A total of 53 productions are up for awards at the 38th Annual Jessie Awards, as the nominations were revealed in an online ceremony today hosted by mother-daughter duo Amanda Sum and Linda Leung.
Announced virtually for the first time in its history due to COVID-19 physical distancing requirements, the Jessies are Vancouver’s equivalent to the Tony Awards, recognizing excellence in Vancouver’s professional theatre, as chosen by peer juries.
In an earlier media release, The Jessie Richardson Award Society president Sandra Herd acknowledged the challenges the theatre community faced this year and its impact on nominations.
“Sadly, some productions were untimely interrupted, and others left unsung. But nonetheless, we enthusiastically celebrate the accomplishments of this past season as we look optimistically forward to the future and the inevitable return of our beloved live theatre,” she says.
Divided into three groups, the awards are presented to the best in large and small theatre, theatre for young audiences, and a number of other awards.
The winners will be announced during a live stream ceremony from the Firehall Arts Centre on June 29.
In the large theatre category, a total of 23 productions were recognized. The Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre production of Kuroko scored the most with a total of nine nominations. The Arts Club Theatre Company received a total of twelve nominations over four shows and another eleven nominations for five of its co-productions last year. The Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival scored twelve nominations for three of its four productions in 2019 and Pacific Theatre earned nine.
In the small theatre category, a total of 20 productions were recognized, with both the Slamming Door Artist Collective production of The Sea and The Search Party’s The Father walking away with the most nominations at eight each.
In the Theatre for Young Audiences category, Carousel Theatre for Young People and Axis Theatre Company tied with four nominations each for their production of Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan and Th’owxiya: The Hungry Feast Dish respectively.
There will also be a number of additional awards and prizes presented at the award ceremony. A complete list of nominees follows:
LARGE THEATRE
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE
| Darrell Dennis | Inheritance: A Pick-The-Path Experience | Alley Theatre and Touchstone Theatre (in association with Vancouver Moving Theatre and Community Partnership with Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre) |
| Charlie Gallant | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Charlie Gallant | Shakespeare in Love | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Robert Salvador | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Todd Thomson | The Wedding Party | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Prairie Theatre Exchange) |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE
| Celia Aloma | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Deena Aziz | A Thousand Splendid Suns | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
| Erla Faye Forsyth | The Cake | Pacific Theatre |
| Moya O’Connell | Coriolanus | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Anita Wittenberg | Mother of the Maid | Pacific Theatre |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
| Sebastien Archibald | House and Home | Firehall Arts Centre |
| Andrew McNee | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Anthony Santiago | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Lou Ticzon | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| John Ullyatt | Matilda | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Citadel Theatre & Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
| Rebecca deBoer | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Tess Degenstein | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Veenesh Dubois | All’s Well That Ends Well | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Emma Slipp | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Colleen Wheeler | Coriolanus | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
| Alan Brodie | Coriolanus | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Itai Erdal | Skyborn: A Land Reclamation Odyssey | Savage Society (presented by The Cultch) |
| Gerald King | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Parjad Sharifi | Cipher | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Vertigo Theatre) |
| Robert Wierzel & Andrew F. Griffin | A Thousand Splendid Suns | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
| Drew Facey | Cost of Living | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Citadel Theatre) |
| Ted Roberts | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Ted Roberts | Birds and the Bees | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Cory Sincennes | Matilda | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Citadel Theatre & Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
| Sophie Tang | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
| Carmen Alatorre | All’s Well That Ends Well | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Mara Gottler | Taming of the Shrew | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Christine Reimer | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Christine Reimer | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Cory Sincennes | Shakespeare in Love | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN OR ORIGINAL COMPOSITION
| Rick Colhoun | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Sammie Hatch | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Alessandro Juliani | Coriolanus | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Alessandro Juliani | The Great Leap | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Ruby Singh | All’s Well That Ends Well | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
OUTSTANDING DIRECTION
| Scott Bellis | Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Ashlie Corcoran | Cost of Living | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Citadel Theatre) |
| Ian Farthing | Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Dean Paul Gibson | Coriolanus | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Amiel Gladstone | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION – PLAY
| A Thousand Splendid Suns | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
| Best of Enemies | Pacific Theatre |
| Inheritance: A Pick-The-Path Experience | Alley Theatre and Touchstone Theatre (in association with Vancouver Moving Theatre and Community Partnership with Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre) |
| Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Noises Off | Arts Club Theatre Company |
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION – MUSICAL
| Holiday at the Elbow Room Café | Zee Zee Theatre & The Cultch |
| Matilda | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Citadel Theatre & Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) |
| Sound of Music | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Talking Sex on Sunday | Firehall Arts Centre |
SIGNIFICANT ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT
| Outstanding Innovative and Immersive Storytelling | Alley Theatre and Touchstone Theatre | Inheritance: A Pick-The-Path Experience | Alley Theatre and Touchstone Theatre (in association with Vancouver Moving Theatre and Community Partnership with Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre) |
| Outstanding Projection Design | Chimerik 似不像 | The Great Leap | Arts Club Theatre Company |
| Outstanding Video and Projection Design | Emily Soussana, Chief Lady Bird, Chrystal Sparrow, & Carrielynn Victor | Skyborn: A Land Reclamation Odyssey | Savage Society (presented by The Cultch) |
| Outstanding Choreography | Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg | Cipher | Arts Club Theatre Company (in partnership with Vertigo Theatre) |
| Outstanding Audience Engagement Through the Use of Technology | Théâtre la Seizième | Le NoShow Vancouver | Théâtre la Seizième (in partnership with Théâtre DuBunker and le Collectif Nous Sommes ici (Québec) |
SMALL THEATRE
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE
| Paul Herbert | Born Yesterday | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| Peter Jorgensen | Herringbone | Patrick Street Productions |
| Kevin McNulty | The Father | The Search Party |
| David Nykl | Superior Donuts | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| Alec Santos | Lungs | Saint FiFi Collective |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE
| Lois Anderson | Anna Bella Eema | Sol Theatre Collective |
| Jillian Fargey | The Father | The Search Party |
| Genevieve Fleming | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Luisa Jojic | Herringbone | Patrick Street Productions |
| Fei Ren | Lungs | Saint FiFi Collective |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
| Stephen Aberle | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Chris Francisque | Superior Donuts | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| Massimo Frau | Zastrozzi: The Master of Discipline | Star & Moon Productions |
| Darcey Johnson | The Drawer Boy | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| John Murphy | Body Awareness | Mitch and Murray Productions |
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
| Eileen Barrett | Escaped Alone | Western Gold Theatre |
| Bethany Brown | Disgraced | Vagrant Players Theatre Society |
| Alexis Kellum-Creer | Born Yesterday | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| Elizabeth Kirkland | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Adriana Ravalli | The Great Canadian Porno: The Musical | Frenzied Millennial Collective |
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
| Celeste English | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Itai Erdal | The Father | The Search Party |
| Neil Griffith | Deep into Darkness | Third Wheel Productions |
| Sophie Tang | Chicken Girl | rice & beans theatre (in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre) |
| John Webber | Escaped Alone | Western Gold Theatre |
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
| Shizuka Kai | Chicken Girl | rice & beans theatre (in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre) |
| Amir Ofek | The Father | The Search Party |
| Sandy Margaret | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Ariel Slack | Superior Donuts | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| John R. Taylor | Deep into Darkness | Third Wheel Productions |
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
| C.S. Fergusson-Vaux | Mx | Lili Robinson (in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre) |
| Hilary Jardine | Zastrozzi: The Master of Discipline | Star & Moon Productions |
| Jessica Oostergo | The Father | The Search Party |
| Cheyenne Mabberley & Chantal Short | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Christina Sinosich & Donnie Tejani | Company | Raincity Theatre |
OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN OR ORIGINAL COMPOSITION
| Owen Belton | The Father | The Search Party |
| Rick Colhoun | Frankenstein: Lost in Darkness | Wireless Wings Radio Ensemble |
| Rick Colhoun | Superior Donuts | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| Angelo Moroni | Hello | Theatre Terrific Society |
| Joelysa Pankanea | Anna Bella Eema | Sol Theatre Collective |
OUTSTANDING DIRECTION
| Chris Adams | Company | Raincity Theatre |
| Kayla Dunbar | Herringbone | Patrick Street Productions |
| Tamara McCarthy | The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
| Mindy Parfitt | The Father | The Search Party |
| Christy Webb | Lungs | Saint FiFi Collective |
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION – PLAY
| Anna Bella Eema | Sol Theatre Collective |
| Superior Donuts | Ensemble Theatre Company |
| The Father | The Search Party |
| The Sea | Slamming Door Artist Collective |
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION – MUSICAL
| Company | Raincity Theatre |
| Herringbone | Patrick Street Productions |
SIGNIFICANT ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT
| Outstanding ensemble performance | Caitlin Clugston, Graham Coffeng, Nick Fontaine, Janet Gigliotti, Alex Gullason, Warren Kimmel, Steve Maddock, Jennie Neumann, Anthony Santiago, Madeleine Suddaby, Jennifer Suratos, Lindsay Ann Warnock, Jonathan Winsby, Katey Wright |
Company | Raincity Theatre |
| Outstanding transformation of space and audience immersion | n/a | Deep into Darkness | Third Wheel Productions |
| Outstanding musical direction | Sean Bayntun | Herringbone | Patrick Street Productions |
| Outstanding integrity in casting | n/a | Tran Scripts, Part I: The Women | Zee Zee Theatre and The Frank Theatre (in partnership with Firehall Arts Centre) |
THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE
| Scott Button | New Canadian Kid | Green Thumb Theatre |
| Paige Fraser | What If | Green Thumb Theatre |
| Marlene Ginader | Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
| Kelli Ogmundson | Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
| Chelsea Rose | Th’owxiya: The Hungry Feast Dish | Axis Theatre Company |
OUTSTANDING DESIGN
| Jay Dodge | Video Design | Iron Peggy | Vancouver International Children’s Festival and Boca del Lupo |
| Jay Havens | Set Design | Th’owxiya: The Hungry Feast Dish | Axis Theatre Company |
| Shizuka Kai | Set Design | Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
| Shizuka Kai | Set Design | Iron Peggy | Vancouver International Children’s Festival and Boca del Lupo |
| Kiara Lawson | Costume Design | Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
OUTSTANDING ARTISTIC CREATION
| Steve Charles | Musical Direction | Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
| Ian Harmon | Direction | Love you Forever and More Munsch | Beach House Theatre |
| Sherry Yoon | Direction | Iron Peggy | Vancouver International Children’s Festival and Boca del Lupo |
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION
| Bad Hats Theatre’s Peter Pan | Carousel Theatre for Young People |
| Love You Forever and More Munsch | Beach House Theatre |
| Iron Peggy | Vancouver International Children’s Festival and Boca del Lupo |
| Th’owxiya: The Hungry Feast Dish | Axis Theatre Company |
SIGNIFICANT ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT
| Outstanding stage management | Jillian Perry | Th’owxiya: The Hungry Feast Dish | Axis Theatre Company |
ADDITIONAL AWARDS
OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SCRIPT
| Jan Derbyshire | Certified | Touchstone Theatre |
| Derek Chan | Chicken Girl | rice & beans theatre (in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre) |
| Tetsuro Shigematsu | Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Deborah Vogt | Big Sister | Rapid Pitch Productions |
CRITICS’ CHOICE INNOVATION AWARD
| All’s Well That Ends Well | Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival |
| Anywhere But Here | Electric Company Theatre (in association with Playwrights Theatre Centre) |
| Certified | Touchstone Theatre |
| Kuroko | Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre |
| Take D Milk, Nah? | Rumble Theatre and Pandemic Theatre |