Stoneham Theatre Nominated for Six IRNE Awards

Stoneham Theatre has been nominated for six awards by the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE). The IRNE Awards recognize the work of playwrights, designers, actors, choreographers, and directors of small, mid-size, and fringe theatre companies throughout New England.

Stoneham Theatre's February-March 2014 production of Something's Afoot takes the lead with three IRNE Award nominations. Jenna McFarland Lord has been nominated for Best Set Design, Margaret Ann Brady (Miss Tweed) was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical, and John Davin (Flint) was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical. Another Stoneham nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical goes to Thomas Derrah for his performance as Uncle Fester in The Addams Family: A New Musical in October 2014. Karen MacDonald has been nominated for Best Actress in a Drama for her spellbinding performance as Sister Aloysius in Doubt, A Parable this past September. young company actress Brigit Smith has received a nomination for Promising Performance by a Young Actor for her role in May-June 2014 as Mary Lennox in The Secret Garden.

The Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Awards were founded by Beverly Creasey of the Journal Newspapers and Larry Stark of the Theater Mirror in 1997. The IRNE Awards recognize the extraordinary wealth of talent in the Boston theatre community.

The IRNE reviewers include: Sheila Barth, Jules Becker, Al Chase, Michael Cox, Jack Craib, Beverly Creasey, Cathy Scrizzi Driscoll*, Shirley Esthimer*, Rich Fahey, Guy Giampapa, Nancy Grossman, Mike Hoban, Robert Israel, Beatrice Lee, and Larry Stark. *Denotes non-voting member

The IRNE Awards Ceremony is a free event that will be held at the Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts on Monday, April 13, 2015 at 7:30pm. For more information, visit www.ireneawards.com.

About Stoneham Theatre: Now in its 15th season of live, professional theatre in Stoneham, MA, the mission of Stoneham Theatre is to keep the art of theatre and dramatic education thriving in the suburbs by providing the best in professional plays, musicals, and entertainment. Each season, we produce six Mainstage shows, present a series of concerts and special events, and run year-round classes, lessons, and fully staged productions through the young company for students in grades 1-12. For more information, visit www.stonehamtheatre.org.