Juries were in a giving mood as a total of 15 productions shared in the top prizes at this year’s 2017 Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards.
Commonly referred to as The Jessies, the annual awards recognize the best of Vancouver’s professional theatre as chosen by peer juries. The awards are given out for large and small theatre, as well as theatre for young audiences.
Large Theatre
Splitting honours in the large theatre category, the Arts Club Theatre Company, Touchstone Theatre, and Bard on the Beach took home three trophies each.
The Arts Club production of Angels in America: Millennium Approaches took home the award for outstanding production, along with wins for Damien Atkins for outstanding performance in lead role, and Torquil Campbell and Alessandro Juliani for sound.
Touchstone also took three awards for its production of Brothel #9, including acting wins for Adele Noronha, and Laara Sadiq, while Drew Facey took home the trophy for outstanding set design.
Three was definitely the charm as well for Bard on the Beach which received three wins for Pericles, including John Webber and Carmen Alatorre for outstanding light and costume design respectively, and Lois Anderson for outstanding direction.
Valin Shinyei walked away with the award for supporting role in another Arts Club Theatre Company production, Billy Elliot: The Musical.
The award for significant artistic achievement went to Rohit Chokhani and Diwali Fest for outstanding work in expanding the diversification of Vancouver theatre through excellence in festival programming.
Small Theatre
The small theatre category was even more fragmented, with eight shows sharing eleven awards.
Realwheels Theatre led the pack with three awards for its production of Creeps, including an outstanding set design win for Lauchlin Johnston, and both outstanding production and significant artistic achievement awards.
Solo Collective received two awards for Katey Hoffman’s Green Lake, with trophies going to Alexandra Lainfiesta for outstanding actress in a lead role, and Rachel Peake for outstanding direction.
Carmen Altorre took home her second outstanding costume award of the night for work on the frank theatre company’s production of Walt Whitman’s Secret.
The remainder of the small theatre awards were divvied up among six other productions including outstanding performance by an actor in a lead role for Kyle Jespersen’s performance in Bleeding Heart Theatre’s The Fighting Season.
Ashley O’Connell took home the honours for outstanding actor in a supporting role in The Slamming Door Artist Collective’s Flare Path, while Yoshié Bancroft won for outstanding actress in a supporting role for the dream of passion productions & Excavation Theatre production of Ithaka.
Outstanding lighting design went to Itai Erdal for Alley Theatre’s O’wet/Lost Lagoon, and Troy Slocum took home the prize for the ITSAZOO Productions and Savage Society in association with Neworld Theatre & the Gateway Theatre of The Pipeline Project.
Theatre for Young Audiences
Three productions in the theatre for young audiences category shared five awards.
The Little Onion Puppet Company and Axis Theatre Company received two awards each.
In addition to an outstanding performance for Randi Edmundson and Jess Amy Shead, Freddie in the Neighbourhood also took the outstanding production award.
Frank Rader and Barbara Clayden took home trophies for outstanding design for Somebody Loves You, Mr Hatch and Chris McGregor was recognized for outstanding artistic creation for the same show.
Presentation House Theatre won for significant artistic achievement in this category for outstanding audience engagement with its production of Baking Time.
Additional Awards
Dorothy Dittrich took the award for outstanding original script went for the Arts Club Theatre Company production of The Piano Teacher, and Fight With a Stick took home the Georgia Straight Critic’s Choice Innovation Award for Revolutions.
Chris Gatchalian received the Vancouver NOW Representation and Inclusion Award For producing an extraordinary 2016/2017 season, and Bryan Searle and Patrice Savoie received this year’s patron of the arts award. Angie Descalzi was recognized with the Mary Phillips Prize for behind-the-scenes achievement.
Olivia Hutt was named most promising newcomer, and Jamie King as promising new director
Other awards were handed out to Marsha Sibthorpe (the GVPTA Career Achievement Award), Valerie Sing Turner (John Moffat & Larry Lillo Prize), Quelemia Sparrow (Sydney Risk Prize), and Sarah Marchant (Colin Campbell Award for Excellence in Technical Theatre).
A complete listing of winners follows:
Large Theatre
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role
Damien Atkins: Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, Arts Club Theatre Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Lead Role
Adele Noronha: Brothel #9, Touchstone Theatre
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Valin Shinyei: Billy Elliot: The Musical, Arts Club Theatre Company
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Laara Sadiq: Brothel #9, Touchstone Theatre
Outstanding Lighting Design
John Webber: Pericles, Bard on the Beach
Outstanding Set Design
Drew Facey: Brothel #9, Touchstone Theatre
Outstanding Costume Design
Carmen Alatorre: Pericles, Bard on the Beach
Outstanding Sound Design or Original Composition Large Theatre
Torquil Campbell and Alessandro Juliani: Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, Arts Club Theatre Company
Outstanding Direction
Lois Anderson: Pericles, Bard on the Beach
Outstanding Production
Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, Arts Club Theatre Company
Significant Artistic Achievement
Rohit Chokhani: Diwali Fest for outstanding work in expanding the diversification of Vancouver theatre through excellence in festival programming
Small Theatre
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Role
Kyle Jespersen: The Fighting Season, Bleeding Heart Theatre
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Lead Role
Alexandra Lainfiesta: Green Lake, Solo Collective
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Ashley O`Connell: Flare Path, The Slamming Door Artist Collective
Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Yoshié Bancroft: Ithaka, dream of passion productions & Excavation Theatre
Outstanding Lighting Design
Itai Erdal: O’wet/Lost Lagoon, Alley Theatre
Outstanding Set Design
Lauchlin Johnston: Creeps, Realwheels Theatre
Outstanding Costume Design
Carmen Alatorre: Walt Whitman’s Secret, the frank theatre company
Outstanding Sound Design or Original Composition
Troy Slocum: The Pipeline Project, ITSAZOO Productions and Savage Society in association with Neworld Theatre & the Gateway Theatre
Outstanding Direction
Rachel Peake: Green Lake, Solo Collective
Outstanding Production of a Play
Creeps, Realwheels Theatre
Significant Artistic Achievement
Paul Beckett, David Bloom, Genevieve Fleming, Brett Harris, David A. Kaye, Aaron Roderick and Adam Grant Warren: Creeps, Realwheels Theatre for outstanding ensemble performance
Theatre for Young Audiences
Outstanding Performance
Randi Edmundson and Jess Amy Shead: Freddie in the Neighbourhood, The Little Onion Puppet Company
Outstanding Design
Frank Rader and Barbara Clayden: Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch, Axis Theatre Company
Outstanding Artistic Creation
Chris McGregor: Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch, Axis Theatre Company
Outstanding Production
Freddie in the Neighbourhood, The Little Onion Puppet Company
Significant Artistic Achievement
Baking Time, Presentation House Theatre for outstanding audience engagement
Additional Awards
Outstanding Original Script
Dorothy Dittrich: The Piano Teacher, Arts Club Theatre Company
Georgia Straight Critic’s Choice Innovation Award
Revolutions, Fight with a Stick
Vancouver NOW Representation and Inclusion Award
Chris Gatchalian
Patron of the Arts Award
Bryan Searle and Patrice Savoie
Mary Phillips Prize for Behind-the-Scenes Achievement
Angie Descalzi
Sam Payne Award for the Most Promising Newcomer
Olivia Hutt
John Moffat & Larry Lillo Prize
Valerie Sing Turner
GVPTA Career Achievement Award
Marsha Sibthorpe
Sydney Risk Prize
Quelemia Sparrow
Colin Campbell Award for Excellence in Technical Theatre
Sarah Marchant
Ray Michal Prize for Most Promising New Director
Jamie King
Find out more about the Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards online at https://jessies.ca.