40th Annual Drama Critics Circle Award Nominations Announced

The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle has announced its nominations and special awards for excellence in Los Angeles and Orange County theatre for the year 2008. The 40th Annual Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards ceremony will take place on Monday, March 16 at the El Portal Theatre, thanks to the generous donation of the El Portal's management. The theatre is located at 5269 Lankershim Blvd in North Hollywood. Tickets are $40; $5 off if purchased in advance via PayPal. The doors open at 6:30 p.m. for a catered reception (with no-host bar) and silent auction. The show commences at 7:30 p.m. Tickets to the Awards show can be reserved from the LADCC's website, at www.ladramacriticscircle.com

The show will be hosted by Vicki Lewis (TV's NewsRadio and Ovation award winner for Hotel C'est L'Amour), who will be joined by everyone's favorite LADCC Awards co-host, critic Wenzel Jones. Performers currently scheduled for the event, in addition to Ms. Lewis, include Jake Broder and Vanessa Claire Smith (Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara -- four nominations, including production); and members of the Troubadour Theater Company (As U2 Like It -- three nominations, including production). Confirmed presenters include former LADCC award recipients Jodi Carlisle (lead perfomance, A Hole in the Dark, and the Natalie Schafer Award) Mary Jo Catlett (lead performance, Come Back Little Sheba and featured performance, Philadelphia, Here I Come), Loretta Devine (featured performance, The Rabbit Foot), Maripat Donovan (lead performance, Late Nite Catechism), Betty Garrett (performance, Spoon River Anthology and Betty Garrett and Other Songs; and Lifetime Achievement), Ellen Geer (Margaret Harford Award, Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum), Jacqueline Kim (lead performance, Passion), Janet Miller (choreography, The Marvelous Wonderettes and Winter Wonderettes), and Camille Saviola (featured performance, The House of Bernarda Alba and Zorba).

Awards will be given in nineteen categories, honoring excellence in theatre over the past year. Five special awards will also be given. The LADCC is grateful to the organizations who have graciously agreed to sponsor our special awards this year.

The 2008 special award recipients are as follows:

The Ted Schmitt Award for the world premiere of an outstanding new play will be awarded to EM Lewis for Song of Extinction. The award is accompanied by an offer to publish and a $1000 check funded by Samuel French, Inc.

The Polly Warfield Award for an excellent season in a small to mid-size theater will be awarded to Sacred Fools Theater Company. The award is accompanied by a $500 check, funded by the Nederlander Organization.

The Angstrom Award for career achievement in lighting design will be awarded to Lisa D. Katz. The award is accompanied by a $1000 check, funded by Angstrom Lighting.

The Margaret Harford Award for sustained excellence in theater will be awarded to the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company.

The Joel Hirschhorn Award for outstanding achievement in musical theatre will be awarded to Nick DeGruccio.

The nominees for the 2008 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards are as follows:
Production

· Anything, Elephant Theatre Company at the Lillian Theatre
· As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company at the Falcon Theatre
· Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, A Noise Within
· Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, Havok Theatre Company at the Hudson Backstage Theatre
· Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
· Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company at Sacred Fools and at the Matrix Theatre

McCulloh Award for Revival (shows written between 1920 and 1980)

· Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
· Of Mice and Men, Theatre Banshee
· The Time of Your Life, Pacific Resident Theatre
Direction

· Jeremy Aldridge, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company at Sacred Fools and at the Matrix Theatre
· Ben Bradley, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· Heidi Helen Davis, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
· David Fofi, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company at the Lillian Theatre
· Ken Sawyer, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Writing

· Athol Fugard, Victory, the Fountain Theatre
· Alex Lyras and Robert McCaskill, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E at Theatre Asylum
· Tim McNeil, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company at the Lillian Theatre
Writing (Adaptation)

· Neil Bartlett, Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, A Noise Within
· Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus, Crime and Punishment, Actors Co-op
· Sean T. Cawelti with Miles Taber and the Rogues, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble at Bootleg Theater
Music Direction

· Andy Einhorn and David Loud, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
· Dennis Kaye, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company at Sacred Fools and at the Matrix Theatre
· Michael Paternostro, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company at Bootleg Theatre
Choreography

· Andy Blankenbuehler, 9 to 5: The Musical, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
· Christine Lakin, As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company at the Falcon Theatre
· Lee Martino, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company at Bootleg Theatre
· Lee Martino, All Shook Up, Musical Theatre West at the Carpenter Center

Musical Score

· Michael Friedman, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Center Theatre Group at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
· Dolly Parton, 9 to 5: The Musical, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
· Anna Waronker and Charlotte Caffey, additional lyrics by Jeffery Leonard Bowman, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
Lead Performance

· Chad Borden, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company at Bootleg Theatre
· Sean Branney, Of Mice and Men, Theatre Banshee
· Jake Broder, Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, Sacred Fools Theater Company at Sacred Fools and at the Matrix Theatre
· Joe Egender, He Asked for It, Theatre of NOTE
· Ellen Geer, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Theatricum Botanicum
· John Glover, Secrets of the Trade, the Black Dahlia Theatre
· Louis Jacobs, Anything, Elephant Theatre Company at the Lillian Theatre
· Judy Kaye, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre
· Katrina Lenk, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
· Libby West, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, International City Theatre
Featured Performance

· JD Cullum, Don Juan, A Noise Within
· Beth Kennedy, As U2 Like It, Troubadour Theater Company at the Falcon Theatre
· Sharon Lawrence, Orson's Shadow, Pasadena Playhouse
· Irene Roseen, Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
· Joseph Ruskin, The Last Seder, Ensemble Studio Theatre-LA and the Greenway Arts Alliance at the Greenway Court Theatre
· Jimmy Swan, Lovelace: A Rock Opera, Hayworth Theatre
· Adolphus Ward, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
Ensemble Performance

· Assassins, West Coast Ensemble at The El Centro Theatre
· Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, Havok Theatre Company at the Hudson Backstage Theatre
· Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· The Kentucky Cycle Part II, California Repertory Company at The Armory
· Stupid Kids, Celebration Theatre
Set Design

· Danny Cistone, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company at the Elephant Theatre Lab
· Joel Daavid, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble at Bootleg Theater
· Laura Fine Hawkes, Snake in the Grass, Salem K Theatre Company at The Matrix Theatre

Lighting Design

· Christian Epps, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· Derrick McDaniel, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company at the Elephant Theatre Lab
· Steven Young, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Havok Theatre Company at the Bootleg Theatre
· Steven Young, Thrill Me: The Leopold & Loeb Story, Havok Theatre Company at the Hudson Backstage Theatre
Costume Design

· Audrey Eisner, Fata Morgana, Pacific Resident Theatre
· Sharon McGunigle, Alice in One-Hit Wonderland 2: Through the Looking Glass, Troubadour Theater Company at the Falcon Theatre
· Nailia Aladdin Sanders, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· Shigeru Yaji, An Italian Straw Hat: A Vaudeville, South Coast Repertory
Sound Design

· David B. Marling, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· Ken Rich, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E at Theatre Asylum
· Eric Snodgrass, Snake in the Grass, Salem K Theatre Company at The Matrix Theatre
Solo Performance

· Alex Lyras, The Common Air, SoulArt and Elephant C.A.F.E at Theatre Asylum
· Nilaja Sun, No Child..., Center Theatre Group at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
CGI/Video

· Marc Rosenthal, Gem of the Ocean, Fountain Theatre
· BrIan White, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble at Bootleg Theater
Puppet and Mask Design

· Joyce Hutter and Patrick Rubio, The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch, Rogue Artists Ensemble at Bootleg Theater
Fight Choreography

· Ned Mochel, On An Average Day, VS. Theatre Company at the Elephant Theatre Lab

The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle was founded in 1969. It is dedicated to excellence in theatrical criticism, and to the encouragement and improvement of theatre in Greater Los Angeles.