The Goodman Theatre’s production of Candide, Chicago Shakespeare’s production of Alan Bennett’s The Madness of George III, Remy Bumppo’s production of Edward Albee’s The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?, and American Theater Company’s The Original Grease won top honors for productions at the Equity Joseph Jefferson Awards.
The ceremony, at the Drury Lane Oakbrook on Nov. 7, was hosted by actors Bernie Yvon and David Girolmo.
Additionally, Candide, which was co-produced with Washington, D.C.’s Shakespeare Theatre Company, won awards for Geoff Packard as actor in a principal role in a musical; for Larry Yando as actor in a supporting role in a musical (Yando will return to Goodman as Scrooge this month), for Hollis Resnik as actress in a supporting role in a musical; and for director/adapter Mary Zimmerman for her new adaptation of the original book. 
The Madness of George III and Candide tied for most awards
The Madness of George III tied with Candide with most awards for the night with its five wins for:
Director Penny Metropulos, a longtime vet of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, who thanked Chicago artists for making her feel so welcome; principal actor Harry Groener, who remembered to thank his dressers and make-up artists; costumer Susan E. Mickey and for Melissa Veal’s wig and make-up design (Groener knew what he was talking about, apparently), in the category of “artistic specialization,” which she shared with Tracy Otwell’s toy theater design and for the Lookingglass Theatre production of The Last Act of Lilka Kadison.
Besides winning best production of a play in a midsize theater, Remy Bumppo’s take on Albee’s tale of a man with an unusual midlife romantic obsession won honors for principal actress Annabel Armour.
American Theater Company’s production of The Original Grease, which went back to the gritty origins of the 1971 production, brought a gleeful Jim Jacobs, who seemed about to break into a jig, to the stage along with artistic director PJ Paparelli.
Paparelli credited a Chris Jones Chicago Tribune interview with Jacobs, in which he talked about how different the original production was from the subsequent musical theater juggernaut, with giving him the idea to go back to the original show.
Curiously, Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s acclaimed production of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? came away empty-handed, despite the fact that it’s bound for Broadway next year.
David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish the best new play
Another show currently on the Great White Way, David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish, which premiered at the Goodman this summer, shared the honors for best new play with Bruce Graham’s The Outgoing Tide at Northlight Theatre.
Hwang praised two other companies that produced his work in Chicago this summer – Silk Road Theatre Project, which presented Yellow Face, and non-Equity Halcyon Theatre, which staged his very early work, Family Devotions. Chinglish scenic designer David Korins also won in the large production category.
Silk Road (now known as Silk Road Rising) had a good night, winning three awards: the company’s first Jeff wins for its production of Wajdi Mouwad’s drama Scorched (which may be familiar to some in its film version, Incendies).
Diana Simonzadeh won best supporting actress in a play, and the show also won honors for Sarah Hughey’s lighting design and Peter J. Storms’ sound design in a midsize production.
Second City e.t.c’s production of Sky’s the Limit (Weather Permitting) took three Jeffs in the revue category, including best production.
Court Theater’s Newell best director of a musical
Perhaps the most visibly moved recipient of the night was Charles Newell, artistic director of the Court Theatre, honored as best director of a musical for his production of Porgy and Bess.
Newell described the “spiritual journey” he took with the show, including visits to South Side African-American congregations.
Special awards went to outgoing Actors Equity Association central regional director Kathryn V. Lamkey and to Sun-Times theater and dance critic Hedy Weiss.
Weiss paid tribute to Chicago artists and to her 87-year-old mother who was present, and also recalled performing the “hump the hostess” speech from Virginia Woolf for her ninth-grade class. “I had no idea what it meant,” she said.
The late Joyce Sloane’s spirit felt all night
The memoriam section reminded the audience of those who passed away, which this year included a large number of women who devoted themselves to teaching and promoting the talent of others, particularly at the Second City: Josephine Forsberg, Mary Scruggs, and Joyce Sloane, and Dr. Bella Itkin of DePaul University’s Theatre School.
Director Matt Hovde paid humorous tribute to Sloane, the First Lady of Second City who mentored so many for so many years, by noting that “Joyce Sloan would normally be here – sleeping in the back.”
But if there’s an afterlife, Sloane probably felt the joy emanating from the high-spirited Jeff winners Monday night.
Click here for a complete winners’ list.
Send news and items of interest to kerryreid@comcast.net.
