David Pittu is the recipient of the annual St. Clair Bayfield Award, given to the best performance by an Actor in a Shakespearean play in the New York metropolitan area, while Kate Forbes and John Douglas Thompson are the recipients of the Joe A. Callaway Award, which honors the best performance in a professional production of a classic play (one written prior to 1920) in the New York metropolitan area. The awards, presented by the Actors' Equity Foundation, will be given out at Equity's Eastern Regional Membership Meeting on Friday, January 8.

Pittu won the award -- which includes a $1,000 check and a crystal plaque -- for his performance in the Public Theatre's Shakespeare in the Park production of Twelfth Night.

Forbes was recognized for her performance in the Theatre for a New Audience's production of Shakespeare's Othello, while Thompson was cited for his title role performances both in Othello and The Emperor Jones, the latter of which was presented by The Irish Repertory Theatre. The awards include a $1,000 check plus an engraved plaque for each recipient.

The Judges Panel for all of the awards includes journalists Joe Dziemianowicz, Adam Feldman, Susan Haskins, Harry Haun, Michael Kuchwara, and David Rosenberg.