Dundas, Epstein, LuPone, et al. Receive 2006 IRNE Award Nominations

Nominations for the 2006 Independent Reviewers of New England’s (IRNE) Awards, honoring the best productions in and around Massachusetts, have been announced. The awards will be presented on March 19 at the Boston Center for the Arts.

Among the shows with multiple nominations are North Shore Music Theatre’s Hairspray, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Ain’t Misbehavin’; The Huntington Theatre Company productions of Mauritius and Radio Golf; A.R.T.’s production of No Exit; SpeakEasy’s productions of Caroline, or Change and Five By Tenn; and the Reagle Players’ productions of Beauty and the Beast and The Will Rogers Follies.

The Roundabout Theatre Company’s touring production of Twelve Angry Men got three nominations, including Best Visiting Production (Large). Its competitors in that category are Altar Boyz, Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit, The Importance of Being Earnest, Monty Python’s Spamalot, and Wicked.

Among the performers nominated are Jenni Barber and Jared Gertner for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Leigh Barrett for Ragtime, Jennifer Dundas for Taming of the Shrew, Jonathan Epstein, who recieved two nominations, one for Via Dolorosa and one for Othello, and Patti LuPone for The Lady With the Torch.

For a complete list of nominees, visit www.stagesource.org.