In a year when some bemoaned the drooping of Charlotte’s fringe theater scene – and the paralysis of Charlotte Rep – there was actually an unprecedented amount of theater activity in the Queen City. Keeping up with all that was going on in 2004 meant attending over 75 productions and special events. We’ll further winnow down the best of the best when we announce CL’s 18th Annual Charlotte Theater Awards. Meanwhile, gaze at the bounty of quality stage performances, productions and theatercraft that Charlotte theatergoers witnessed last year.
For a complete list of nominees, go to charlotte.creativeloafing.com.
BEST ACTRESS, MUSICAL
Ashley Dove — Bat Boy: The Musical (Shelley Parker)
Heather Powell — I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change! (Various)
Kelly Chapin Schmidt — West Side Story (Maria)
Leslie Shires — Chicago (Roxie Hart)
Lisa Smith — Cabaret (Sally Bowles)
Melissa Roberge — Nuncrackers (Sister Mary Robert Anne)
Susan Roberts Knowlson — The Last Five Years (Cathy Hyatt)
BEST ACTOR, MUSICAL
Bob Walker — Bat Boy: The Musical (Bat Boy)
Buddy Hammonds — Honk, Jr. (Ugly)
Dana Alderman — You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Charlie Brown)
Patrick Brandt — I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change! (Various)
Patrick O’Herron — Chicago (Billy Flynn)
Patrick Ratchford — The Last Five Years (Jamie Wallerstein), Cabaret (Cliff Bradshaw)
Travis Osley — Pageant (Miss West Coast)
BEST DIRECTOR, MUSICAL
Alan Poindexter — Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy
Billy Ensley — Bat Boy: The Musical
Glenn T. Griffin — Pageant
Linda Booth — Honk, Jr.
Michael Edwards — I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!
Steve Umberger — Cabaret
Tom Hollis — Chicago
BEST CONDUCTOR/MUSIC DIRECTOR
Bill Congdon — She Loves Me
Craig Spradley — Bat Boy: The Musical
Drina Keen — Chicago
Ginger G. Wyrick and Amy Boger Morris — West Side Story
Jeana Neal Borman — Honk, Jr., The Last Five Years
John Coffey — Cabaret
Scott R. McKenzie — Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy; I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!
BEST CHOREOGRAPHER
Annette Saunders & Rebecca Tomaszewski — Psycho Beach Party
Billy Ensley — Bat Boy: The Musical
Debra Gillingham — Annie
Eddie Mabry — Chicago, West Side Story
Linda Booth — Honk, Jr., Cabaret
Ron Chisholm — Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy
Stuart Williams and Kathy Caradine — Pageant
BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY
Cat Zeggert — Wonder of the World (Cass)
Donna Scott — Rumors (Claire Gantz)
Elizabeth Wells Berkes — Barefoot in the Park (Corie Bratter)
Emily Van Dyke — Psycho Beach Party (Florence “Chicklet” Forrest)
Greta Marie Zandstra — Bright Ideas (Genevra Bradley)
Leslie Beckham — Laughing Wild (Woman)
Nikki Adkins — If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (The Mouse)
BEST ACTOR, COMEDY
Brian Robinson — Barefoot in the Park (Paul Bratter)
Lee Thomas — Wonder of the World (Kip)
Marshall Case — Play about the Baby (Man)
Michael Nester — Bright Ideas (Joshua Bradley)
Michael Simmons — Laughing Wild (Man)
Steven Ivey — If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (The Boy)
Tony Wright — White Man Dancing (Stuart)
BEST DIRECTOR, COMEDY
Chip Decker — Wonder of the World, Bright Ideas
Jill Bloede — Madeline
Jim Yost — Play About the Baby, Psycho Beach Party
Joanna Gerdy — If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, ‘Tis the Season
Lon Bumgarner — Betty’s Summer Vacation
Terry Loughlin — Over the River and Through the Woods
TJ Derham — Laughing Wild
BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA
Catherine Smith — Copenhagen (Margerethe Bohr)
Christy K. Basa — Our Country’s Good (Liz Morden/Lt. Will Dawes)
Cody Harding — Hansel & Gretel (Gretel), The Lesson (The Pupil)
Gloria King — Collected Stories (Ruth Steiner)
Joy Blythe — Wiley & The Hairy Man (Wiley)
Laura Depta — Cyrano de Bergerac (Cyrano)
Pamela Nichols Galle — 1963 (Sara Jane Chandler)
Tara MacMullen — Mud (Mae)
BEST ACTOR, DRAMA
Brian Robinson — Take Me Out (Kippy Sunderstrom)
Carl McIntyre — 1963 (Ezra Chandler)
Jeremy Davis — Take Me Out (Darren Lemming)
Mark Scarboro — Lobby Hero (Jeff)
Martin Thompson — Art (Serge)
Peter Smeal — Lonely Planet (Carl)
Simon Donoghue — Copenhagen (Niels Bohr)
Tony Wright — Glengarry Glen Ross (Richard Roma)
BEST DIRECTOR, DRAMA
Alan Poindexter — Oedipus Rex, Hansel & Gretel
Anthony Cerrato — Mud
Dave Mowers — Art
Dennis Delamar — A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas
Jim Yost — 1963
Joanna Gerdy — Wiley & The Hairy Man
Lon Bumgarner — Lobby Hero, Take Me Out
Matt Cosper — The Lesson
BEST LIGHTING DESIGNER
Barbara Berry — Lonely Planet
Eric Winkenwerder — Oedipus Rex, Madeline, Art, Cabaret, Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy
Hallie Gray — Bat Boy: The Musical, Wonder of the World, Take Me Out, Bright Ideas
John Hartness — Unidentified Human Remains
John Hartness and Emily Eudy — Pageant
Michael Simmons — A Tree With Arms
Rita AmirAhmadi — Play About the Baby, Boy Gets Girl, Collected Stories, Picasso at the Lapin Agile
Todd O. Wren — I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!
BEST SET DESIGNER
Brian Ruggaber — Cyrano de Bergerac, Collected Stories
Chip Decker — Take Me Out, Bright Ideas
George Gray — 1963
Heather Mitchell and Michael R. Simmons — The Faculty Room
Jim Gloster — Over the River and Through the Woods
Joe Gardner — Barefoot in the Park
Kevin Raper — Madeline
Peter Smeal — Lonely Planet
BEST SOUND DESIGNER/COMPOSER
Alan Kaufman — Collected Stories
Anthony Proctor — Scratchy Scratcherton’s Revenge
Dean Kluesner/Michael Eld — The Faculty Room
Gary Sivak — Oedipus Rex, Hansel & Gretel, Wiley & The Hairy Man, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
Jeff Murdock — A Streetcar Named Desire
Mons Venera — Lenny’s Back
T.J. Derham/Michael Simmons — Laughing Wild
The Aqualads — Psycho Beach Party
BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS
Andy Boswell — Cyrano de Bergerac (Cyrano Prosthetics)
Drew Allison — Hansel & Gretel (Puppet Design)
James Dracy — Omega (Soma Sheep)
Johann Stegmeir & Kimberly Ashton — Oedipus Rex (Bleeding Walls)
Johann Stegmeir & Peter Smeal — Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy (The Horse)
Michael Simmons — Bat Boy: The Musical (Make-Up)
Mike Snow and Chris Brown — Wonder of the World (Helicopter Platform)
Stephen Clifford — Bat Boy: The Musical (The Puppet)
Stuart Williams — Pageant (Make-Up)
BEST COSTUME DESIGNER
Amy Akerblom — The Lesson
Annie-Laurie Wheat — Bat Boy: The Musical, Take Me Out
Bob Croghan — Hansel & Gretel, A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas
Courtney Scott — Madeline, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
Emily Stephens and Jamey Varnadore — Honk, Jr.
Johann Stegmeir — Oedipus Rex
Rebecca Cairns — Cabaret, Picasso at the Lapin Agile
Stuart Williams, Paul Snatic, and Mardi Gras Costumes — Pageant
Suzy Hartness — Our Country’s Good, A Streetcar Named Desire
BEST ORIGINAL SHOW
Scratchy Scratcherton’s Revenge by Stan Peal
Omega by Tony Wright
1963 by Judy Simpson Cook
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Austin Herring — Take Me Out (Shane Mungitt)
Brett Gentile — Lobby Hero (Bill), Betty’s Summer Vacation (Keith), Bright Ideas (Ross, Coach Angus, etc.)
Emily Hudson — A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Jeremy Davis — Take Me Out (Darren Lemming)
Joe Rux — Scratchy Scratcherton’s Revenge (Sticks Pickerwick), Take Me Out (Mason Marzak), Lifegame
Kathryn Stamas — Cabaret (Fraulein Kost)
Lamont Cullen Hulley — Pageant (Miss Industrial Northeast)
Laurie Riffe — A Streetcar Named Desire (Blanche DuBois)
Sierra Santana — Psycho Beach Party (Bettina Barnes)
BEST MUSICAL
Bat Boy: The Musical — Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte
Cabaret — Theatre Charlotte
Honk, Jr. — CPCC Summer Theatre
I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change! — Charlotte Rep
Pageant — Off—Tryon Theatre Company
Prince Brat and the Whipping Boy — Children’s Theatre
The Last Five Years — CPCC Summer Theatre
BEST COMEDY
Bright Ideas — Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie — Children’s Theatre of Charlotte
Laughing Wild — Carolina Actors Studio Theatre
Over the River and Through the Woods — Charlotte Repertory Theatre
Play About the Baby — BareBones Theatre Group
Psycho Beach Party — BareBones Theatre Group
Wonder of the World — Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte
BEST DRAMA
A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas — Children’s Theatre
Art — Charlotte Repertory Theatre
Lobby Hero — Actor’s Theatre
Lonely Planet — BareBones Theatre Group
Mud — The Farm Theatre
Oedipus Rex — Children’s Theatre
Take Me Out — Actor’s Theatre
The Lesson — The Farm Theatre
THEATERPERSON OF THE YEAR
Anne Lambert, Chip Decker, Dennis Delamar, Douglas Welton, Jill Bloede, Joanna Gerdy, Keith Martin, Laura Depta, Lon Bumgarner, Matt Cosper, Michael Simmons, Nicia Carla, Pamela Nichols Galle, Peter Smeal, Tom Gabbard
This article appears in Mar 2-8, 2005.
