The Alliance Theatre prevailed at the 10th-annual Suzi Bass Awards, Atlanta’s equivalent of Broadway’s Tonys, which recognized outstanding achievements from the 2013-14 theater season in a star-studded ceremony on Monday night at the Porter Sanford Performing Arts Center in Decatur.
The Alliance’s “Harmony,” based on a true story about an all-male singing group in Germany at the outbreak of World War II and featuring music by Barry Manilow, was named the year’s best production of a musical. In addition, the show won in four other categories, including director (musical) for Tony Speciale and ensemble (musical) for its cast.
The award for best production of a play went to the company’s staging of “Choir Boy,” Tarell Alvin McCraney’s drama about a gay student at an all-black prep school for boys, which was also acknowledged with awards for director (play) for Trip Cullman and ensemble (play).
Among individual shows, the biggest winner was Aurora Theatre’s recent “Mary Poppins,” which flew away with a total of six trophies, including lead actress and lead actor in a musical for co-stars Galen Crawley (in the title role) and Andy Meeks (as the chimney sweep, Bert), and music direction for Ann-Carol Pence.
Natasha Drena’s take on Judy Garland in Actor’s Express’ “End of the Rainbow” was the popular front runner to claim the prize for lead actress in a play, which she did. But, for fans who couldn’t decide whether to root for Andrew Benator or Neal A. Ghant as lead actor for True Colors Theatre’s “Race,” the nicest surprise of the night was that both co-stars won – in a tie.
There was another tie for featured actress in a play between LaLa Cochran (in Theatrical Outfit’s “Best of Enemies”) and Courtenay Collins (in the Alliance’s “The Geller Girls”). Richard Garner, co-founder and artistic director of the recently dissolved Georgia Shakespeare, won featured actor in a play for “One Man, Two Guvnors,” which turned out to be the final show of the company’s 29-year career.
In the musical categories, Austin Tijerina danced off with the featured actor award as Will Parker in Serenbe Playhouse’s “Oklahoma!” and Marcie Millard was cited as featured actress for her Miss Hannigan in Atlanta Lyric Theatre’s “Annie.”
Best world-premiere production went to the Express’ “Pluto” (by former Atlantan Steve Yockey), while Suehyla El-Attar garnered the Gene-Gabriel Moore award for new work by an Atlanta-based playwright for her Horizon Theatre drama “Third Country.”
In this year’s newly expanded Theater for Young Audiences categories, Suzi voters tapped the Center for Puppetry Arts’ “1001 Nights: A Love Story about Loving Stories” for best production and ensemble. Peter Hardy won director for Georgia Ensemble’s “And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank,” and the Alliance’s “Shrek, the Musical” nabbed the award for design.
Wig designer Monty Schuth, whose local theater career spans three decades, was bestowed the 2014 Lifetime Achievement award. Stage Door Players’ Beverly Powell received the award for Volunteer of the Year. And Actor’s Express took the Audience Choice award for best theater company, voted on by the general public.
Other winners:
Scenic design (play): Isabel A. and Moriah Curley-Clay for “Elemeno Pea” (Horizon)
Lighting design (play): Ken Yunker for “The Geller Girls”
Costume design (play): Erik Teague for “The Navigator” (7 Stages)
Sound design (play): Klimchak for “The Navigator”
Scenic design (musical): Shannon Robert for “Mary Poppins”
Lighting design (musical): Jeff Croiter and Darrell Maloney for “Harmony”
Costume design (musical): Sydney Roberts for “Mary Poppins”
Sound design (musical): John Shivers and David Patridge for “Harmony”
Choreography: Jen MacQueen for “Mary Poppins”
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