Schreiber, Spring Awakening, Etc. Win Drama League Awards

The Drama League has announced the recipients of the 2006-07 Drama League Awards, which were presented at the 73rd Annual Drama League Awards Ceremony and Luncheon on Friday, May 11, 2007 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square.

The awards follow:

Distinguished Performance Award - Liev Schreiber
Distinguished Production of a Musical - Spring Awakening
Distinguished Production of a Play - The Coast of Utopia
Distinguished Revival of a Musical - Company
Distinguished Revival of a Play - Journey's End

Talk Radio's Liev Schreiber was awarded the Drama League's prestigious Distinguished Performance Award, an honor that can only occur once in the lifetime of any stage performer. Schreiber's win puts him in the exclusive company of other stage legends who have been previously honored with the Drama League's Distinguished Performance Award, including RoseMary Harris, Christopher Plummer, Sir Ian McKellen, Bernadette Peters, James Earl Jones, John Lithgow, Stockard Channing, Glenn Close, Bebe Neuwirth, Cherry Jones, Mary-Louise Parker, Liam Neeson, Harvey Fierstein, Norbert Leo Butz and Christine Ebersole, among others. The first Drama League Distinguished Performance Award was presented to actress Katharine Cornell in 1935, making it the oldest national theatre honor, predating the Tony Awards by twelve years. 

The Broadway transfers of Grey Gardens and The Little Dog Laughed were previously nominated for Drama League Awards during their earlier Off-Broadway runs in 2006, and are thus ineligible this season. The production of Deuce removed itself from consideration for this year's awards, and will be considered next season. The cut-off date for this season's Drama League Awards was Sunday, April 22. At Friday's ceremony, the Drama League also presented its three previously-announced annual specialty awards: John Kander and Fred Ebb (posthumously) received the Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theatre Award, Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening) received the Julia Hansen Award for Excellence in Directing, and the not-for-profit charity organization Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS received the Unique Contribution to the Theatre Award.

For more information on the Drama League, visit www.DramaLeague.org.

Photo of Liev Schreiber by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.