The Seventh Annual Eddon Awards

The Best in LA Theatre for 2016  

  

There are undoubtedly other productions worthy of merit in 2016 which I did not cover. This list is based only on what I saw and reviewed.

(alphabetical listings; Equity, Equity-waiver & Non-Equity productions are mixed)
(artists performing outside LA may be included in performance categories) 

No set, costume, technical awards. I leave that to the bigger awards and to the expertise of those who really know those fields inside out.

BEST PRODUCTIONS

A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson

Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, Annenberg, Palm Springs

Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge


A Slight Ache - Group rep 

A View from the Bridge - Mark Taper Forum

Baby Doll - Fountain Theatre

Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals

(The) Boy from Oz - Celebration Theatre

Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse

Disgraced - Mark Taper Forum (MTF)

(The) Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre

Evita - Cabrillo Music Theatre

(The) Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse

(The) Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse

Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Co

(The) Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts

(The) King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

(The) Little Mermaid - Cabrillo Music Theatre

Memphis - Musical Theatre West (MTW)

Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

Next to Normal - Triage Productions/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse

Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre

(The) Play About the Baby - The Road Theatre Company

Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre

Sister Act - Musical Theatre West (MTW)

Summer and Smoke - Actors Co-op

Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista

Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage Theatre Company at Lankershim Arts Center

FAVORITE HOLIDAY SHOWS

A Cinderella Christmas - Pasadena Playhouse

Little Drummer Bowie - Troubadour Theatre Company at the Falcon Theatre

(The) MeshugaNutcracker! -Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University

White Christmas - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

UNIQUE or SPECIAL EVENTS

An Evening of Classic Broadway - Rockwell Table and Stage

Chris Isaacson Presents The Dreamgirls Reunion Concert in Honor of Its 35th Anniversary - Ford Amphitheatre

For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

LA Now and Then - LA City College

Oye Mi Canto - Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA)

BEST DIRECTORS: PLAY

Don Amendolia - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS

Andre Barron - The Play About the Baby - The Road

Ivo van Hove - A View from the Bridge - Ahmanson

Garry Hynes - The Beauty Queen of Leenane

Christian Lebano - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse

Simon Levy - Baby Doll - Fountain

Calvin Remsberg - Bach at Leipzig - Group rep

Kimberly Senior - Disgraced - MTF

BEST DIRECTORS: MUSICAL

Michael Arden - Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

Glenn Casale - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts

Kay Cole - I Only Have Eyes for You - Ricardo Montalban Theatre

Larry Raben - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista/
The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo

William A. Reilly - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre

Michael A. Shepperd - The Boy from Oz - Celebration

Bartlett Sher - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

BEST ENSEMBLE: PLAY

Airport Encounters - NEO Ensemble at The Lounge

A View from the Bridge - MTF

Baby Doll - Fountain

Bach at Leipzig - Group rep

Beauty Queen of Leenane - MTF

Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse

Disgraced - MTF

Hedda Gabler - Antaeus

Past Time - Sacred Fools at Lillian Theatre

The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe - LGBT Center

Summer and Smoke - Actors Co-op

BEST ENSEMBLE: MUSICAL

The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse

The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - 3-D Theatricals

The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo

Memphis - MTW

Merrily We Roll Along - Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

MeshugaNutcracker! - Gindi Auditorium, American Jewish University

Next to Normal - Triage/Standing Room Prods at Pico Playhouse

Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre

For the Record: SCORSESE American Crime Requiem - Wallis Annenberg

Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Sierra Madre Playhouse

Urinetown The Musical - Coeurage at Lankershim Arts Center

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCES

Britt Adams/Laura Julian/Marsha Waterbury - Agnes of God - Coyote StageWorks, PS

Sam Anderson - John Is a Father/The Play About the Baby - The Road

Andrew Bongiorno - The Boy from Oz - Celebration

Ginna Carter - The Eccentricities of a Nightingale - Pacific Resident Theatre

Hari Dhillon - Disgraced - MTF

Nike Doukas - Hedda Gabler - Antaeus Company

Christian Durso/Katherine James - The Glass Menagerie - Sierra Madre Playhouse

Tanna Frederick/Robert Standley - Jack & Jill - Santa Monica Playhouse

Davis Gaines/Benjamin Schrader - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - MTW

J. Harrison Ghee - Kinky Boots - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

Taylor Gilbert - The Play About the Baby - The Road

Jenna Gillespie/Stu James - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre

Betty Gilpin/Carlos Leal - Barcelona - Geffen Playhouse

Randy Harrison - Cabaret - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

Michelle Holmes - Nosferatu - Crown City Theatre

Jose Llana/Laura Michelle Kelly - The King and I - Hollywood Pantages Theatre

Constance Jewell Lopez - Sister Act - MTW

Kevin Massey/John Rapson - A Gentelman's Guide to Love and Murder - Ahmanson

John McGinty - The Hunchback of Notre Dame - La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts

Abby Mueller - Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - Hollywood Pantages

Cassandra Murphy/Marc Ginsburg - Evita - Cabrillo

Ashley Park - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse

Valerie Perri/Robert Yacko - Hello Dolly! - 3-D Theatricals

Michael Robb/Marcia Woodbury - A Slight Ache - Group rep

Phillipa Soo - Amelie - Ahmanson

French Stewart - Past Time - Sacred Fools

Amy Tolsky/Felicity Wren - Baby Oh Baby - Whitefire Theatre

Rachel York - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson

BEST FEATURED PERFORMANCES

Eric B. Anthony - Recorded in Hollywood - Kirk Douglas Theatre

Richard Bermudez/Bets Malone - Titanic The Musical - Moonlight Amphitheatre, Vista

Allison Blaize/Philip Orazio - The Play About the Baby - The Road

Betty Buckley - Grey Gardens - Ahmanson

Becky Gulsvig/Ben Fankhauser - Beautiful - Hollywood Pantages

Dennis Kyle - Beauty and the Beast - 3-D Theatricals

Hal Linden - The Fantasticks - Pasadena Playhouse

Robert Mammana/Valerie Mahaffy/ James Snyder/John Vickery - Casa Valentina - Pasadena Playhouse

Michael McKean - Father Comes Home from the Wars Parts 1, 2 and 3 - MTF

Bess Motta/Jessica Pennington/Kelly Lester/Michael Mittman - The Boy from Oz - Celebration

Mary Gordon Murray - Sister Act - MTW

Debbie Prutsman - The Little Mermaid - Cabrillo

BEST SOLO SHOWS

HAM - Sam Harris - LGBT Center

SissyBoy - James Mellon - NoHo Arts Center

BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: MALE

Dennis McNeil - The Lounge at The Comedy and Magic Club - Hermosa Beach

Glenn Rosenblum Is The Musical Man - Rockwell Table and Stage

Kurtis Simmons Live - Rockwell Table and Stage

BEST CABARET/CONCERT ARTISTS: FEMALE

Heather Lundstedt - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal

Renee Marino - I Am Me Because of Three - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal

Melba Moore - Forever Moore - Catalina Jazz Club

Kerry O'Malley/Mary Callanan - Everything's Coming Up Rosie - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal

Maggie Randolph - Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal

Lyn Stanley - Interludes Release Party at La Cicada Club

Pat Whiteman/Harriet Schock - E Spot Lounge

Kathleen Wilhoite's Living Room - E Spot Lounge

BEST CDs

The Boobe Sisters Greatest Hits Volume One

The Doris Day Project - Scott Dreier

BEST BOOK

The Carol Burnett Show Companion: So Glad We Had This Time - Wesley Hyatt - BearManor Media

BEST THEATRICAL SEASON

Cabrillo Music Theatre, Thousand Oaks

Musical Theatre West (MTW), Long Beach