The Ogunquit Playhouse Receives Three IRNE Award Nominations for THE HUNCHBACK NOTRE DAME

The Ogunquit Playhouse is proud to announce that it has received three Independent Reviewers of New England Award (IRNE) nominations in the large theatre category for its 2016 production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame including Best Set Design, Best Lighting Design, and Best Actor in a Musical. The IRNE Awards honor the best of the previous year's actors, directors, choreographers, designers and companies across the full spectrum of large, mid-size and fringe theater companies in Boston and New England.

Nominated for Best Actor in a Musical is Bradley Dean, who joined the cast for his Ogunquit Playhouse debut as Claude Frollo. Adam Koch and Richard Latta are nominated for Best Set Design and Best Lighting Design for their work in transporting audiences to fifteenth century Paris and inside the cathedral walls made famous by Victor Hugo's classic novel. The Ogunquit production was helmed by director Shaun Kerrison and also starred F. Michael Haynie in his Playhouse debut as Quasimodo, alongside a cast of Broadway veterans, including Sydney Morton, Christopher Johnstone, and Paolo Montalban.

Bradley Dean gave a critically acclaimed performance as the menacing Claude Frollo in the Ogunquit Playhouse production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and has appeared on Broadway in A Little Night Music, The Last Ship, Company, Doctor Zhivago, Spamalot, The Story of My Life, Evita, Jane Eyre, Man of La Mancha as well as many Off-Broadway, National Tours and regional theatre productions.

Adam Koch designed an all new set exclusively for the Ogunquit production that reached out over the audience, complete with areas for Quasimodo to venture. Mr. Koch previously designed sets for the Ogunquit Playhouse productions of Sister Act and Saturday Night Fever. He has designed sets for theatres across the nation, including the landmark outdoor production of Carousel and The Sleepy Hollow Experience for Serenbe Playhouse; the original Chicago production of Million Dollar Quartet at the Apollo Theatre; Hello, Dolly! for Ford's Theater; Miss Saigon, Dreamgirls, Kiss of the Spiderwoman (2008 Helen Hayes nomination), and See What I Wanna See for Signature Theatre; and Bat Boy for 1st Stage for which he received a 2015 Helen Hayes nomination. His Off-Broadway credits include Rooms: A Rock Romance, Loaded, We the People, Pinkalicious and Freckleface Strawberry.

Richard Latta created the bold and dramatic lighting which swept the audience back in time and created the atmosphere for this beloved classic. A 30 year veteran of the Ogunquit Playhouse, Mr. Latta previously created the lighting for Playhouse productions of Sister Act, Victor Victoria, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Million Dollar Quartet, Saturday Night Fever and White Christmas at the Music Hall, in Portsmouth, NH. His recent work includes Sister Act for North Shore Music Theater; Ain't Misbehavin' for Alabama Shakespeare Festival; El Posada Nunca Se Termina projections at the Chicago Lyric Opera; A Christmas Story; Hasbro Toy Fair 2016; and Newark Arts Ballet 2016. His previous work includes Cabaret at Engeman Theatre, Maltz Jupiter, and the Ogunquit Playhouse; projection research for the opera Moby Dick in Houston, SF, Sydney and the Kennedy Center; Thurgood and The People In The Picture on Broadway; and Fiddler on the Roof for both Engeman and the Ogunquit Playhouse.

"We are honored to be nominated along with some of New England's best theatres by this year's IRNE Awards! We are extremely proud of the exceptional creative team and wonderful cast who made it possible for The Hunchback of Notre Dame to be recognized by the IRNE nominating committee and want to extend our congratulations to Bradley, Adam and Rich. I am thrilled for Bradley Dean to be recognized for his debut performance here at The Playhouse, and equally delighted for Adam and Rich to be lauded for their creative work," Bradford Kenney, Executive Artistic Director at the Ogunquit Playhouse.

The Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Awards were founded by Beverly Creasey of The Journal Newspapers and Larry Stark of Theater Mirror in 1997. The IRNE Award ceremony is New England's largest theater arts recognition program, recognizing the work of playwrights, designers, actors, choreographers and directors among small, mid-size, small and fringe theater companies throughout the previous year. The IRNE Awards recognize the extraordinary wealth of talent in the Boston and New England theatre community. The IRNE Award ceremony will take place on Monday, April 11, at 7:30 pm (doors at 7 p.m.), at the 1200 Hotel Ballroom (The Holiday Inn) in Brookline, MA, just outside Kenmore Square. All are invited, the event is free and open to the public - but registration is required due to space limitatons.

About the Ogunquit Playhouse: The Ogunquit Playhouse is America's Foremost Summer Theatre, a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, producing the finest Broadway musicals each season, with performances Tuesday through Sunday, from mid-May through October. Follow the Ogunquit Playhouse on Twitter (@OgunquitPH) and "Like" us on Facebook (facebook.com/OgunquitPlayhouse) for behind-the-scenes info, photos and fun all year. For a complete list of show times, pricing and more information visit www.ogunquitplayhouse.org.

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