Review: Senior Editor DON GRIGWARE Gives His Annual Eddon Awards in Honor of the Best in Los Angeles Theatre for 2016
By: Don Grigware Jan. 03, 2017
The Best in LA Theatre for 2016
There are undoubtedly other productions worthy of merit in 2016 which I did not cover. This list is based only on what I saw and reviewed.
(alphabetical listings; Equity, Equity-waiver & Non-Equity productions are mixed)
(artists performing outside LA may be included in performance categories)
No set, costume, technical awards. I leave that to the bigger awards and to the expertise of those who really know those fields inside out.
BEST PRODUCTIONS
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson
Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, Annenberg, Palm Springs
Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge
A Slight Ache - Group rep
A View from the Bridge - Mark Taper Forum
Baby Doll - Fountain Theatre
Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals
(The) Boy from Oz - Celebration Theatre
Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Disgraced - Mark Taper Forum (MTF)
(The) Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre
Evita - Cabrillo Music Theatre
(The) Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
(The) Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Co
(The) Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
(The) King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
(The) Little Mermaid - Cabrillo Music Theatre
Memphis - Musical Theatre West (MTW)
Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
Next to Normal - Triage Productions/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse
Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
(The) Play About the Baby - The Road Theatre Company
Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Sister Act - Musical Theatre West (MTW)
Summer and Smoke - Actors Co-op
Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista
Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage Theatre Company at Lankershim Arts Center
FAVORITE HOLIDAY SHOWS
A Cinderella Christmas - Pasadena Playhouse
Little Drummer Bowie - Troubadour Theatre Company at the Falcon Theatre
(The) MeshugaNutcracker! -Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University
White Christmas - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
UNIQUE or SPECIAL EVENTS
An Evening of Classic Broadway - Rockwell Table and Stage
Chris Isaacson Presents The Dreamgirls Reunion Concert in Honor of Its 35th Anniversary - Ford Amphitheatre
For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
LA Now and Then - LA City College
BEST DIRECTORS: PLAY
Don Amendolia - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS
Andre Barron - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Ivo Van Hove - A View from the Bridge - Ahmanson
Garry Hynes - The Beauty Queen of Leenane
Christian Lebano - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Simon Levy - Baby Doll - Fountain
Calvin Remsberg - Bach at Leipzig - Group rep
Kimberly Senior - Disgraced - MTF
BEST DIRECTORS: MUSICAL
Michael Arden - Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
Glenn Casale - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Kay Cole - I Only Have Eyes for You - Ricardo Montalban Theatre
Larry Raben - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista/ The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
William A. Reilly - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
Michael A. Shepperd - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Bartlett Sher - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
BEST ENSEMBLE: PLAY
Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge
A View from the Bridge - MTF
Baby Doll - Fountain
Bach at Leipzig - Group rep
Beauty Queen of Leenane - MTF
Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Disgraced - MTF
Hedda Gabler - Antaeus
Past Time - SacRed Fools at Lillian Theatre
The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe - LGBT Center
BEST ENSEMBLE: MUSICAL
The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - 3-D Theatricals
The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
Memphis - MTW
Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
MeshugaNutcracker! - Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University
Next to Normal - Triage/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse
Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg
Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatrere, Vista
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage at Lankershim Arts Center
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCES
Britt Adams/Laura Julian/Marsha Waterbury - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS
Sam Anderson - John Is a Father/The Play About the Baby - The Road
Andrew Bongiorno - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Ginna Carter - The Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre
Hari Dhillon - Disgraced - MTF
Nike Doukas - Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Company
Christian Durso/Katherine James - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse
Tanna Frederick/Robert Standley - Jack & Jill - Santa Monica Playhouse
Davis Gaines/Benjamin Schrader - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - MTW
J. Harrison Ghee - Kinky Boots - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Taylor Gilbert - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Jenna Gillespie/Stu James - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Betty Gilpin/Carlos Leal - Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse
Randy Harrison - Cabaret - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Michelle Holmes - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre
Jose Llana/Laura Michelle Kelly - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre
Constance Jewell Lopez - Sister Act - MTW
Kevin Massey/John Rapson - A Gentelman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson
John McGinty - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts
Abby Mueller - Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages
Cassandra Murphy/Marc Ginsburg - Evita - Cabrillo
Ashley Park - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
Valerie Perri/Robert Yacko - Hello Dolly! - 3-D Theatricals
Michael Robb/Marcia Woodbury - A Slight Ache - Group rep
Phillipa Soo - Amelie - Ahmanson
French Stewart - Past Time - SacRed Fools
Amy Tolsky/Felicity Wren - Baby Oh Baby - Whitefire Theatre
Rachel York - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson
BEST FEATURED PERFORMANCES
Eric B. Anthony - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre
Richard Bermudez/Bets Malone - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista
Allison Blaize/Philip Orazio - The Play About the Baby - The Road
Betty Buckley - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson
Becky Gulsvig/Ben Fankhauser - Beautiful - Hollywood Pantages
Dennis Kyle - Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals
Hal Linden - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse
Robert Mammana/Valerie Mahaffy/ James Snyder/John Vickery - Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse
Michael McKean - Father Comes Home from the Wars Parts 1, 2 and 3 - MTF
Bess Motta/Jessica Pennington/Kelly Lester/Michael Mittman - The Boy from Oz - Celebration
Mary Gordon Murray - Sister Act - MTW
Debbie Prutsman - The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo
BEST SOLO SHOWS
BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: MALE
Dennis McNeil - The Lounge at The Comedy and Magic Club - Hermosa Beach
Glenn Rosenblum Is The Musical Man - Rockwell Table and Stage
Kurtis Simmons Live - Rockwell Table and Stage
BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: FEMALE
Heather Lundstedt - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Renee Marino - I Am Me Because of Three - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Melba Moore - Forever Moore - Catalina Jazz Club
Kerry O'Malley/Mary Callanan - Everything's Coming Up Rosie - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Maggie Randolph - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal
Lyn Stanley - Interludes Release Party at La Cicada Club
Pat Whiteman/Harriet Schock - E Spot Lounge
Kathleen Wilhoite's Living Room - E Spot Lounge
BEST CDs
The Boobe Sisters Greatest Hits Volume One
The Doris Day Project - Scott Dreier
BEST BOOK
The Carol Burnett Show Companion: So Glad We Had This Time - Wesley Hyatt - BearManor Media
BEST THEATRICAL SEASON
Cabrillo Music Theatre, Thousand Oaks
Musical Theatre West (MTW), Long Beach
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