The 2019 TBA Awards Acknowledge Excellence In Bay Area Theatre; Winners Announced Including PARADISE SQUARE and More!

Theatre Bay Area held its sixth-annual TBA Awards Celebration on Monday, November 4 at the Herbst Theatre. Featuring a "radically inclusive" pricing structure, over 800 people attended the event, exceeding the previous year's attendance by nearly 20%.

The three-tiered pricing structure made the event economically accessible to those who needed it and encouraged those who could afford higher prices to purchase at a higher level to help subsidize those more affordable seats. Plus, all seat locations were offered within this structure, allowing for the audience to not be sectioned off by economic status. TBA deputy director and executive producer of the awards celebration Dale Albright says, "It was our intention-in the spirit of 'We Rise By Lifting Others'-to not have price be a barrier for the people who are most excited about being there"

TBA executive director Brad Erickson added, "Having more finalists sitting in the orchestra section and having more people be able to attend in general contributed to a wonderful feeling of community that night."

Programs manager Kim Cohan commented, "We were ecstatic to see how the community reacted to the theme this year - lifting each other up through bursts of cheers during the ceremony and via social media, participating in a new stage manager appreciation sponsorship, and by opening the door for so many artists who were not able to attend the ceremony in previous years."

Other changes in this year's awards included the addition of "Outstanding Direction of a Specialty Production" and the removal of the "Outstanding Anthology Production," due to a lack of qualifying finalists. Anthology productions were included within the "Specialty Performance" category instead.

This is also the second year for gender-inclusive performance awards. A comparison of statistics from the 2018 and 2019 TBA Awards is below.

Comparative gender data for TBA Award finalists and recipients in performance categories.

Important note: Information about performers' gender identities was submitted by show producers.

Special Awards

LEGACY AWARDS

The TBA Legacy Awards honor extraordinary contributions to the Bay Area theatre community and reflect the recipients' body of work over time or a significant milestone in their professional journey.

Kevin Seaman, artist and arts advocate

Robert Kelley, outgoing artistic director of TheatreWorks Silicon Valley

Teatro Visión, San Jose-based theatre company focused on the Chicanx/Latinx experience

Rhe Artistic Fellowship

Chibueze Crouch

The purpose of the RHE Artistic Fellowship is to make a significant investment in an individual artist to allow them to take the next step in their career. This program is made possible through a generous grant from the RHE Charitable Foundation.

Charles Dean Award

Stacy Ross

The Charles Dean Award recognizes a Bay Area actor who has dedicated his or her career to Bay Area theatre. The award comes with a $10,000 cash prize endowed by the Robinson Family Fund for the Arts and is administered by Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Awardees are chosen by a panel of local theatre community adjudicators.

Winners

OUTSTANDING SCENIC DESIGN

Tier 1: Steven Dufala for HOME at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Ron Gasparinetti for Mothers and Sons at City Lights Theater Company

Tier 3: Kuo-Hao Lo for Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella at Foothill Music Theatre

OUTSTANDING PROPERTIES DESIGN

Tier 1: Roger Anderson for The Diary of Anne Frank at Center Repertory Company

Tier 2: Joan Howard for El Gato Ensombrerado at Bay Area Children's Theatre

Tier 3: Peet Cocke for American Psycho at Ray of Light Theatre

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN

Tier 1 (tie): T.J. Gerckens for Metamorphoses at Berkeley Repertory Theatre and Christopher Kuhl for HOME at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Eddy Hansen for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Tier 3: Joe D'Emilio for Hedwig and the Angry Inch at Ray of Light Theatre

OUSTANDING SOUND DESIGN

Tier 1: Mikaal Sulaiman for Fairview at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: George Psarras for Eurydice at City Lights Theater Company

Tier 3: Joe Winkler for The Nether at Left Edge Theatre

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN

Tier 1: Toni-Leslie James for Paradise Square: A New Musical at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Ruby Vixen and Mr. David for Red Scare on Sunset at New Conservatory Theatre Center

Tier 3: Ruby Vixen for Sex & the City Live: Cheating Curve/Freak Show at Oasis

CREATIVE SPECIALTIES

Tier 1: David Neumann, Choreography in a Play, for HOME at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Richard Turtletaub, Projections Design, for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Tier 3: Ronlin Foreman, Mask Design, for Tempting Fate at Antic in a Drain

OUTSTANDING FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY

Tier 1: Dave Maier for Oedipus el Rey at Magic Theatre

Tier 2: Dave Maier for West Side Story at Berkeley Playhouse

Tier 3: Dave Maier for Romeo and Juliet at Ubuntu Theater Project

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY

Tier 1: Bill T. Jones for Paradise Square: A New Musical at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Lee Ann Payne for Anything Goes at Hillbarn Theatre

Tier 3: Christine Chung for I, Too, Sing America at San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Co.

OUTSTANDING MUSIC DIRECTION

Tier 1: Eryn Allen for Once at 42nd Street Moon

Tier 2: Karl Pister for A Little Night Music at Lamplighters Music Theatre

Tier 3: Jake Gale for Spring Awakening at Marin Musical Theatre Company

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A SPECIALTY PRODUCTION

Jan Gilbert for How Does That Make You Feel? at Killing My Lobster

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL

Tier 1: Cindy Goldfield for Once at 42nd Street Moon

Tier 2: Joshua Marx for Sweeney Todd at Hillbarn Theatre

Tier 3: Jamie Yuen-Shore for I, Too, Sing America at San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Co.

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION OF A PLAY

Tier 1: Joy Carlin for Dancing Lessons at Center Repertory Company

Tier 2: Elizabeth Craven for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Tier 3: John Fisher for Action Hero at Theatre Rhinoceros

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE OF A SPECIALTY PRODUCTION

Circus Nonsense at Kinetic Arts Productions

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE OF A MUSICAL

Tier 1: Paradise Square: A New Musical at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

Tier 2: Sweeney Todd at Hillbarn Theatre

Tier 3: Lerner & Loewe's My Fair Lady at Sonoma Arts Live

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE OF A PLAY

Tier 1: Oedipus el Rey at Magic Theatre

Tier 2: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Tier 3: Twelfth Night at Arabian Shakespeare Festival

OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A SPECIALTY PRODUCTION

Angel Adedokun for Buffy the Vampire Slayer Live! Season 3 at Oasis

Jeremy Vik for My Friend Hafiz at Sweet Can Productions

OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A MUSICAL - 2 recipients per tier

Tier 1

Allison Rich for Mamma Mia! at San Jose Stage Company

Melissa WolfKlain for Dames at Sea at 42nd Street Moon

Tier 2

Dave J. Abrams for Hairspray at Bay Area Musicals

MARCEL SAUNDERS for Dreamgirls at Berkeley Playhouse

Tier 3

Dani Beem for Legally Blonde at Marin Musical Theatre Company

Abigail Campbell for Sister Act at Theatre Rhinoceros

OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A PLAY - 2 recipients per tier

Tier 1

Geoff Sobelle for HOME at Berkeley Repertory Theatre

BD Wong for The Great Leap at American Conservatory Theater

Tier 2

Natasha LaGrone for For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf at African-American Shakespeare Company

Martha Brigham for Cry It Out at Just Theater

Tier 3

Jennifer Le Blanc for Twelfth Night at Arabian Shakespeare Festival

Rebecca Pingree for Twelfth Night at Arabian Shakespeare Festival

OUSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A PRINCIPAL ROLE IN A SPECIALTY PRODUCTION - 2 recipients per tier

Allison Page for How Does That Make You Feel? at Killing My Lobster

Michael Phillis for Absolutely Fabulous: Live! at Oasis

OUSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A PRINCIPAL ROLE IN A MUSICAL - 2 recipients per tier

Tier 1

Cate Hayman for Cabaret at San Francisco Playhouse

Olivia Nice for Once at 42nd Street Moon

Tier 2

Caitlin McGinty for Anything Goes at Hillbarn Theatre

Heather Orth for Sweeney Todd at Hillbarn Theatre

Tier 3

Ella Ruth Francis for Next to Normal at Los Altos Stage Company

Anthone Jackson for Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn at South Bay Musical Theatre

OUSTANDING PERFORMERS IN A PRINCIPAL ROLE IN A PLAY - 2 recipients per tier

Tier 1

Steven A. Jones for August Wilson's How I Learned What I Learned at Marin Theatre Company

Craig Marker for Dancing Lessons at Center Repertory Company

Tier 2

Elijah Pinkman for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Stacy Ross for When We Were Young and Unafraid at Custom Made Theatre Co.

Tier 3

Evelyn Huynh for The White Snake at Silicon Valley Shakespeare

Dean Linnard for Hand to God at Left Edge Theatre

OUSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A SOLO PERFORMANCE

Dan Hoyle for Border People at The Marsh

OUTSTANDING WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL

Min Kahng, playwright, composer, lyricist for Gold: The Midas Musical at Bay Area Children's Theatre

OUTSTANDING WORLD PREMIERE PLAY

Ava Roy in collaboration with Nick Medina for Caesar Maximus at We Players

OUSTANDING SPECIALTY PRODUCTION

Circus Nonsense at Kinetic Arts Productions

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

Tier 1: August Wilson's How I Learned What I Learned at Marin Theatre Company

Tier 2: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Spreckels Theatre Company

Tier 3: Twelfth Night at Arabian Shakespeare Festival

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL

Tier 1: Once at 42nd Street Moon

Tier 2: Sweeney Todd at Hillbarn Theatre

Tier 3: I, Too, Sing America at San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Co.