F. Murray Abraham, Matthew Bourne, Estelle Parsons, Diane Paulus, Teal Wicks, et al. Among Elliot Norton Award Nominees

The nominations for the 2011 Elliot Norton Awards, which recognize excellence in Greater Boston theater, have been announced. The winners will be announced in a ceremony to be held on Monday, May 23, at 7pm at the Paramount Mainstage.

Among the most nominated shows is Blue Flower, which has received five nominations, including one for Outstanding Local Musical Production. In addition, Teal Wicks has been nominated for Outstanding Musical Performance and Jim Bauer and Ruth Bauer have received nominations for both Outstanding New Script and Outstanding Design. Also nominated in the Outstanding Local Musical category are American Rep’s Prometheus Bound and Speakeasy Stage Company’s The Great American Trailer Park Musical. The other nominees in the new script category are John Kuntz for The Hotel Nepenthe and Ryan Landry for Mrs. Grinchley’s Christmas Carol.

Other performers nominated in for their work in musicals are Uzo Aduba for Prometheus Bound and Thomas Darrah for Cabaret, both at American Rep. Derrah is also nominated for Outstanding Actor (Large Theater) for his performance in American Rep’s R. Buckminster Fuller: The History and Mystery of the Universe.

Among the other performers who have received nominations in nonmusical categories are F. Murray Abraham (The Merchant of Venice), Noah Bean (Bus Stop), Will Lyman (The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby), Kate MacCluggage (The Merchant of Venice), Estelle Parsons (August: Osage County), and Tonye Patano (Ruined).

In directing categories, Diane Paulus has been nominated in Outstanding Direction (Large Theater) for her work in the national tour of Hair, as well as Johnny Baseball and Prometheus Bound at American Rep. Also nominated in this category are Will Pomerantz for The Blue Flower and Darko Tresnjak for The Merchant of Venice.

Nominated in the Outstanding Choreography category are Matthew Bourne (Mary Poppins), Basil Twist (Petrushka), and Doug Elkins (Fraulein Maria).

Huntington Theater Company has received two nominations in the Outstanding Production (Large Theater) category, for Circle Mirror Transformation and Ruined. The category is rounded out with American Rep’s R. Buckminster Fuller.

In addition, two non-competitive awards have been announced. Director Scott Edmiston, who has staged over 50 shows in the area, has won this year’s Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence, and a special citation has been awarded to Wheelock Family Theatre, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this season.

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