Roy Berko
(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)
Greater Cleveland is blessed with a vital theater scene. It the purpose of BROADWAY WORLD.COM-CLEVELAND PROFESSIONAL THEATER TRIBUTES (BWW-CLE Theater Tributes), to recognize theatrical experiences that, in the subjective view of this reviewer, were excellent and deserve recognition.
Only shows performed in 2017 which I reviewed were considered. With the exception of Outstanding National Touring Production, selections were limited to local professional presentations though actors, directors and technicians who were imported by local theatres for their productions were considered. Actors are separated by gender, but not equity or lack of union affiliation, or leading or supporting roles.
Designees are listed in alphabetical, not in rank order.
OUTSTANDING NON-MUSICAL PRODUCTIONS
EQUUS, Blank Canvas Theatre
HANDS TO GOD, Dobama Theatre
HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE, Cleveland Play House
HOW TO BE A RESPECTABLE JUNKIE, Dobama Theatre
MARJORIE PRIME, Dobama Theatre
SALVAGE, none-too-fragile
THE FLICK, Dobama Theatre
WELL, Ensemble Theatre
OUTSTANDING MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTIONS
FLOYD COLLINS, Blank Canvas Theatre
THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, Great Lakes Theater
NEWSIES, Porthouse Theatre
ROCK OF AGES, Cain Park Theatre
THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic Theatre
OUTSTANDING DIRECTORS OF A NON-MUSICAL
Celeste Cosentino, WELL, Ensemble Theatre
Laura Kepley, HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE, Cleveland Play House
Mathew Wright, HAND TO GOD, Dobama Theatre
Nathan Motta, THE FLICK, Dobama Theatre
Pat Ciamacco, EQUUS, Blank Canvas Theatre
Sean Derry, SALVAGE, none-too-fragile
Shannon Sindelar, MARJORIE PRIME, Dobama Theatre
OUTSTANDING DIRECTORS OF A MUSICAL
Joanne May Hunkins, ROCK OF AGES, Cain Park Theater
Martin Friedman, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic
Theatre
Pat Ciamacco, FLOYD COLLINS, Blank Canvas Theatre
Terri Kent, NEWSIES, Porthouse Theatre
Victoria Bussert, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, Great Lakes Theater
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY IN A THEATER PRODUCTION
Kevin D. Marr II, ROCK OF AGES, Cain Park Theater
Martin Céspedes (with Mary Sheridan), BRING IT ON: THE MUSICAL, Beck
Center/Baldwin Wallace University
MaryAnn Black, NEWSIES, Porthouse Theatre
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES BY A MALE IN A NON-MUSICAL
Abraham Adams, OCCUPATION DAD, Ensemble Theatre
Antonio DeJesus, EQUUS, Blank Canvas Theatre
Christopher M. Bohan, HOW TO BE A RESPECTABLE JUNKIE, Dobama
Theatre
David Lenahan, IN THE CLOSET, convergence-continuum
David Peacock, A SKULL IN CONNEMARA, none-too-fragile
Gordon Hinchen, THE FLICK, Dobama Theatre
Luke Wehner, HANDS TO GOD, Dobama Theatre
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE IN A NON-MUSICAL
Derdriu Ring, SALVAGE, none-too-fragile
Dorothy Silver, MARJORIE PRIME, Dobama Theatre
Kelly Strand, SALVAGE, none-too-fragile
Laura Starnick, WELL, Ensemble Theatre
Lisa Louise Langford, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
Madeline Lambert, HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE, Cleveland Play House
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE IN A MUSICAL
Alex Syiek, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, Great Lakes Theater
Corey Moch, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, Great Lakes Theater
Douglas F. Bailey, ROCK OF AGES, Cain Park Theatre
Michael Snider, FLOYD COLLINS, Blank Canvas Theatre
Shane Patrick O’Neill, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic
Theatre
RISING STAR (PROMISING NEWCOMER)
Antonio DeJesus, EQUUS, Blank Canvas Theatre
Colin Frothingham, SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE BAKER STREET
IRREGULARS, Dobama Theatre
Jabri Little, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES BY A FEMALE IN A MUSICAL
Katelyn Cassidy, NEWSIES, Porthouse Theatre
Keri Rene Fuller, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, Great Lakes Theater
Trinidad Snider, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic
Theatre
OUTSTANDING SCENIC DESIGN OF NON-MUSICALS or MUSICALS
Collette Pollard, HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE, Cleveland Play House
Cory Molner, IN THE CLOSET, convergence-continuum
Laura Carlson Tarantowski, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
Trad A Burns, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic Theatre
Wilson Chin, BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY, Cleveland Play House
OUTSTANDING MUSICAL DIRECTION
Jonathan Swoboda, NEWSIES, Porthouse Theatre
Jordan Cooper, ROCK OF AGES, Cain Park Theatre
Jordan Cooper, THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, Lakeland Civic Theatre
OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN IN A NON-MUSICAL OR MUSICAL
Cyrus O. Taylor, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
Cyrus O. Taylor, HOW TO BE A RESPECTABLE JUNKIE, Dobama Theatre
Daniel Perelstein, THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK, Cleveland Play House
Erick T. Lawson, MARJORIE PRIME, Dobama Theatre
Victoria Deiorio, BASKERVILLE, Cleveland Play House
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN IN A NON-MUSICAL OR MUSICAL
Aimee Kluiber, CITY OF ANGELS, Beck Center
Kim Krumm Sorenson, HAMLET, Great Lakes Theater
Lex Liang, BASKERVILLE, Cleveland Play House
Lex Liang, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, Cleveland Play House
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN IN A NON-MUSICAL OR MUSICAL
Bryanna Bauman, WELL, Ensemble Theatre
Marcus Dana, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
Marcus Dana, HOW TO BE A RESPECTABLE JUNKIE, Dobama Theatre
Peter Maradudin, BASKERVILLE, Cleveland Play House
Rick Martin, HAMLET, Great Lakes Theater
OUTSTANDING ELECTRONIC MEDIA IN A NON-MUSICAL OR MUSICAL
Caite Hevner, HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE, Cleveland Play House
Pat Ciamacco, FLOYD COLLINS, Blank Canvas Theatre
T. Paul Lowry, brownsville song (b-side for tray), Dobama Theatre
T. Paul Lowry, THINGS AS THEY ARE, Playwrights Local
OUTSTANDING NATIONAL TOURING PRODUCTION
ON YOUR FEET, Playhouse Square
SOMETHING ROTTEN, Playhouse Square
LIFE TIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Dorothy Silver for her years of leadership service to the Jewish Community Center and Karamu and many impressive performances in Cleveland area theatres and national films.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION
•Bill Rudman, Musical Theater Project, for bringing musical theater exposure and knowledge to a variety of audiences who might otherwise not become theater patrons.
•Faye Sholiton for stoking and keeping the ember of Jewish theater alive in the Cleveland area.
•Gina Vernaci for her persistence and creativity in making Play House Square a major national center for touring theater.
•Patrick Ciamacco (Blank Canvas), Sean Derry and Ilana Alanna Romansky (none –too-fragile), Clyde Simon (convergence-continuum), Greg Caeser (Caeser’s Forum) and Celeste Cosentino (Ensemble)--for being the financial and energy sources of “mom and pop” professional theater in Northeastern Ohio.
If any names are spelled incorrectly, or there are errors in identifications, please let me know so I can change the permanent record on www.royberko.info.
If you would like to read any of my reviews for the year, please go to www.royberko.info, enter the blog and click on “2017 Reviews” or click on the name of the producing theatre and scroll through their performances. Reviews from previous years may also be accessed.
