We’ve had six or seven designers on our roster of Theaterpersons of the Year, almost invariably because they had done something else besides. So I thought it would be nice to bring back the Charlotte Theater Awards with a surprise, and the best I could think of was to establish a Tech of the Year honor to give special recognition every year to the standout in our tech categories. We begin with lighting designer Hallie Gray, Charlotte’s busiest freelancer, whose excellence was a distinguishing factor in seven shows last year, including four of our Sweet 16. My special favorite was her minor key work in Blue, but there was rollicking good fun in her work on Evil Dead: The Musical and the Actor’s Theatre revival of Bat Boy. The glow always seems to come from the actors when Gray applies her artistry, but insiders know better.
This article appears in May 25-31, 2010.
