Portland Playhouse pulled off a tough double play at Monday night’s Drammy Awards, taking top honors in both major production categories – best play of the season for its stripped-down version of A Christmas Carol, and best musical play for The Light in the Piazza.
The crowd gets into the action for the opening puppet-show strut to “The Circle of Life.” Photo: Henk Pander
The celebration of the best achievements in Portland theater during the 2013-14 season packed the house at the Crystal Ballroom with theater folk and theater fans, many dressed to the nines and others to the twos or threes. The mood was convivial verging on rowdy, punctuated during one long stretch by the drone of a punk band playing loudly somewhere downstairs, and hosted with wit and dash by actor Isaac Lamb, who occasionally ceded the spotlight to his vigorously tap-dancing wife-to-be, Amy Beth Frankel. If anyone caught their act on videotape, it could go viral.
Dapper Isaac Lamb, the Drammys’ emcee. Photo: Owen Carey
Piazza was the evening’s closest thing to a runaway, walking off with five prizes: best production, actress in a musical (Meredith Kaye Clark), supporting actress in a musical (Jennifer Goldsmith), supporting actor in a musical (David Meyers), and musical direction (Eric Nordin). A Christmas Carol took top awards for ensemble in a play and director in a play (Cristi Miles) in addition to best production.
Ann Singer, Well Arts Institute’s youth program coordinator, accepted the $2,000 Mary Brand Award from Julie Accuardi of the Portland Civic Theatre Guild.
Oregon Children’s Theatre took four awards for its sweet and funny high school outcast musical Zombie in Love, and Kristeen Willis Crosser was a double individual winner, taking home the hardware for scenic design (Gidion’s Knot) and lighting design (A Bright New Boise), both at Third Rail Rep. One category, best actress in a play, ended in a tie vote. Amy Newman (Gidion’s Knot) and Maureen Porter (Crooked, CoHo Productions) shared the prize.
After an hour of drinking, preening, and general hobnobbing, the ceremony got off to a rousing start with a long Irish yowl of a song from Chris Murray, who’s starring as the not-quite-murderous Irish lad Christy in The Playboy of the Western World at Artists Rep, followed by a Lion King-style puppet show threading rambunctiously through the crowd. Among the costumed paraders were a donkey, a latke, a fish, a teapot, a snake, and several bottles of booze. They set the tone for much of the rest of the evening: congenial, creative, a little outrageous, fun, and quite long. At the end of the ceremony, Lamb performed a hilarious Portlandified riff on the “River City” song from The Music Man that would’ve made a knockout opening number. By the time it finally came, much of the crowd was already heading for the bars or home – a shame, but an understandable one.
Horsing around at the opening puppet parade. Photo: Henk Pander
The 17-member Drammy Committee of writers and theater professionals considered almost 120 productions from the awards’ 36th season. Several current shows opened too late for consideration. This year, after several years of choosing multiple winners in each category, the committee returned to picking a single winner from a pre-announced list of finalists in each category, making the Drammys feel more like the Oscars or Tonys. The finalists in each category are listed here.
The cast of Portland Playhouse’s “A Christmas Carol” celebrate their best-production Drammy. Photo: Owen Carey
Grant Turner, founder of Northwest Classical Theatre, drew appreciative nods during his acceptance speech for his Special Achievement Award. “Take the time to hone your craft,” he advised, “and don’t take (a play) on until you’re able.” He continued: “Believe in your authors, and your audience will believe in you.” Turner, who started the Shakespeare-centric classical company more than 15 years ago, is moving to eastern Oregon but will return to Portland for specific projects.
Van Voris (left) and Hoffman indulge in some interpretive oratory. Photo: Owen Carey
Actors Todd Van Voris and Gavin Hoffman sent titters racing around the room with their dramatic readings of “actual posts on PDX Backstage.” And when the Light in the Piazza company gathered onstage to accept the best-musical award, Susannah Mars drew extended cheers and a couple of boos when she proudly announced, “We did a musical without microphones!”
It was that kind of night.
2014 DRAMMY AWARD WINNERS
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Michael Fisher-Welsh
The Quality of Life
Artists Repertory Theatre
BEST SCENIC DESIGN
Kristeen Willis Crosser
Gidion’s Knot
Third Rail Repertory Theatre
BEST PROPERTIES DESIGN
Drew Dannhorn
The Giver
Oregon Children’s Theatre
BEST DESIGN AND FABRICATION AWARD
John Ellingson
James and the Giant Peach
Northwest Children’s Theater
SPECIAL THEATRICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Atomic Arts
Trek in the Park
2009-2013
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jennifer Goldsmith
The Light in the Piazza
Portland Playhouse
BEST SOUND DESIGN
Annalise Albright Woods
pool (no water)
Theatre Vertigo
BEST YOUNG PERFORMER
Blake Peebles
Zombie in Love
Oregon Children’s Theatre
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
David Meyers
The Light in the Piazza
Portland Playhouse
BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
Dan Murphy
Plaid Tidings
Broadway Rose Theatre Company
BEST PIT ENSEMBLE
9 to 5: The Musical
Stumptown Stages
PATA SPOTLIGHT AWARDS
Stage Manager: Emma Lewins
Crew Member: Don Crossley
Ballyhoo (formerly known as “Other”): Val and Jim Liptak
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Jen LaMastra
James and the Giant Peach
Northwest Children’s Theater
BEST MAKE UP DESIGN
Caitlin Fisher-Draeger
The Revenants
The Reformers
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Meghan Chambers
Crooked
CoHo Productions / Philip Cuomo and Maureen Porter
BEST PROJECTION DESIGN
Jeff Kurihara
The Giver
Oregon Children’s Theatre
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN
Kristeen Willis Crosser
A Bright New Boise
Third Rail Repertory Theatre
Catherine Egan accepts her award for movement design for Push Leg’s “Nighthawks.” Photo: Owen Carey
BEST MOVEMENT DESIGN
Catherine Egan
Nighthawks
Push Leg
BEST DEVISED WORK
Nighthawks
Push Leg
Special Achievement Award winner Grant Turner. Photo: Owen Carey
SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Grant Turner
Founding Artistic Director
Northwest Classical Theatre Company
BEST MUSIC DIRECTION
Eric Nordin
The Light in the Piazza
Portland Playhouse
BEST DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Marcella Crowson
Zombie in Love
Oregon Children’s Theatre
BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
David Studwell
Fiddler on the Roof
Portland Center Stage
BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Merideth Kaye Clark
The Light in the Piazza
Portland Playhouse
BEST ENSEMBLE IN A MUSICAL
Plaid Tidings
Broadway Rose Theatre Company
Solo performance winner Damon Kupper in front of an image from his show, “A Night in November.” Photo: Owen Carey
BEST SOLO PERFORMANCE
Damon Kupper
A Night in November
corrib theatre
BEST ENSEMBLE IN A PLAY
A Christmas Carol
Portland Playhouse
BEST ORIGINAL SCRIPT
Michelle Elliott
Zombie in Love
Oregon Children’s Theatre
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Danny Larsen, Music
Michelle Elliott, Lyrics
Zombie in Love
Oregon Children’s Theatre
PORTLAND CIVIC THEATRE GUILD AWARDS
Mary Brand Award $2,000
Recipient: Well Arts Institute
Portland Civic Theatre Award in Support of Theatre $3,000
Recipient: Action/Adventure Theatre
The Leslie O. Fulton Fellowship $5,000
Recipient: Jill Westerby Gonzales
BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Cristi Miles
A Christmas Carol
Portland Playhouse
Best actor winner Allen Nause,” “The Caretaker” at Imago. Photo: Owen Carey
BEST ACTOR IN A PLAY
Allen Nause
The Caretaker
Imago Theatre
BEST ACTRESS IN A PLAY (tied)
Amy Newman
Gidion’s Knot
Third Rail Repertory Theatre
Maureen Porter
Crooked
CoHo Productions / Philip Cuomo and Maureen Porter
Best actress co-winner Maureen Porter, “Crooked,” CoHo Productions. Photo: Owen Carey
BEST PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
The Light in the Piazza
Portland Playhouse
BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
A Christmas Carol
Portland Playhouse