On professional stages: Dayton Live’s Premier Health Broadway Series absolutely wowed audiences with the aforementioned Disney blockbuster and Harper Lee’s timeless drama but “Tina – The Tina Turner Musical” and “The Cher Show” were also strongly presented in terms of top-notch nostalgia; The Human Race Theatre Company, continuing to boldly press forward with shows that are more diverse and progressive, excelled with new works, particularly Eric Ulloa’s delightful holiday alternative “Reindeer Sessions,” and a riveting co-presentation of “The Kite Runner” national tour with Dayton Live; Dayton Opera supplied a vocally sublime “Sweeney Todd”; I was pleasantly surprised and deeply moved by Foundry Theater’s “The Sound of (Black) Music,” weaving Rodgers and Hammerstein’s iconic songs through a flavorful Black lens blend of jazz, gospel, blues, funk and Afrobeat; La Comedia Dinner Theatre, navigating under new ownership for the first time in nearly 30 years, offered a first-rate “Guys and Dolls” and “West Side Story”; and TheatreLab Dayton captivated with hilarious productions of “The Producers” and “[title of show]” and a wonderfully clever “Into the Woods.”
On collegiate stages: Wright State University bolstered its reputation as a leading producer of musical theatre in the region due to its Broadway-caliber “Cabaret” starring the astounding Kendra Lodewyk as Sally Bowles. There was also double bliss in WSU’s double cast, utterly charming “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” and the dynamic double bill of “A Doll’s House” and “A Doll’s House, Part 2.” Also notable on campuses: University of Dayton theatrically debuting the Roger Glass Center for the Arts with a feel-good “Godspell,” Sinclair Community College’s admirable local premiere of “Ride the Cyclone,” Cedarville University’s finely crafted “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” and “Sense and Sensibility,” and Clark State College’s engrossing “Crucible” which added context by incorporating historical imagery of other hunts in American history such as bullying of hemophiliacs during the early days of the AIDS crisis.
Community theater highlights: Dayton Theatre Guild’s excellent local premiere of “Radio Golf,” August Wilson’s final play in his acclaimed cycle and the first Wilson work staged by the Guild; Dayton Playhouse’s exuberant, heartwarming “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” Beavercreek Community Theatre’s authentic “Bright Star” and wildly funny “One Man, Two Guvnors,” Brookville Community Theatre’s entertaining “Grease,” INNOVAtheatre’s visceral “Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “American Idiot,” and Springboro Community Theatre’s lighthearted “Big Fish.”
Having seen 70 shows last season, I extend kudos to the winners, contenders and the entire Miami Valley theater community for being, as Tina Turner would say, simply the best.
BEST TOURING MUSICAL
Disney’s “The Lion King” (Direction, Costume, Co-Mask & Puppet Design: Julie Taymor; Choreography: Garth Fagan; Set Design: Richard Hudson; Lighting Design: Donald Holder; Co-Mask & Puppet Designer: Michael Curry; Sound Design: Steve Canyon Kennedy; Musical Direction: Karl Shymanovitz)
Contenders:
“The Cher Show,” Dayton Live
“Hadestown,” Dayton Live
“The Sound of (Black) Music,” Foundry Theater at Antioch College and Electric Root
“Tina – The Tina Turner Musical,” Dayton Live
BEST TOURING PLAY
“To Kill a Mockingbird,” Dayton Live
Contender: “The Kite Runner,” Dayton Live and Human Race Theatre Company
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
BEST LOCAL PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
“Peerless,” Human Race Theatre Company
Contenders:
“5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche,” Magnolia Theatre Company
“Misery,” TheatreLab Dayton
“Reindeer Sessions,” Human Race Theatre Company
“Shipwrecked! An Entertainment,” Human Race Theatre Company
Credit: SCOTT ROBBINS
Credit: SCOTT ROBBINS
BEST LOCAL PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
“Sweeney Todd,” Dayton Opera
Contenders:
“Guys and Dolls,” La Comedia Dinner Theatre
“Into the Woods,” TheatreLab Dayton
“The Producers,” TheatreLab Dayton
“This Is Tom Jones!,” Human Race Theatre Company
“[title of show]”, TheatreLab Dayton
“West Side Story,” La Comedia Dinner Theatre
Credit: RICK FLYNN PHOTOGRAPHY
Credit: RICK FLYNN PHOTOGRAPHY
BEST COMMUNITY THEATER PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
“Radio Golf,” Dayton Theatre Guild
Contenders:
“Barefoot in the Park,” Actor’s Theatre Fairborn
“The Gingerbread Lady,” Beavercreek Community Theatre
“One Man, Two Guvnors,” Beavercreek Community Theatre
“Superior Donuts,” Dayton Theatre Guild
“True West,” Dayton Theatre Guild
“Women on Fire,” Young at Heart Players
Credit: RAY GEIGER
Credit: RAY GEIGER
BEST COMMUNITY THEATER PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” Dayton Playhouse
Contenders:
“American Idiot,” INNOVAtheatre
“Big Fish,” Springboro Community Theatre
“Bright Star,” Beavercreek Community Theatre
“Grease,” Brookville Community Theatre
“The Hello Girls,” Beavercreek Community Theatre
“The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” INNOVAtheatre
Credit: WRIGHT STATE THEATRE
Credit: WRIGHT STATE THEATRE
BEST COLLEGIATE PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
The “Doll’s House” Experience: “A Doll’s House” & “A Doll’s House, Part 2,” Wright State University
Contenders:
“By the Bog of Cats,” Wright State University
“The Crucible,” Clark State College
“The Liar,” Wright State University
“Sense and Sensibility,” Cedarville University
Credit: Erin Pence
Credit: Erin Pence
BEST COLLEGIATE PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
“Cabaret,” Wright State University
Contenders:
“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Wright State University
“Godspell,” University of Dayton
“Kelly The Destroyer vs. The Springfield Cobras,” Wright State University
“Ride the Cyclone,” Sinclair Community College
“The Spongebob Musical,” Clark State College
“You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” Cedarville University
Credit: FACEBOOK PHOTO
Credit: FACEBOOK PHOTO
BEST SPECIAL THEATRICAL EVENT
“9 to 5: The Musical,” Muse Machine
Contenders:
“Children of Eden,” Epiphany Lutheran Church
“The Moors,” Magnolia Theatre Company and University of Dayton
“The Sound of Music,” Dayton Playhouse, Miami Valley Symphony Orchestra and Arbogast Performing Arts Center
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
BEST NEW WORK
Eric Ulloa’s “Reindeer Sessions,” Human Race Theatre Company
Contenders:
Mark Brown and Paul Mirkovich’s “This Is Tom Jones!,” Human Race Theatre Company
Electric Root’s “The Sound of (Black) Music,” Foundry Theater at Antioch College
BEST LEADING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Richard Thomas as Atticus Finch, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Contenders:
Bruce Cromer as Louis de Rougemont, “Shipwrecked! An Entertainment”
Ryan Hester as Austin, “True West”
Ramzi Khalaf as Amir, “The Kite Runner”
S. Francis Livisay as Harmond Wilks, “Radio Golf”
Jared Mola as Lee, “True West”
Brandon Shockney as Paul Bratter, “Barefoot in the Park”
Credit: MACKENSIE KING
Credit: MACKENSIE KING
BEST LEADING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Adelyn Helms as Annie Wilkes, “Misery”
Contenders:
Hannah Kay Bradley as Elinor Dashwood, “Sense and Sensibility”
Graecen Burson as Marianne Dashwood, “Sense and Sensibility”
Julia Daigh as Nora Helmer, “A Doll’s House”
Taylor Greny as Cliton, “The Liar”
Cheryl Mellen as Evy, “The Gingerbread Lady”
Melanie Moore as Scout Finch, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Credit: SCOTT ROBBINS
Credit: SCOTT ROBBINS
BEST LEADING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
John Moore as Sweeney Todd, “Sweeney Todd”
Contenders:
Kyle Channell as The Baker, “Into the Woods”
Philip Drennen as Leo Bloom, “The Producers”
Jason S. Lakes as Dom Claude Frollo, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
Kyle Mangold as Tom Jones, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Anderson Rothwell as Emcee, “Cabaret”
Jason Slattery as Max Bialystock, “The Producers”
Tommy Thams as Clifford Bradshaw, “Cabaret”
Credit: Erin Pence
Credit: Erin Pence
BEST LEADING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Kendra Lodewyk as Sally Bowles, “Cabaret”
Contenders:
Mackensie King as The Baker’s Wife, “Into the Woods”
Adee McFarland as Alice Murphy, “Bright Star”
Morgan Scott as Star, “The Cher Show”
Ann Toomey as Mrs. Lovett, “Sweeney Todd”
Zurin Villanueva as Tina Turner, “Tina – The Tina Turner Musical”
Sarah Viola as Maria Rainer, “The Sound of Music”
Maggie Weckesser as Violet Newstead, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Credit: RICK FLYNN PHOTOGRAPHY
Credit: RICK FLYNN PHOTOGRAPHY
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Franklin Johnson as Elder Joseph Barlow, “Radio Golf”
Contenders:
Andrew Ian Adams as Player 2, “Shipwrecked! An Entertainment”
Mike Beerbower as Max Tarasov, “Superior Donuts”
John Cuozzo as Krogstad, “A Doll’s House”
Steven Lee Johnson as Dill Harris, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Haythem Noor as Baba, “The Kite Runner”
Joe Ollier as Alfie, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
Matthew Shanahan as D/D’s Brother, “Peerless”
Andre Tomlinson as Sterling Johnson, “Radio Golf”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Emily Parsons as Elizabeth Proctor, “The Crucible”
Contenders:
Cassandra Engber as Toby, “The Gingerbread Lady”
Taylor Greny as Anne Marie, “A Doll’s House, Part 2″
Mariah Lee as Mayella Ewell, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Andréa Morales as Lana, “Beheading Columbus”
Casey Merren as Kristine Linde, “A Doll’s House”
Kerry Simpson as Rita, “Women on Fire”
Crystal St. Germain as Rachel/Roscoe Crabbe, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
Jacqueline Williams as Calpurnia, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Eb Madson as Man 3: Captain Blifil, Blifil and Susan, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Contenders:
Nicholas Bradley as Adam, “Children of Eden”
Kyle Channell as Ernst Ludwig, “Cabaret”
Nick Cordileone as Timon, Disney’s “The Lion King”
Griffin Greear as Jack, “Into the Woods”
Joshua Hughes as Carmen Ghia, “The Producers”
Patrick Earl Phillips as Man 1: Partridge, Square, Barber, Magistrate, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Josh Stuckey as Roger De Bris, “The Producers”
Richard Young as Jacob, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Sara Mackie as Woman 1: Bridget Allworthy, Doctor, Miss Western, Mrs. Whitefield, Lady Bellaston, Soldier, Second Act Dowling, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Contenders:
Thembelihle Cele as Rafiki, Disney’s “The Lion King”
Tina DeAlderete as Anita, “West Side Story”
Sam Evans as Olive Ostrovsky, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Flora Hawk as Johanna, “Sweeney Todd”
Abby Kress as Ula, “The Producers”
Bella Marcigliano as Fraulein Schneider, “Cabaret”
Kelly Mengelkoch as Woman 2: Deborah, Molly, Honour, Cecilia, Jane, Masked Woman, Soldier
Melinda Porto as Woman 4: Sophie Western, Harriet Fitzpatrick
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
Credit: HUMAN RACE THEATRE COMPANY
BREAKTHROUGH MALE PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY
Rico Romalus Parker as Blitzen, “Reindeer Sessions”
Contenders:
Aidan Fracker as Carthage Kilbride, “By the Bog of Cats”
Colson Littrell as Ezekiel, “Power in the Blood” (Dayton Playhouse)
Ryan McCarty as John Proctor, “The Crucible”
Lessley Scott as Roosevelt Hicks, “Radio Golf”
Kaleb Smith as Paul Sheldon, “Misery”
Tim Welsh as Francis Henshall, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
BREAKTHROUGH FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY
Alexis Wentworth as Nora Helmer, “A Doll’s House, Part 2″
Contenders:
Courtney Collinsworth as Jill/Emily, “Love/Sick” (Sinclair Community College)
Dinithi Fernando as M, “Peerless”
Emma Massey as Hester Swane, “By the Bog of Cats”
Evie Oehlers as Abigail Williams, “The Crucible”
Jena Perry as Mame Wilks, “Radio Golf”
Palini Sunkara as L, “Peerless”
Credit: ERIN PENCE
Credit: ERIN PENCE
BREAKTHROUGH MALE PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL
James Newton as William Barfee, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Contenders:
Nate Marcum as Franz Liebkind, “The Producers”
Jacob Nichols as Quasimodo, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
Raef Norgaard as Tunny, “American Idiot”
James Schenck as Snoopy, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Jonah Sievers as Sonny LaTierri, “Grease”
Drew Williams-Orozco as Edward Bloom, “Big Fish”
Jack Wyant as Franklin Hart, Jr., “9 to 5: The Musical”
BREAKTHROUGH FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL
Lucy Dennis as Doralee Rhodes, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Contenders:
Krystal Jasmin Combs as The Narrator, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
Grace Goodwin as Esmeralda, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
Addison Haines as Judy Bernly, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Atlas Kessinger as Kelly, “Kelly The Destroyer vs. The Springfield Cobras”
Claire Northcut as Rona Lisa Peretti, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Ava Ramsey as Lucy Van Pelt, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Meredith Russ as Yonah, “Children of Eden”
Credit: MACKENSIE KING
Credit: MACKENSIE KING
BEST ENSEMBLE
TheatreLab Dayton’s cast of “[title of show]”: Philip Drennen as Hunter, Zachary Gregus as Jeff, Allie Haines as Heidi and Abby Hoggatt as Susan
Contenders:
Beavercreek Community Theatre’s “Hello Girls”: Adee McFarland as Grace, Lindsey Cardoza as Suzanne, Jordan Lopez as Louise, Amber K. Todd as Helen, and Shana Fishbein as Bertha
The “9 to 5″ Male Company (”One of the Boys”), Muse Machine
The cast of “A Doll’s House, Part 2,” Wright State University
The cast of “Godspell,” University of Dayton
The cast of “Radio Golf,” Dayton Theatre Guild
The Dictionary and Thesaurus casts of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” Wright State University
BEST DIRECTION OF A PLAY
Bartlett Sher, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Contenders:
Krissy Brown, “The Crucible”
Giles Croft, “The Kite Runner”
Marya Spring Cordes, “Peerless”
Philip Drennen and Allie Haines, “Misery”
Doug Lloyd, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
Gina Handy Minyard, “By the Bog of Cats”
Robert-Wayne Waldron, “Radio Golf”
Emily N. Wells, “A Doll’s House, Part 2″
BEST DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL
Greg Hellems, “Cabaret”
Contenders:
Kathleen Clawson, “Sweeney Todd”
Joe Deer, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Philip Drennen and Kaleb Smith, “Into the Woods”
Dawn Roth-Smith, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
Stacey Stratton, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Richard Lee Waldeck, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
Andrea Chenoweth Wells, “Godspell”
Emily N. Wells, “This Is Tom Jones!”
BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
Ashley Pabst, “Cabaret”
Contenders:
Carrie Anthony, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Chris Beiser, “West Side Story”
Debbie Blunden-Diggs, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Lula Elzy, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Kiersten Farmer, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
Kayla Graham, “Superior Donuts”
Cathy Rarick, “Grease”
Jennifer Sydor, “Godspell”
Gage Wayne and Rachael Hayes, “The Producers”
BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A PLAY
Levi Kiess, “Misery”
Contenders:
Miriam Buether, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
D. Tristan Cupp, “Shipwrecked! An Entertainment”
Barney George, “The Kite Runner”
Chris Harmon, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
Scott Kimmins, “Love/Sick”
Red Newman, “Radio Golf”
Zoe Still, “By the Bog of Cats”
Credit: SCOTT KIMMINS
Credit: SCOTT KIMMINS
BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Chris Harmon, “Ride the Cyclone”
Contenders:
Michael Brewer, “Cabaret”
R. Keith Brumley, “Sweeney Todd”
Gabe Davidson, “West Side Story”
Tamara L. Honesty, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Robert A. Kovach, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Jonathan Sabo, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Ray Zupp, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Credit: ERIN PENCE
Credit: ERIN PENCE
BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A PLAY
Zoe Still, “The Liar”
Contenders:
Chloe Cappuccilli, “The Moors”
Carol Finley, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
Barney George, “The Kite Runner”
Emma Green, “By the Bog of Cats”
Rebekah Priebe, “Sense and Sensibility”
Ann Roth, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Zoe Still, “A Doll’s House” and “A Doll’s House Part 2″
BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Jonathan Knipscher, “Sweeney Todd”
Contenders:
Theresa Ankenman, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
Jeremy Floyd, “Cabaret”
Anne Heitker, “Bright Star”
Janet G. Powell, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Rebekah Priebe, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Shannon Smith-Regnier, Traelyn Hoover and Erin Rismiller, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Mattison Williams, “The Producers”
Credit: Erin Pence
Credit: Erin Pence
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A PLAY
Matthew Benjamin, “By the Bog of Cats”
Contenders:
Charles Balfour, “The Kite Runner”
Dustin Druckman, “Misery”
Ben Remke, “The Moors”
John Rensel, “Peerless”
JR Riechers, “The Crucible”
Jennifer Tipton, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Zach Wuest, “A Doll’s House” and “A Doll’s House, Part 2″
Credit: Knack Video + Photo
Credit: Knack Video + Photo
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Ben Remke, “Godspell”
Contenders:
Matthew Benjamin, “Cabaret”
Andrew Darr, “The Hello Girls”
John Falkenbach, “Bright Star”
Bowen Moss, “The Spongebob Musical”
Gabe Reichert, “The Producers”
Molly Tiede, “Sweeney Todd”
Richard Lee Waldeck, “American Idiot”
BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A PLAY
Skyler McNeely, “Misery”
Contenders:
Drew Baumohl, “The Kite Runner”
James Dunlap, “By the Bog of Cats”
James Hayford, “The Moors”
Scott Lehrer, “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Tim Phipps and Eliana Wiseman, “Sense and Sensibility”
Sarah Saunders, “Radio Golf”
K.L. Storer, “True West”
BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
James Dunlap, “Cabaret”
Contenders:
James Dunlap, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
Todd Huffman, “The Spongebob Musical”
Tim Phipps, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Emily C. Porter, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Nevin Steinberg, “Tina – The Tina Turner Musical”
K.L. Storer, “Bright Star”
Sarah Theewis, “Godspell”
BEST ORCHESTRA
“Sweeney Todd,” Musical Director: Neal Gittleman
Contenders:
“9 to 5: The Musical,” Musical Director: Jeffrey Powell
“American Idiot,” Musical Director: George Drewyor
“Bright Star,” Musical Director: Lorri Topping
“Cabaret,” Musical Director: Wade Russo
“Hadestown,” Musical Director: Eric Kang
“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” Musical Director: Lorri Topping
“This Is Tom Jones!,” Musical Director: Steve Goers
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
BEST PROPERTIES
Ava Ramsey, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Contenders:
Tristan Cupp, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”
Rick Flynn, “Radio Golf”
Sarah Gomes, “This Is Tom Jones!”
Becky Howard, “True West”
Marley Masterson, “Misery”
Shannon Sellars, “9 to 5: The Musical”
Jenny Wheeker, Doug Lloyd and Diane Strohm, “One Man, Two Guvnors”
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Mark Brown and Paul Mirkovich’s “This Is Tom Jones!”
Contenders:
James Dunlap, “By the Bog of Cats”
Jonathan Girling, “The Kite Runner”
Skyler McNeely, “Misery”
BEST PROJECTION/VIDEO DESIGN
David Sherman, “Ride the Cyclone”
Contenders:
Rick Frendt, “The Sound of Music”
Jonathan Infante and Kelly James Tighe, “The Cher Show”
R.E. Johnson and JR Riechers, “The Crucible”
Bowen Moss, “The Spongebob Musical”
Jonathan Sabo and Tim Phipps, “Sense and Sensibility”
Jeff Simon (animation graphics), Jonathan Sabo, Stacey Stratton, Landon Stratton and Tim Phipps, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
William Simpson, “The Kite Runner”
Want to share your opinion?
Email our “Right Now With Russell” writer at russell.florence@coxinc.com.
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