San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Recognizes Online Theatre With Certificates Of Commendation

In the spirit of continuing its mission to serve local theatres of all types and sizes by recognizing excellence and outstanding achievement in the field, the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle has announced the recipients of their Certificates of Commendation for "for especially courageous and distinguished work online during COVID-19's devastating forced closures."

"The COVID pandemic wreaked havoc on the theatre community, including the cancellation of our Excellence in Theatre Awards Gala", said Circle President Barry Willis. "Many companies turned to streaming as a way to continue practicing the art of theatre and engage their audiences. Several of our members suggested recognizing these efforts in some form. A committee was formed and tasked with facilitating this recognition."

The committee, consisting of members who had viewed a significant amount of streaming theatre, decided upon three categories of recognition: theatre companies, "full" original productions designed for streaming theatre, and solo artists and productions designed for streaming theatre.

Theatre companies receiving Certificates of Commendation for their efforts to keep theatre alive during the pandemic include Los Altos Stage Company, The Marsh, San Francisco Playhouse, TheatreFirst, and Theatre Rhinoceros.

Individual full productions receiving Certificates of Commendation were The Art of Sacrifice (Remote Theatre Company), Bird on a Tree Branch (Phoenix Theatre), God of Vengeance (TheatreFirst), and A Marriage (Yiddish Theatre Ensemble).

Solo theatre artists and productions recognized were John Fisher/Essential Services Project (Theatre Rhinoceros), Josh Kornbluth/Citizen Brain (Shotgun Players), Max Tachis/Fully Committed (Los Altos Stage Company), Jomar Tagatac/Hold These Truths (San Francisco Playhouse), and Lady Zen/What's in a Name (TheatreFirst).

The SFBATCC is a private 501(c)(6) non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and serving theatres of all types and sizes in the greater region by recognizing excellence and outstanding achievement in the field. Active since 1976, the Circle consists of reviewers covering theatre in all nine Bay Area counties across various media.

For more information, go to www.sfbatcc.org