Photos: Inside The Black Women on Broadway Awards

The Black Women on Broadway Awards returned for their third annual in-person event at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers on June 10.

The awards show, which is an offshoot of the Black Women on Broadway (BWOB) Instagram account launched in June 2020 by Oscar and Tony nominee Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple), and Tony nominees Amber Iman (Lempicka) and Jocelyn Bioh (Jaja's African Hair Braiding).

Dedicated to celebrating the legacy and achievements of Black women in the Broadway community, the 2024 BWOB Awards honored three talents for their work at the highest level of commercial live theater.

Special guests at the event included two-time Tony Award-winner Phylicia Rashad (A Raisin in the Sun, Skeleton Crew), Tony-nominee Maleah Joi Moon(Hell’s Kitchen), Tony-nominee Juliana Canfield (Stereophonic) and Nichelle Lewis (The Whiz), among many others.

Dede Ayite received the Kathy A. Perkins Behind the Curtain Award, which was created to honor a Black Woman whose work backstage shines brightest on stage - just as Kathy A. Perkins' work in lighting design has/continues to do. Ayite, a two-time Tony Nominated costume designer worked on a record six shows this season both on and off Broadway including Hell's Kitchen, Jaja's African Hair Braiding, Days of Wine and Roses, and Buena Vista Social Club. 

Aisha Jackson received the Florence Mills Shining Star Award, which was created to honor a Black Woman performer in theatre whose hard work over the years in the business is finally being celebrated or one whose star is rising rapidly in an inspirational way - just as the legendary Florence Mills did in her time.  Jackson has been working on Broadway for the last 10 years in many hit shows like Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Waitress, and Frozen, where she made history as the first Black actress to perform the role of ‘Anna’ in the production. Most recently, she played ‘Snow White’ in the Britney Spears jukebox musical Once Upon a One More Time and the City Center Encores production of Pal Joey. 

Irene Gandy received the Audra McDonald Legacy Award for her outstanding achievements in producing and marketing on Broadway for over 50 years. Gandy is a 2020 Tony Honoree for Excellence in Theatre and multiple Tony Winner and some of her Broadway producing credits include The Piano, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Ohio State Murders and the 2023 Revival of Ossie Davis' Purlie Victorious. 

“We are thrilled to be able to host the 3rd Annual Black Women on Broadway Awards Celebration. It is our goal as an organization to honor and celebrate the achievements of Black Women in theatre both on and off Broadway each season,” said the co-founders. “This year, we are proud to honor Aisha Jackson, Dede Ayite and Irene Gandy - three incredibly hard-working women in theatre whose achievements deserve to be celebrated. It is so important that we continue to shine a light on the outstanding contribution that Black Women in the theatre community bring on and off stage. For the past two years, we have seen how inspiring and vital this celebration has been and we hope for it to be a mainstay of the theatre awards season,” the co-founders continue.

In previous years, the awards ceremony honored Joy Woods, Lynn Nottage, Qween Jean, Kara Young, Natasha Yvette Williams, and Nikiya Mathis.

Like the previous honorees, the 2024 recipients were selected as a way to highlight the history — that which has already been made and that which is being created now — of Black women in the live theater space.

The organization is one of the few places in the theater community that not only explicitly celebrates the talents of Black women in the New York industry but elevates those who work onstage and off. Like the BWOB Instagram account, the awards ceremony – which has now become an annual event — serves not only as a point of reference for the various and sometimes historically erased accomplishments of Black women working in theater industry, but as a place of commune and community.

Part of how the trio delivers on that ethos is through mentorship opportunities and ceremony-based volunteer opportunities. Since 2020, BWOB has had over 300 women attend their free writing, financial and self-tape workshops and their flagship awards event has hosted more than 600 Black women who work in all aspects of theatre both on and off stage. 

The BWOB co-founders are still in the trenches and grassroots stages of their third iteration, with Brooks, Iman and Bioh spearheading all efforts and raising the funds themselves. This year’s awards were sponsored by Fractured Atlas.