Theatre Philadelphia Announces Nominees for Four Barrymore Awards; Sets 2013 Ceremony for 11/4

As the new Barrymore Awards system gets underway for the 2013/14 season, Theatre Philadelphia is thrilled to announce its 2013 Theatre Celebration will be held the evening of Monday, November 4 at Arden Theatre Company. Four Barrymore Awards will be presented at this year's ceremony: the Lifetime Achievement Award, the F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist, the Brown Martin Philadelphia Award, and the brand new Steve and June Wolfson Award for an Evolving Theatre. Ticket prices are $40 for the ceremony and after-party and $25 for the after-party only. Tickets go on sale Monday, September 16 at www.theatrephiladelphia.org. Arden Theatre Company is located at 40 N. 2nd Street.

Following the awards ceremony on the Arden's F. Otto Haas Stage, guests will head to the Arden's new Hamilton Family Arts Center for an after-party with cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and special performances featuring some of Philadelphia's favorite theatre artists, who will bring back to life the most memorable stage moments of the 2012/13 season (with a little artistic license thrown in for good measure).

This year's Lifetime Achievement Award will be given posthumously to celebrated local actress, director and teaching artist Ceal Phelan, who passed away in February after a decade-long battle with cancer.

The F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Philadelphia Theatre Artist finalists truly showcase the depth of the Philadelphia theatre community. They are: Liz Filios, actress, teacher, writer, composer and member of the Bearded Ladies Cabaret; local physical comedienne, actress and director Charlotte Ford; playwright Jacqueline Goldfinger; director, producer and Swim Pony Performing Arts founder Adrienne Mackey; and Alex Torra, actor, director, co-founder of Team Sunshine Performance Company and frequent Pig Iron Theatre Company collaborator.

Nominees for the Brown Martin Philadelphia Award are: 1812 Productions for It's My Party: The Women and Comedy Project; Arden Theatre Company for Next to Normal; Simpatico Theatre Project for The Amish Project; and The Wilma Theater for Angels in America, Part Two: Perestroika.

New this year is the Steve and June Wolfson Award for an Evolving Theatre, which recognizes, promotes and rewards the creativity, growth and excellence of evolving theatres within the Greater Philadelphia community. The inaugural nominees are: 11th Hour Theatre Company, Azuka Theatre, EgoPo Classic Theatre, Inis Nua Theatre Company and Quintessence Theatre Group.

2013 Barrymore Award Nominees:

This year's Lifetime Achievement Award will be given posthumously to celebrated local actress, director and teaching artist Ceal Phelan, who passed away in February after a decade-long battle with cancer. Phelan was a four-time Barrymore Award nominee for her work in The Breath of Life (2010) at Lantern Theater Company; and Six Characters in Search of an Author (2008), Have It Your Way (1997), and My Mother Said I Never Should (1996) at People's Light & Theatre, where she was a longtime resident company member. She also co-founded Delaware Theatre Company with Cleveland Morris and husband Peter DeLaurier in 1978.

The F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Philadelphia Theatre Artist is awarded annually to a rising talent in the Greater Philadelphia region. Funded by Carole Haas Gravagno through The CHG Charitable Trust, this award includes a $10,000 cash prize for the recipient and $1,000 for each finalist. The only award of its kind in the nation, it is intended to support an artist's living expenses so they can focus on their craft, as well as to encourage the artist to remain in the Greater Philadelphia community. The 2013 finalists truly showcase the depth of the Philadelphia theatre community: Liz Filios, actress, teacher, writer, composer and member of the Bearded Ladies Cabaret; local physical comedienne, actress and director Charlotte Ford; playwright Jacqueline Goldfinger; director, producer and Swim Pony Performing Arts founder Adrienne Mackey; and Alex Torra, actor, director, co-founder of Team Sunshine Performance Company and frequent Pig Iron Theatre Company collaborator.

The Brown Martin Philadelphia Award seeks to honor those plays that best lead audiences to a better understanding of the unique experience of particular segments of our global community. Through their accurate and insightful representation of perspectives unique to gender, ethnicity, religion, age and other categories of specialized experience, these plays enlighten us and help us to better appreciate different points of view without demanding that we agree with them. The award carries a $25,000 cash prize and is funded by the Virginia Brown Martin Fund. This year's nominees are: 1812 Productions for It's My Party: The Women and Comedy Project; Arden Theatre Company for Next to Normal; Simpatico Theatre Project for The Amish Project; and The Wilma Theater for Angels in America, Part Two: Perestroika.

New this year is the Steve and June Wolfson Award for an Evolving Theatre, which recognizes, promotes and rewards the creativity, growth and excellence of evolving theatres within the Greater Philadelphia community. The award is intended to help foster interaction within the theatre community, increase the community's richness and diversity, and to focus public awareness and accessibility to the most vibrant professional theatre community in the nation. The award carries a $10,000 prize and is sponsored by the June and Steve Wolfson Family Fund. To be considered for the award, theatres must have a maximum annual budget of $400,000. The inaugural nominees are: 11th Hour Theatre Company, Azuka Theatre, EgoPo Classic Theatre, Inis Nua Theatre Company and Quintessence Theatre Group.

Theatre Philadelphia aims to serve as the public representation and communications platform for those creating and appreciating theatre in Philadelphia and beyond, while bringing together the Greater Philadelphia theatre community to support the needs and values of our artists, professionals and companies. Theatre Philadelphia was founded by a group of local theatre leaders, including Susan Atkinson (Founding Director, Bristol Riverside Theatre), Stacy Dutton (Board President, Lantern Theater Company), Kevin Glaccum (Producing Artistic Director, Azuka Theatre),Grace Grillet (Managing Director, People's Light & Theatre), Leonard C. Haas (Actor and Philanthropist), Amy Murphy (Managing Director, Arden Theatre Company), Terrence J. Nolen (Producing Artistic Director, Arden Theatre Company), Erin Reilly (Artistic Director, Theatre Horizon), Anne Shuff(Managing Director, Lantern Theater Company) and Thom Weaver (Artistic Director, Flashpoint Theatre Company). Visit www.theatrephiladelphia.org for information.

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