Nobody gets into theater for the awards. But it sure is a nice feather in the cap to be recognized.
Theater groups from around New Hampshire will gather at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord on Saturday for the 17th annual New Hampshire Theatre Alliance awards. It’s a time to celebrate the 2018 season and honor those who continue to make the Granite State a hotbed for on-stage performances.
And both the Peterborough Players and Andy’s Summer Playhouse have landed on the list of nominees for this year’s awards night.
The awards are divided into three categories: professional, community and youth theater. The list includes honors for drama/comedy and musical, with awards for best production, best director, best actor and actress (and supporting actor and actress), musical direction, choreography, as well scenic, lighting, sound and costume design.
The top five grades in professional and youth productions and top 10 for community theater were released a few weeks ago, with the top three to be revealed on Saturday before the winners are announced.
Both the Players and Andy’s chose two shows to be judged and adjudicators, made up of members from theater groups associated with the NHTA, were asked to take in a production and grade it based on an outlined list of criteria. A number of factors go into the selection of which shows will be adjudicated.
“When we do a musical that’s always one of them,” said Players Managing Director Keith Stevens.
And large cast shows usually helps to make the other choice an easier one.
“So we can have nominees in all the acting categories,” Stevens added.
The Players selected “An Inspector Calls” and “The Drowsy Chaperone” for consideration, and going off the list of nominations, it’s safe to say the adjudicators enjoyed what was crafted on the stage.
“We were very happy with how both shows went,” Stevens said. “It’s really about doing the best shows we can do, but it’s a nice recognition of the quality work that you do.”
Both shows are up for best production, with “An Inspector Calls” in the professional drama/comedy category and “The Drowsy Chaperone” up for musical. Stevens was nominated for best director for “An Inspector Calls,” while Artistic Director Gus Kaikkonen was tabbed for his direction of “The Drowsy Chaperone,” along with best actor for his role of Inspector Goole and scenic design for “An Inspector Calls.”
The Players also had nominees for best actress, supporting actor and actress, as well as all the behind-the-scenes categories.
“Theater is a team effort. This is not a solo enterprise here,” Stevens said.
And Stevens doesn’t look at the NHTA awards as a competition.
“It’s more about what shows we are doing and how they fit the criteria for having the most potential nominees,” Stevens said.
For Andy’s Managing Artistic Director Jared Mezzocchi, the NHTA awards was about narrowing down the season’s four shows to two for consideration.
From this season, “The Arrival” and “Froggy” were selected for judging and Mezzocchi couldn’t be more pleased with how Andy’s is represented in the list of nominees.
“We had our eyes on the two projects as we were incubating them,” Mezzocchi said.
“The Arrival” is based on the 2006 wordless book by Shaun Tan about the experience of a father emigrating to a new land. It was adapted to an original script that didn’t have any dialogue for the first hour. It received nominations for best youth production, best director, best actor, supporting actor, along with scenic, costume, lighting and sound design.
“We all believed it would be a pretty special piece,” Mezzocchi said. “And being recognized is almost more important that winning.”
“Froggy” landed a pair of nominations for lighting and sound design, with Peter Leibold on the list in the lighting design category for both.
For Mezzocchi, who is going into his fourth year as artistic director, has spent 10 years directing with Andy’s and was an Andy’s kid from 1996 to 2002, it’s just nice to see all the hard work pay off with some recognition.
“It means a tremendous amount,” Mezzocchi said. “The awards are not the end all be all, but it’s a recognition that you’re part of the larger theater community. To be a part of the nominations puts us in the conversation with all those other great theater groups.”
In addition to the announcement of all the winners, the awards night also includes special performances from six theater groups, special awards and three numbers from a performance ensemble.
For more information, visit facebook.com/NHTheatreAlliance. For tickets, visit ccanh.com/events/new-hampshire-theatre-awards-2/
“An Inspector Calls,” Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
“The Drowsy Chaperone,” Professional Production of a Musical
Keith Stevens, “An Inspector Calls,” Director of a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Gus Kaikkonen, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Director of a Professional Production of a Musical
Rebecca Brinkley as Sheila Birling, “An Inspector Calls,” Actress in a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Elyse Collier as Janet Van De Graaff, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Actress in a Professional Production of a Musical
Gus Kaikkonen as Inspector Goole, “An Inspector Calls,” Actor in a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Kraig Swartz as Man In Chair, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Actor in a Professional Production of a Musical
Jack Koenig as Arthur Birling, “An Inspector Calls,” Supporting Actor in a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Marc LeVasseur as Gerald Croft, “An Inspector Calls,” Supporting Actor in a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Tom Frey as Aldolpho, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Supporting Actor in a Professional Production of a Musical
Joe Bigelow as Robert Martin, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Supporting Actor in a Professional Production of a Musical
Dee Nelson as Sybil Birling, “An Inspector Calls,” Supporting Actress in a Professional Production of a Drama/Comedy
Bridget Beirne as The Drowsy Chaperone, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Supporting Actress in a Professional Production of a Musical
Thomas Martin, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Musical Direction of a Professional Production
Charles Morgan, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Scenic Design for a Professional Production
Charles Morgan & Gus Kaikkonen, “An Inspector Calls,” Scenic Design for a Professional Production
F. Mitchell Dana, “An Inspector Calls,” Lighting Design for a Professional Production
Kevin Frazier, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Lighting Design for a Professional Production
Kirby Ward, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Choreography for a Professional Production
Anthony Paul-Cavaretta, “An Inspector Calls,” Costume Design for a Professional Production
Elizabeth Rugg-Hinds, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Costume Design for a Professional Production
CJ Leake & Kevin Frazier, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Sound Design for a Professional Production
“The Arrival,” Youth Production
Colette Krogol & Matt Reeves, “The Arrival,” Director of a Community Production of a Drama/Comedy
Siraj Husainy as Father, “The Arrival,” Actor in a Youth Production
Aidan Harper as Inspector, “The Arrival,” Supporting Actor in a Youth Production
Sanaya Forbes, “The Arrival,” Scenic Design for a Community Production
Peter Leibold, “The Arrival,” Lighting Design for a Community Production
Peter Leibold, “Froggy,” Lighting Design for a Community Production
Betsy Rugg-Hinds, “The Arrival,” Costume Design for a Community Production
Dylan Glatthorn, “The Arrival,” Sound Design for a Community Production
Nathan Leigh, “Froggy,” Sound Design for a Community Production