OKAY...I see theatre like every night of my life. and yet, I haven't seen a single show that's won one of these IT Awards, which supposedly award Off-Off-Broadway. The problem with this (not that there's anything wrong with recognizing the work that goes on there) is that Off-Off-Broadway is a totally amorphous concept.
Does it include Fringe shows? New York Musical Theatre? The other festivals? Small-scale Shakespeare in street corners? Richard Foreman stuff? Performance art?
Off-Off-Broadway, as you're probably aware, is pretty much the lowest of the low in terms of theater economics. Traditionally, Off-Off-Broadway takes place in a 1-99 seat theater, whereas Off-Broadway is in a 100-499 seat theater, and Broadway is 500 seats plus.
Here's the press release:
Off-Off-Broadway honors their own in style when the
IT Awards Announced the 2007 Recipients
New York, NY: On September 24th, 2007, the IT Awards (New York Innovative
Theatre Awards), the organization dedicated to celebrating Off-Off-Broadway,
announced the 2007 award recipients at a spectacular evening hosted by the
captivating Julie Halston. The awards were announced last evening at 7pm in
FIT's Haft Auditorium located in Building C of FIT's campus on 27th Street
(bwt 7/8 aves) to a standing room only crowd.
Outstanding Ensemble
Boo Killebrew, Julia Lowrie Henderson, Ryan Purcell, Max Rosenak, Phillip
Taratula and Daniel Walker Stowell
6969, CollaborationTown, A Theatre Company Inc.
Outstanding Solo Performance
Mike Houston
The Ledge, eavesdrop
Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role
Joe Plummer
As You Like It, poortom Productions
Outstanding Actress in a Featured Role
Boo Killebrew
6969, CollaborationTown, A Theatre Company Inc.
Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role
Max Rosenak
6969, CollaborationTown, A Theatre Company Inc.
Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role
Susan Louise O'Connor
the silent concerto, Packawallop Productions, Inc.
Outstanding Choreography/Movement
Dan Safer
Dancing Vs the Rat Experiment, La MaMa ETC in association with Witness
Relocation
Outstanding Director
Daniel Talbott
Rules of the Universe, Rising Phoenix Repertory
Outstanding Lighting Design
Peter Hoerburger
The Present Perfect, The Operating Theater
Outstanding Costume Design
David Withrow
Bug Boy Blues, The Looking Glass Theatre
Outstanding Set Design
George Allison
Picasso at the Lapin Agile, T. Schreiber Studio
Outstanding Sound Design
Ryan Maeker & Tim Schellenbaum
Dancing Vs the Rat Experiment, La MaMa ETC in association with Witness
Relocation
Outstanding Original Music
Leanne Darling
The Landlord, Toy Box Theatre Company
Outstanding Original Full Length Script
Saviana Stanescu
Waxing West, East Coast Artists
Outstanding Original Short Script
Daniel Reitz
Rules of the Universe, Rising Phoenix Repertory
Outstanding Production of a Performance Art Piece
Dancing Vs the Rat Experiment
La MaMa ETC in association with Witness Relocation
Outstanding Production of a Musical
Urinetown
The Musical, The Gallery Players
Outstanding Production of a Play
Bouffon Glass Menajoree
Ten Directions
Comments (1)
Hi Matt,
Shay Gines here, one of the Executive Directors of the New York Innovative Theatre Awards. First of all, thank you so much for writing about all of these great artists and companies. I'm sure they welcome all the buzz and promotions they can get.
I agree that Off-Off-Broadway is sometimes difficult to define. That is one of the things that keeps OOB so vibrant, relevant and immediate. It does not have to conform to any predetermined set of values or expectations. Yes, it is limited in terms of financial resources, but it is limitless in terms of artistic freedom.
Off-Off-Broadway also has a long and rich heritage. It began in 1958 and has been a driving force in American theatre ever since. There are some OOB companies that have been around for over 40 years and some artists who have dedicated themselves to creating art in this environment because it gives them ownership of their work. Currently there are some 40,000 artists working OOB.
You may not have heard of most of these companies prior to these awards, but you've heard of them now. In fact, you've blogged about them and ultimately, that is the point of these awards, to bring recognition to and awareness of these dedicated and talented artists.
The IT Awards are determined based on a peer evaluation system and we do adjudicate Fringe Shows, productions by Richard Forman's company, all kinds of performances that happen in the parks and lots of performance art all over New York City.
If you would like to see more Off-Off-Broadway theatre, please let me know and I will gladly introduce you to some of these truly outstanding organizations.
Once again thank you.
Shay Gines
www.nyitawards.com.