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Gablestage’s The Lehman Trilogy winner of Outstanding Production,Best Play Carbonell Award
By Bill Hirschman
A world premiere in which much of the dialogue is in Spanish.
A musical based on a Disney animated film.
A family drama based on Seder gatherings.
South Florida’s huge array of theatrical offerings – from musicals drawn from kid-friendly material to adult dramas based in the region’s various ethnicities – were recognized Monday night in a diverse celebration at the 47th annual Carbonell Awards.
The 20 competitive categories and numerous special awards recognize excellence in professional theaters’ work across Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties in the 2023-2024 season.
While plenty of straight/serious works were nominated, lighter entertainments reaped a noticeable majority of the awards bestowed at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center.
Slow Burn Theater in Fort Lauderdale took six awards, five connected to The Little Mermaid based on the Disney animated film loosely based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale reaped five awards, and one connected with The SpongeBob Musical.
Slow Burn Theatre’s The Little Mermaid won Outstanding Production, Musical.
Maltz Jupiter Theatre company reaped five of the golden awards for its work on A Christmas Carol, Murder on the Orient Express, 42nd Street and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.
Miami New Drama took three prizes for its work premiering the politically pointed, darkly comic and heart-wrenching Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard (“The Adventures of Juan Planchard”), directed and adapted by Moisés Kaufman.
Zoetic Stage in Miami also scored three awards for actors in Wicked Child and Clyde’s.
The Wick Theatre took two for Fiddler on the Roof and I Love A Piano.
Gablestage won the best play award for The Lehman Trilogy.
The individual winners follow:
(For a total list of the finalists, click here: https://tinyurl.com/mpdy9ph7 Musicals usually receive more nominations than plays because they qualify in more categories.)
Outstanding New Work, Play or Musical
+ Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard, by Moisés Kaufman (Miami New Drama & Tectonic Theater Project)
Outstanding Production, Play
+ The Lehman Trilogy (GableStage)
Outstanding Direction, Play
+ Moisés Kaufman, Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard (Miami New Drama & Tectonic Theater Project)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Male Role, Play
+ Gabriell Salgado as Rafael in Clyde’s (Zoetic Stage)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role, Play
+ Jeni Hacker as Faye in Wicked Child (Zoetic Stage) who has won a record number of Carbonell Awards with eight.
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Male Role, Play
+ Michael McKeever as Mark in Wicked Child (Zoetic Stage)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Female Role, Play
+ Mariaca Semprún in three roles in Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard (Miami New Drama & Tectonic Theater Project)
Outstanding Production, Musical
+ The Little Mermaid (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Outstanding Direction, Musical
+ Patrick Fitzwater, The Little Mermaid (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Ryan Crout
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Male Role, Musical
+ Bruce Sabath as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof (The Wick Theatre)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role, Musical
+ Melanie Fernandez as Ariel in The Little Mermaid (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Male Role, Musical
+ Marc Christopher as Patrick in The SpongeBob Musical (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Female Role, Musical
+ Heather Jane Rolff as Ursula in The Little Mermaid (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Outstanding Music Direction
+ Michael Ursua, 42nd Street (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)
Outstanding Choreography
+ Nicolette Quintero, The Little Mermaid (Slow Burn Theatre Company)
Outstanding Scenic Design, Play, or Musical
+ Paul Tate Depoo III, Murder on the Orient Express (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)
Outstanding Lighting Design, Play or Musical
+ James E. Lawlor III, Murder on the Orient Express (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)
Outstanding Sound Design, Play or Musical
+ Scott Stauffer, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)
Outstanding Costume Design, Play or Musical
+ Ellis Tillman, I Love a Piano (The Wick Theatre)
Outstanding Achievement of an Artistic Specialty
+ Zak Borovay for Projection Design, A Christmas Carol (Maltz Jupiter Theatre)
As always, in any such competition some choices were second guessed, especially the total absence in the nominations for Palm Beach Dramaworks including its acclaimed Death of a Salesman. Similarly, some outstanding performances were absent such as Elijah Word as the emcee and Lindsey Corey as Sally Bowles in Zoetic’s Cabaret. The judging system has been tweaked and overhauled over the years. Currently, not all the judges see all the eligible shows.
A highlight of the evening was the presentation to playwright Nilo Cruz of the George Abbott Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts, the most prestigious honor of the organization.
He gave a moving and rousing acceptance speech that noted that he was writing a play about Hispanics who shed their blood on both sides during the Civil War likening it to how “we let our vote count in this past election.”
“More than anything, my new play deals with the monster in us,” noting that “the male Latino vote helped to elected a man who is likeliest to rule as an authoritarian over our beloved country… Why did my people let their inner monster vote for leaders who see them with disdain and consider them to be second-class citizens?”
“Now that the presence of such tyrants will abound in our nation, art is more important than ever, because when we live in dark times, we must rely on the guiding light of the poet, the painter, the theater maker, it is more than necessary for us to writer, to make theater, to give the world the grace of beauty.”
“When we make art, we elevate our souls and duplicate the heights of the divine, we multiply the benevolence of creation, we give voicer to what we thing is the voice of God.”
The Cuban American playwright gained national prominence in 2003 when he won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for Anna in the Tropics, which was written for and debuted at Miami’s New Theatre. He also received a Tony Award nomination for the Broadway production and the American Theatre Critics Association’s Steinberg Award. His plays – many produced locally — include A Park in Our House; Two Sisters and a Piano; A Bicycle Country; Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams; Lorca in a Green Dress; Hurricane; Sotto Voce; Bathing in Moonlight; Hotel Desiderium; Kisses through the Glass; and Thirst on Water Street.
Other recipients of special recognitions were:
+ The Vinnette Carroll Award to actor-director John Pryor for significant achievement in advancing the cause of diversity, equality, and inclusion in South Florida theater. Pryor also has been a theater professor at Miami-Dade Community College and Florida Memorial College
+ The Ruth Foreman Award to Marilynn Wick, founder and CEO of The Wick Theatre & Museum Club and Costume World, Inc. in Boca Raton – recognizing her contributions to South Florida theater development.
+ The Bill Hindman Award to Carl Waisanen, production stage manager for more than 120 shows at Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables.
+ The Howard Kleinberg Award to Kermit Christman, founder & Artistic Producing Director of the Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival – contributions to the health and development of the arts in South Florida,
+ The Bill von Maurer Award for Theatrical Excellence to Area Stage, founded by John & Maria Rodaz, honoring a theater company that exemplifies excellence for the totality of its programming: productions, educational outreach, developmental programs, and audiences. The Miami Dade County company is celebrating its 35th anniversary offering world-class professional productions and a vibrant conservatory program.
The $2,000 Jack Zink Memorial Student Scholarships were presented to Alexandra Dreszer (Miami-Dade County), Lillian Jones (Palm Beach County), and Morgan Brooke Wilder (Broward County).
Two announcements about the future of the award were revealed at the gala.
Next season’s presentations will be held at the Boca Raton campus of Florida Atlantic University – the first time the ceremony is being held in Palm Beach County since about 1997. It has been held primarily in Broward County for many years because it is centrally located for patrons and artists in the three-county region.
All of the winners this season were either productions produced by “major” companies or by talents connected to them. As a result, another special award is being added next year: The Jan McArt Award honoring outstanding achievement by a small theater. Over the decade, more and more small theater companies have opened locally. While many of them do fine work, they are in direct Carbonell competition with the larger theaters. McArt, who died in 2021, was the producer-director-actress-singer and founder of the Royal Palm Dinner Theatre as well as other companies across the region. She also directed the theater program at Lynn University.
The definition of small theater will eventually be decided by the Carbonell board, but it plans to solicit input from the theater community with the goal to have the parameters settled by the time nominations are solicited.
“The Board discussed this at length and decided that we want the local theater community to help us define it,” said Gary Schweikhart, board president. “We will spend several months soliciting input on this through conversations and email, maybe a poll. The goal is to have the Board-approved parameters in place by the time we solicit community nominations next summer.”
The Carbonell Awards are named after the internationally renowned sculptor Manuel Carbonell, who designed the signature solid bronze and marble award given annually to Carbonell Award winners.
The ceremony was produced by playwright, actor and designer Michael McKeever and Stuart Meltzer, the founding artistic director of Zoetic Stage—both of whom have won multiple Carbonell Awards and previously produced and directed numerous Carbonell Ceremonies. Caryl Fantel, another Carbonell Award recipient, returned as Music Director.
Musical numbers from the past season’s shows included Aaron Bower singing “I Love A Piano,” “Kids” from Bye Bye Birdie, sing by Ben Sandomir and Dalia Aleman, “If I Were a Rich Man” from Fiddler on the Roof sing by Bruce Sabath in his award winning role, “The Last Midnight” from Into The Woods, sung by Jeni Hacker , “Poor Unfortunate Souls” from The Little Mermaid, sing by Heather Jane Rolff, the memoriam section with :With A Little Help From My Friends,” suing by Sara Grant, Sheena O. Murray, Mallory Newbrough, Sarah Sun Park and Gaby Tortoledo, and a opening spoof “It’s Still Carbonell To Me, sung by Alexander Blanco, Brandon Campbell, Kevin Hincapie, Rick Peña, Paul Torres Wong and Conor Walton.
The Spongebob Musical from Slow Burn Theatre
