The 2019 Craig Noel Awards
SAN DIEGO — It’s rather unusual to get all fepitzed for a black tie and evening gown affair on a Monday night. But that’s the one night when all live theatres are dark. So on Monday, Feb 10, the San Diego Critics Circle hosted the 2019 Craig Noel Awards at the Jacobs Center for Innovation celebrating excellence in our vibrant San Diego theatre community.
The awards are named for Craig Noel, the founding Artistic Director of the Old Globe Theatre, which he led for more than 60 years. He helped transform the Globe “from an insular community group into an influential powerhouse among regional theatres.” (Wiki) In 2007, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts by then President George W. Bush.
This year’s ceremony was dedicated to the late Jonathan McMurtry, 1937-2019. Mentored by Craig Noel himself, Jonathan was an amazing actor and mentor who graced the stages of San Diego for many years.
Like the Oscars, the Critics Circle decided to be a little more “woke” by removing gender specificity from the actors’ awards. Most of them still went to one man and one woman each. But there was one recipient who defies the binary model. Fabulously colorful in a suit printed with magenta flowers, Jeremy Wilson took Lead Performance in a Musical for Hedwig and the Angry Inch at Diversionary.
“The best part of America… extends with open arms its gifts.”
Ryun Yu won Outstanding Solo Performance for Hold These Truths. With humor and great conviction, he told the story of Gordon Hirabayashi, the Japanese-American who defied the government’s orders to go to an internment camp because he believed in the American ideals enshrined in our Constitution more than our leaders did.
Colleen Kollar Smith thanked the many kids she worked with as she received Outstanding Choreography for Matilda at Moonlight Stage Productions. “Sometimes we forget why we’re doing this until we see a kid doing it. Then the sparks fly and we remember.”
Catalina Zelles blew a kiss to her nana as she received the award for Outstanding Young Artist, which comes with the Sandra Ellis-Troy Scholarship. As a judge for the Student Shakespeare Festival, I’ve had the pleasure of watching her grow as a remarkably talented and articulate young lady.
It’s no small feat to start a small company, competing for grants and audiences with the big kids. The Don Braunagel Award for Outstanding Work by a Small Theater Company went to Backyard Renaissance. Jessica John Gercke said her father was never supportive of her theatrical aspirations, encouraging her to instead get a business degree. She did, but she uses it to manage a small theatre on a shoestring budget and a dream.
A new award, Specialty Artist recognized Vanessa Dinning for her vocal and dialect coaching skills. This is well-deserved as a bad accent can really irritate like nails on a chalkboard. When she moved here from London, her friends thought she would be marooned “in a cultural desert.” But she is busier here than she has ever been.
Cambodian Rock Band at the La Jolla Playhouse was nominated for four awards and took away two: Chay Yew for Outstanding Direction of a Play and actor Daisuke Tsuji for Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play. During the run, there were survivors of the Khmer Rouge in the audience, which they found deeply moving.
The Playwright, Lauren Ye was inspired to write Cambodian Rock Band after stumbling upon such a group at the Adams Avenue Street Fair. The show is one of the most produced plays in America right now. It’s currently playing in New York City, but we got the first bite.
“We don’t do it for the accolades, but it’s really nice.”
Andrew Oswald won Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play for The Hour of Great Mercy at Diversionary Theatre. He confessed that his husband dragged him “kicking and screaming from New York” … and he’s never been happier. Song and dance man Michael Louis Cusimano, who was one of the Actors of the Year, also came from New York. He crashed last year’s awards knowing nary a soul. This year, he stood at the podium and looked out at a room full of friends and colleagues.
I have some friends in New York who have an attitude about being “New York actors.” But the city by the beach has lured at least a few of them away and now they’re staying put. So heart your heart out, Big Apple!
And that’s Show Biz.
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Eric George Tauber is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. He may be contacted via eric.tauber@sdjewishworld.com