actors, directors, designers, ensembles and productions. The ceremony capped off a season that saw a vigorous return to live theater.
The Huntington Theatre Company won a total of six awards, including three for “The Bluest Eye,” written by playwright Lydia Diamond and adapted from Toni Morrison’s enduring debut novel. SpeakEasy Stage Company garnered seven awards for productions such as "People, Places, and Things," "BLKS" and the musical “Once on This Island.” “The Tempest,” Commonwealth Shakespeare Company’s annual free summer Shakespeare production, was awarded Outstanding Performance by an Actor for a Large Theater. That was for John Douglas Thompson's performance as Prospero. Thompson, who has been hailed by many as the nation's leading Shakespearean actor, was also this year’s recipient of the Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence.
Special citations were awarded to Julianne Boyd, the indefatigable co-founder and Artistic Director of Barrington Stage Company who retires this year, and to Arlekin Players Theater, the tiny Needham theater company that gained international attention with talent like Mikhail Baryshnikov thanks to its pandemic pivot into virtual theater.
The full list of winners follows.
Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence
John Douglas Thompson
Special Citation
Arlekin Players Theatre & Zero Gravity (zero-G) Virtual Theater Lab, artistic director Igor Golyak for pushing the boundaries of digital space to create a new genre of theater and actress Darya Denisova for her performances interacting virtually with a global audience in the original productions “State vs. Natasha Banina,” “chekhovOS,” and “Witness."
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Special Citation
Julianne Boyd, co-founder and outgoing artistic director of Barrington Stage Company, for her 27 years at the helm of the award-winning Pittsfield-based theater, an incubator for ambitious new work and Broadway hits.
Outstanding Visiting Production
“Hadestown,” Broadway In Boston
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Visiting Production
Kevyn Morrow, “Hadestown,” presented by Broadway In Boston
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Visiting Production
Somi Kakoma, “Dreaming Zenzile,” presented by ArtsEmerson
Outstanding Musical Production
”All Is Calm,” Greater Boston Stage Company
Outstanding Production by a Large Theater
“The Bluest Eye,” Huntington Theatre Company
Outstanding Production by a Midsize Theater
“People, Places & Things,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
Outstanding Production by a Small or Fringe Theater
“Tiny Beautiful Things,” Gloucester Stage Company
Outstanding Ensemble, Large Theater
“The Bluest Eye,” Huntington Theatre Company
Outstanding Ensemble, Midsize Theater
“BLKS,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
Outstanding Ensemble, Small or Fringe Theater
“The Importance of Being Earnest,” Apollinaire Theatre Company
Outstanding Solo Performance
Jasmine M. Rush, “Queens Girl in the World,” a co-production of The Nora at Central Square Theater, The Front Porch Arts Collective and The Hangar Theatre Company
Outstanding Direction for a Large Theater
Awoye Timpo, “The Bluest Eye,” Huntington Theatre Company
Outstanding Direction for a Midsize Theater
David R. Gammons, “People, Places & Things,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
Outstanding Direction for a Small or Fringe Theater
Lyndsay Allyn Cox, “Tiny Beautiful Things,” Gloucester Stage Company
Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor
Anthony Pires Jr., “Passing Strange,” Moonbox Productions
Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actress
Whitney White, “Macbeth in Stride,” American Repertory Theater
Outstanding Performance by an Actor for a Large Theater
John Douglas Thompson, “The Tempest,” Commonwealth Shakespeare Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actress for a Large Theater
Shannon DeVido, “Teenage Dick,” Huntington Theatre Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actress for a Midsize Theater
Marianna Bassham, “People, Places & Things,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actor for a Midsize Theater
Sharmarke Yusuf, “BLKS,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actress for a Small or Fringe Theater
Celeste Oliva, “Tiny Beautiful Things,” Gloucester Stage Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actor for a Small or Fringe Theater
Malcolm Ingram, “Reparations,” Gloucester Stage Company
Outstanding New Script
“Black Beans Project,” by Melinda Lopez and Joél Pérez, Huntington Theatre Company
Outstanding Design for a Large Theater
“Witch,” Huntington Theatre Company (Scenic design by Luciana Stecconi; costume design by Chelsea Kerl; lighting design by Mary Louise Geiger; sound design by Melanie Chen Cole)
Outstanding Design for a Midsize Theater
“BLKS,” SpeakEasy Stage Company (Scenic design by Jenna McFarland Lord; costume design by Cassandra Queen; lighting design by Kat C. Zhou; sound design by Anna Drummond)
Outstanding Musical Direction
Julius LaFlamme, “Passing Strange,” Moonbox Productions
Outstanding Choreography
Jazelynn Goudy, “Once on This Island,” SpeakEasy Stage Company
