Review: Senior Editor DON GRIGWARE Gives His Annual Eddon Awards in Honor of the Best in Los Angeles Theatre for 2016
The Best in LA Theatre for 2016
There are undoubtedly other productions worthy of merit in 2016 which I did not cover. This list is based only on what I saw and reviewed.
(alphabetical listings; Equity, Equity-waiver & Non-Equity productions are mixed)
(artists performing outside LA may be included in performance categories)
No set, costume, technical awards. I leave that to the bigger awards and to the expertise of those who really know those fields inside out.
BEST PRODUCTIONS
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson
Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, Annenberg, Palm Springs
Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge
A Slight Ache - Group rep
A View from the Bridge - Mark Taper Forum
Baby Doll - Fountain Theatre
Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals
(The) Boy from Oz - Celebration Theatre
Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Disgraced - Mark Taper Forum (MTF)
(The) Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre
Evita - Cabrillo Music Theatre
(The) Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
(The) Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Co
(The) Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
(The) King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
(The) Little Mermaid - Cabrillo Music Theatre
Memphis - Musical Theatre West (MTW)
Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
Next to Normal - Triage Productions/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse
Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
(The) Play About the Baby - The Road Theatre Company
Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Sister Act - Musical Theatre West (MTW)
Summer and Smoke - Actors Co-op
Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista
Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage Theatre Company at Lankershim Arts Center
FAVORITE HOLIDAY SHOWS
A Cinderella Christmas - Pasadena Playhouse
Little Drummer Bowie - Troubadour Theatre Company at the Falcon Theatre
(The) MeshugaNutcracker! -Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University
White Christmas - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
UNIQUE or SPECIAL EVENTS
An Evening of Classic Broadway - Rockwell Table and Stage
Chris Isaacson Presents The Dreamgirls Reunion Concert in Honor of Its 35th Anniversary - Ford Amphitheatre
For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
LA Now and Then - LA City College
BEST DIRECTORS: PLAY
Don Amendolia - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS
Andre Barron - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Ivo Van Hove - A View from the Bridge - Ahmanson
Garry Hynes - The Beauty Queen of Leenane
Christian Lebano - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Simon Levy - Baby Doll - Fountain
Calvin Remsberg - Bach at Leipzig - Group rep
Kimberly Senior - Disgraced - MTF
BEST DIRECTORS: MUSICAL
Michael Arden - Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
Glenn Casale - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Kay Cole - I Only Have Eyes for You - Ricardo Montalban Theatre
Larry Raben - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista/ The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
William A. Reilly - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
Michael A. Shepperd - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Bartlett Sher - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
BEST ENSEMBLE: PLAY
Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge
A View from the Bridge - MTF
Baby Doll - Fountain
Bach at Leipzig - Group rep
Beauty Queen of Leenane - MTF
Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Disgraced - MTF
Hedda Gabler - Antaeus
Past Time - SacRed Fools at Lillian Theatre
The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe - LGBT Center
BEST ENSEMBLE: MUSICAL
The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - 3-D Theatricals
The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
Memphis - MTW
Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
MeshugaNutcracker! - Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University
Next to Normal - Triage/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse
Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg
Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatrere, Vista
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage at Lankershim Arts Center
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCES
Britt Adams/Laura Julian/Marsha Waterbury - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS
Sam Anderson - John Is a Father/The Play About the Baby - The Road
Andrew Bongiorno - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Ginna Carter - The Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre
Hari Dhillon - Disgraced - MTF
Nike Doukas - Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Company
Christian Durso/Katherine James - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Tanna Frederick/Robert Standley - Jack & Jill - Santa Monica Playhouse
Davis Gaines/Benjamin Schrader - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - MTW
J. Harrison Ghee - Kinky Boots - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Taylor Gilbert - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Jenna Gillespie/Stu James - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Betty Gilpin/Carlos Leal - Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse
Randy Harrison - Cabaret - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Michelle Holmes - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
Jose Llana/Laura Michelle Kelly - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Constance Jewell Lopez - Sister Act - MTW
Kevin Massey/John Rapson - A Gentelman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson
John McGinty - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Abby Mueller - Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages
Cassandra Murphy/Marc Ginsburg - Evita - Cabrillo
Ashley Park - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
Valerie Perri/Robert Yacko - Hello Dolly! - 3-D Theatricals
Michael Robb/Marcia Woodbury - A Slight Ache - Group rep
Phillipa Soo - Amelie - Ahmanson
French Stewart - Past Time - SacRed Fools
Amy Tolsky/Felicity Wren - Baby Oh Baby - Whitefire Theatre
Rachel York - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson
BEST FEATURED PERFORMANCES
Eric B. Anthony - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Richard Bermudez/Bets Malone - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista
Allison Blaize/Philip Orazio - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Betty Buckley - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson
Becky Gulsvig/Ben Fankhauser - Beautiful - Hollywood Pantages
Dennis Kyle - Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals
Hal Linden - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
Robert Mammana/Valerie Mahaffy/ James Snyder/John Vickery - Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Michael McKean - Father Comes Home from the Wars Parts 1, 2 and 3 - MTF
Bess Motta/Jessica Pennington/Kelly Lester/Michael Mittman - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Mary Gordon Murray - Sister Act - MTW
Debbie Prutsman - The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
BEST SOLO SHOWS
BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: MALE
Dennis McNeil - The Lounge at The Comedy and Magic Club - Hermosa Beach
Glenn Rosenblum Is The Musical Man - Rockwell Table and Stage
Kurtis Simmons Live - Rockwell Table and Stage
BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: FEMALE
Heather Lundstedt - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Renee Marino - I Am Me Because of Three - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Melba Moore - Forever Moore - Catalina Jazz Club
Kerry O'Malley/Mary Callanan - Everything's Coming Up Rosie - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Maggie Randolph - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Lyn Stanley - Interludes Release Party at La Cicada Club
Pat Whiteman/Harriet Schock - E Spot Lounge
Kathleen Wilhoite's Living Room - E Spot Lounge
BEST CDs
The Boobe Sisters Greatest Hits Volume One
The Doris Day Project - Scott Dreier
BEST BOOK
The Carol Burnett Show Companion: So Glad We Had This Time - Wesley Hyatt - BearManor Media
BEST THEATRICAL SEASON
Cabrillo Music Theatre, Thousand Oaks
Musical Theatre West (MTW), Long Beach
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