Theater News

Oh, Happy Night!

TheaterMania catches up with James Earl Jones, Patti LuPone, Paulo Szot, Edward Albee, and many other winners of the 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards.

New York City

On Sunday, May 18, the 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards were handed out at F.H. LaGuardia High School (see news story), and TheaterMania was on hand to greet all the happy winners, including Paulo Szot, who was named Outstanding Actor in a Musical for South Pacific, which won the award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical.

Laura Benanti, Patti LuPone, and Boyd Gaines were all recognized for their work in the revival of Gypsy.

Mark Rylance was named Outstanding Actor in a Play for his hilarious portrayal of the rube-like Robert in Boeing-Boeing, which also won Outstanding Revival of a Play.

Deanna Dunagan was named Outstanding Actress in a Play for her role as the tough-talking, pill-popping matriarch Violet Weston in August: Osage County, which was also named Outstanding Play.

Linda Lavin was named Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for her work as a Long Island mother in Paul Rudnick’s The New Century.

Bartlett Sher took home the prize as Outstanding Director of a Musical for South Pacific.

Anna D. Shapiro was named Outstanding Director of a Play for August: Osage County.

Douglas Carter Beane won the Drama Desk for Outstanding Book of a Musical for Xanadu.

Heidi Rodewald won the Outstanding Music award with long-time writing partner Stew for Passing Strange, which was also named Outstanding Musical.

Rob Ashford won the award for Outstanding Choreography for his inventive work on Cry-Baby.

Stars Jennifer Ferrin, Charles Edwards, Arnie Burton, and Cliff Saunders were on hand to help accept the Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience for their show The 39 Steps.

The cast of The Homecoming — Raul Esparza, Gareth Saxe, James Frain, Eve Best, Michael McKean, and Ian McShane — won a Drama Desk for Outstanding Ensemble Performance.

The Drama Desks also handed out a number of special awards during the night. Elysabeth Kleinhans accepted the prize for 59E59 Theatres, which was honored for its “imaginative curatorial vision.”

Playwright Edward Albee was honored for his provocative plays, including this season’s Peter and Jerry.

Finally, James Earl Jones — currently starring as Big Daddy in the revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof — was given an award for being “a commanding force on the stage for nearly half a century.”