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
www.grigwaretalkstheatre.com
Don hails from Holyoke, Massachusetts and holds two Masters Degrees from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in Education and Bilingual Studies. He is a teacher of foreign language and ESL.
Don contributed to BWW for over 10 years and received a BWW Award for Excellence in 2014 as one of the top ten Regional Editors across the globe.
Don is also an author/playwright and recently published Books I, II & III of his children's fable Two Worlds Together: Donnelly's Greatest Christmas. You may purchase copies of the two volumes at amazon.com A trilogy of one-acts in a collection called Holiday Madness was recently revised and re-published, also on amazon.com. Both the story and plays are available on kindle as well as in paperback.
There are new projects on the horizon, including co-authoring an autobiography, publishing a collection of scary mini-plays - 10-15 minutes in length - and publishing a sequel to Two Worlds Together, entitled Donnelly Tackles Technology. Let's brave COVID-19 and come out strong and healthy! Stay tuned for more fun and games!