New York Innovative Theatre Awards 2013: Off-Off Broadway’s Best

TerraNOVA Collective, who received the Caffe Cino Fellowship Award at the 2013 New York Independent Theater Award
TerraNOVA Collective, who received the Caffe Cino Fellowship Award at the 2013 New York Independent Theater Award

Chosen from some 2,000 Off-Off Broadway (aka independent) productions, the New York Innovative Theatre Awards nominated 134 individual artists, 60 different productions and 60 Off-Off-Broadway theatre companies.

Here is a video I put together interviewer presenters (such as Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz and Broadway actress Jane Houdyshell) and winners asking: Why Off-Off Broadway?

Below are a list of the winners, announced in a ceremony, September 30, 2013.

Special Awards
Richard Foreman, Artistic Achievement Award
The Dramatists Guild Fund, Elen Stewart Award
terraNOVA Collective, Cafe Cino Fellowship Awad
Abbey Bay, outstanding Stage Manager Award
Mariah MacCarthy, 2013 Doric Wilson Independent playwright Award

Competitive categories — winners marked with  an asterisk.

 

Outstanding Ensemble

*The Window:4 ALICEPopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York
Inés Garcia, Robin Johnson, Nick Smerkanich

 

Clown Bar, Pipeline Theatre Company
Willy Appelman, Ian Axness
,Andrew Farmer, Jessica Frey, Daniel Johnsen, Kelley Rae O’Donnell, Claire Rothrock, Dan Tracy, Amir Wachterman, Noah Zachary, Shane Zeigler

Fool for Love, The Rising Sun Performance Company
Ryan Dusek,
 Larry Gutman, Christina G. Mulikin, Jonathan

That Lady from Maxim‘s, Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.
Amanda Baumler,
 Michael R. Buscemi, Amara Haaksman, Arthur Lundquist, Alex Mace,John Mervini, Tom Morin, Anna Price, Marissa Rosano, Stephen Ryan, Cecilia Vaicels

Macbeth, The Crook Theater Company
Teddy Alvaro
, Jacob Cribbs, Daniel K. Isaac, Ben Kahre, Dan Morrison, Lloyd Mulvey,Richard Prioleau, Ed Renninger, Max Rosenak, Amanda Sykes

The Rise And Fall Of A Teenage Cyberqueen, LabRats Theatre Company
Casey Greig
, Jinn S. Kim, Perry Lewis, Daniela Mastropietro, Jacob Perkins, Kathryn Wilson

Outstanding Solo Performance

*Erin Treadway 
Spaceman
, Loading Dock Theatre Company

 David Calvitto 
The Event
, terraNOVA Collective

Nat Cassidy 
Generic Magic Realism
, Temerity Theatre Company

Jonathan Draxton 
Soldier
, The Plowmen

Mark Sam Rosenthal 
I Light Up My Life: The Mark Sam Celebrity Autobiography
, terraNOVA Collective

Harmony Stempel 
Human Fruit Bowl
, terraNOVA Collective


Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role

Julia Murney presenting NYITA award to Justin Danforth.
Julia Murney presenting NYITA award to Justin Danforth.

*Justin Danforth 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Andrew Farmer 
Clown Bar
, Pipeline Theatre Company

Joe Fellman 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Michael Shattner 
Island; Or, To Be or Not to Be
, NY Shakespeare Exchange

Caliaf St. Aubyn
Dreamgirls
, The Gallery Players

Montgomery Sutton 
King Lear
, American Bard Theater Company

Outstanding Actress in a Featured Role

*Lauren Pennline 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Julie Asriyan-Piotrowski 
Israel Horovitz One-Acts
, Ethikos Productions

Aimee Cucchiaro 
The House of Von Macrame
, The Management

Kelley Rae O’Donnell 
Clown Bar
, Pipeline Theatre Company

Marissa Rosano 
That Lady from Maxim’s
, Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Amanda Sykes 
Macbeth
, The Crook Theater Company

Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role

*Nick Smerkanich 
The Window:4 ALICE
, PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

J. Stephen Brantley 
That’s Her Way
, En Avant Playwrights

David L. Carson 
King Lear
, American Bard Theater Company

Robbie Collier Sublett
American River
, Lesser America

Ryan Dusek 
Fool for Love
, The Rising Sun Performance Company

Sean Meehan 
Realists
, jil productions

Brandon Walker 

Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Seeing Place Theater

Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role

*Amara Haaksman 
That Lady from Maxim’s
, Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Becky Byers 
Hearts Like Fists
, Flux Theatre Ensemble

Michelle Eugene 
The Detour
, Metropolitan Playhouse

Inés Garcia 
The Window:4 ALICE
, PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

Carmit Levité 

The Chekhov Dreams, WorkShop Theater Company

Kathryn Wilson 
The Rise And Fall Of A Teenage Cyberqueen
, LabRats Theatre Company

Outstanding Choreography/Movement

*Jessica Burr and Sonia Vilani 
Eurydice’s Dream, Blessed Unrest in association with The Interart Theatre

Melanie S. Armer 
The Window:4 ALICE
, PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

Joe Barros 
Hard Times
, The Cell Theatre Company

Alexis Black
Happily After Tonight
, A Five Dollar Bill

David Fuller and Judith Jarosz
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
, Theater 2020

Rocio Mendez and Adam Swiderski
Hearts Like Fists
, Flux Theatre Ensemble

Outstanding Director

*Padraic Lillis 
The Rise And Fall Of A Teenage Cyberqueen
, LabRats Theatre Company

Lance Hewett 
That Lady from Maxim’s,
 Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Judith Jarosz 
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
, Theater 2020

Kelly O’Donnell 
Hearts Like Fists
, Flux Theatre Ensemble

Jordan Reeves 
The Tragedy of King Arthur by W. Shakespeare, a play by Arthur Phillips
, Guerrilla Shakespeare Project

Tom Wojtunik 
Blood Brothers
, Astoria Performing Arts Center

Outstanding Lighting Design

*Maruti Evans 
Will Elliott’s The Pilo Family Circus
, Godlight Theatre Company

Nicholas Houfek 
The Future Is Not What IT Was
, Kindling Theater Company

Dan Jobbins 
Blood Brothers
, Astoria Performing Arts Center

Emma M. Schimminger 
Antigone
, Perchance To Dream Theatre

Carl Wiemann 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew 
So Go the Ghosts of Mexico – part one
, LaMaMa Experimental Theater Club

Outstanding Costume Design

*Daniela Codarcea Kamiliotis 
The Window:4 ALICE
, PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

Travis Alexandra Boatright 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Meghan Gaber 
Clown Bar
, Pipeline Theatre Company

Viviane Galloway 
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
, Theater 2020

Kristina Makowski and Jessica Wegener Shay 
Geek!
, Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company

Egle Paulauskaite 
Garden of Delights
, The New Stage Theatre Company in association with Theatre for the New City

Tristan Raines 
The House of Von Macrame
, The Management

Outstanding Set Design

*Daniela Codarcea Kamiliotis 
The Window:4 ALICE
, PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

Stephen K. Dobay 
Blood Brothers
, Astoria Performing Arts Center

George Hoffmann & Greg Kozatek 
The Future Is Not What IT Was
, Kindling Theater Company

James Ortiz 
On the Head of a Pin
, Strangemen and Company

Lynne Porter 
The Tragedy of King Arthur by W. Shakespeare, a play by Arthur Phillips
, Guerrilla Shakespeare Project

Andy Yanni 
The Thirteenth Commandment
, Libra Theater Company

Outstanding Sound Design

*Leegrid Stevens 
Spaceman
, Loading Dock Theatre Company

Ien Denio 
Will Elliott’s The Pilo Family Circus
, Godlight Theatre Company

Nick Moore 
The Drawer Boy
, Oberon Theatre Ensemble

Phil Pickens 
Macbeth
, The Crook Theater Company

Elizabeth Rhodes 
So Go the Ghosts of Mexico – part one
, LaMaMa Experimental Theater Club

Jane Shaw and Emma Wilk 
P.S. Jones and The Frozen City
, terraNOVA Collective

 

Outstanding Innovative Design

*Lynda White 
Mask Design & Construction
Oedipus Rex XX/XY
, The Faux-Real Theatre Company

Laia Cabrera, Isabelle Duverger and Ildiko Nemeth
Projection Design, Video-Art and Animations
Garden of Delights
, The New Stage Theatre Company in association with Theatre for the New City

Imaginary Media and Puppet Kitchen
Puppet & Video Design
P.S. Jones and The Frozen City
, terraNOVA Collective

Jeremy Mather 
Video Design and Production
Space Captain: Captain of Space!
, No Tea Productions

Roxanne Palmer 
Puppet Design
Demonology
, AntiMatter Collective

Justin Wagner 
Original Illustrations
Telemachus, Darling
, Hole In The Sky

Outstanding Original Music

*Bryan Williams 
That Lady from Maxim’s
, Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Deepali Gupta and Zach Segel 
Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights
, Production Workshop in association with Kickstarter Backers

Shruti Kumar
Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights
, NEW FORMS Theater Makers

Paul Leschen 
Bedbugs!!! The Comedy Sci-Fi Thriller Rock Musical
, Bedbugs The Musical LLC

Ned Massey 
Four Messages
, No Accidents Productions

Michael Sgouros 
Hollow – the musical
, Literally Alive

Outstanding Original Short Script

*Jonathan Draxton 
Soldier
, The Plowmen

John Clancy 
The Event
, terraNOVA Collective

Jonathan Draxton 
Soldier
, The Plowmen

Angela C. Hall 
Greenlight
 from Room 128, The Rising Sun Performance Company

Andrea Kuchlewska 
Human Fruit Bowl
, terraNOVA Collective

Bob Manus 
A Man Walks into a Bar 
from You  Are Here, WorkShop Theater Company

Kathleen Warnock 
That’s Her Way
, En Avant Playwrights

Outstanding Original Full-length Script

*Bryan Williams 
That Lady from Maxim’s
, Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Johnna Adams 
Sans Merci
, Flux Theatre Ensemble

Dennis Flanagan 
How I Learned to Become a Superhero
, Apothecary Theatre Company

Lindsay Joy 
The Rise And Fall Of A Teenage Cyberqueen
, LabRats Theatre Company

John McKinney 
The Chekhov Dreams
, WorkShop Theater Company

Leegrid Stevens 
Spaceman
, Loading Dock Theatre Company

 

Outstanding Performance Art Production

*Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights
Production Workshop in association with Kickstarter Backers

Eterniday
LaMaMa Experimental Theater Club in association with Witness Relocation

Eurydice’s Dream
Blessed Unrest in association with The Interart Theatre

Tar Baby
Platt Productions LLC in association with Neighborhood Productions

Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind
New York Neo-Futurists

Where There Was Fire
Tabula RaSa NYC Theater and Performance Lab in association with Theater For The New City

Outstanding Production of a Musical

*That Lady from Maxim’s
Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc

Bedbugs!!! The Comedy Sci-Fi Thriller Rock Musical
Bedbugs The Musical LLC

Blood Brothers
Astoria Performing Arts Center

Bumbug
Laughistan, LLC

Four Messages
No Accidents Productions

Hard Times
The Cell Theatre Company

.

Outstanding Premiere Production of A Play

*The Rise And Fall Of A Teenage Cyberqueen LabRats Theatre Company

Coney
Blue Coyote Theater Group

Garden of Delights
The New Stage Theatre Company in association with Theatre for the New City

Spaceman
Loading Dock Theatre Company

The Thirteenth Commandment
Libra Theater Company

The Window:4 ALICE
PopUp Theatrics in association with the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

Outstanding Revival of A Play

*Macbeth
The Crook Theater Company

Cowboy Mouth
One Old Crow Productions

The Detour
Metropolitan Playhouse

The Drawer Boy
Oberon Theatre Ensemble

The Drowning Girls
Strange Sun Theater

A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Theater 2020

Author: New York Theater

Jonathan Mandell is a 3rd generation NYC journalist, who sees shows, reads plays, writes reviews and sometimes talks with people.

6 thoughts on “New York Innovative Theatre Awards 2013: Off-Off Broadway’s Best

  1. 2,000 shows, 60 nominated productions, but still half-a-dozen shows win multiple awards — either 99% of OOB sux, or there’s a voting problem here.

      1. If so few shows are very good, then OOB has a much bigger problem than its awards. And we wonder why general audiences don’t want to take a chance on OOB. With awards handed out like this, aren’t we essentially telling them that the odds are not worth the risk?

      2. What’s the risk exactly? Most New York independent theater shows have cheaper admission than a movie. Most have short running times, and have short runs. Those that turn out to be amazing tend to be extended or transfer. If you’re not an adventurous sort, you can watch for the buzz and good reviews that attend the best shows — or look to past experience or such awards as the NYITAwards to attend the new shows by theater companies with good track records.
        I have no stake in these particular awards, by the way. I think it’s too bad that a theater has to apply in order to be considered. For some reason, one of the best of the Off-Off Broadway houses, The Flea, doesn’t do so, and so isn’t recognized. So there are no definitive awards for Off-Off Broadway — but, I would argue, the Tonys are hardly definitive for Broadway either. Perhaps there are inherent flaws in any award. The best it can do is offer a little guidance.

  2. I know that this is a bit late, but I did want to let you know why productions need to register with the awards in order to be in consideration. There are 2 basic reasons 1) We do not assume that everyone wants to be considered for an award. We know that there are many artists would prefer not be in consideration and we respect that. 2) These awards are based on a peer evaluation process that requires participation from the community — the entire point of these awards is to get artists to see each others’ work, build connections, awareness and a stronger community and help to promote work that is happening on these stages. Because it requires participation in the peer evaluation process from every production, we have to know that productions want to participate.

    The Flea has registered a handful of times. And it is an amazing company that is producing some beautiful work. With nearly 2,000 productions running Off-Off-Broadway each year, it would be nearly impossible to be definitive. We do our best to support the community and celebrate some of the outstanding work happening on our stages.

    Also we are not the only awards for OOB. There are some other important groups that are also recognizing OOB artists such as The Frigid Festival, the Fringe Festival and Planet Connections.

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