Maurice Hines Tappin’ Thru Life and Dominique Morriseau’s Skeleton Crew were the big winners at the 44th Annual Vivian Robinson/AUDELCO “VIV” Recognition Awards for Excellence in Black Theatre, held in the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Symphony Space in New York, on November 21, 2016.
Maurice Hines. Photo by Carol Rosegg
“The VIV” Awards, the annual Vivian Robinson/AUDELCO Recognition, are the only formally established awards presented to the black theatre community. AUDELCO (Audience Development Committee, Inc.) was established and incorporated in 1973 by the late Vivian Robinson, to stimulate interest in, and support of performing arts in black communities.
Maurice Hines Tappin’ Thru Life won four awards including Musical Production of the Year, Outstanding Performance in a Musical, Male and Outstanding Choreography for Maurice Hines, and Outstanding Director/Musical Production for Jeff Calhoun.
Jason Dirden and Nikiya Mathis in Atlantic Theater Company’s Skeleton Crew. Photo by Ahron R. Foster
Marjorie Johnson and Finnerty Steeve in Colman Domingo’s DOT at The Vineyard. Photo Carol Rosegg
Atlantic Theater’s production of Skeleton Crew won three awards including Outstanding Dramatic Production of the Year, Outstanding Playwright for Dominique Morriseau, and Outstanding Director/ Dramatic Production for Ruben Santiago-Hudson.
Joe Morton in TURN ME LOOSE. Photo: Monique Carboni
The acting honors were spread out among several shows: Marjorie Johnson (Outstanding Lead Actress for Colman Domingo’s DOT at The Vineyard); Joe Morton (Outstanding Lead Actor for Turn Me Loose); Kim Sullivan (Outstanding Supporting Actor for The Piano Lesson); Alana Arenas (Outstanding Supporting Actress for Tarell Alvin McCraney’s Head of Passes at The Public); Reginald L. Wilson (Outstanding Solo Performance in Laurence Holder’s Sugar Ray); Tina Fabrique (Outstanding Performance in a Musical, Female for The First Noel at Classical Theatre of Harlem); Lizan Mitchell and Nikki Walker (Outstanding Ensemble Performance in Chisa Hutchinson’s Dead and Breathing at National Black Theatre), and Debra Ann Byrd (Outstanding Achievement Award for Otello).
Tina Fabrique and the company of Classical Theatre of Harlem’s THE FIRST NOEL.
Lizan Mitchell and Nikki Walker in Dead and Breathing. Photo by Josephine Caldwell
New Federal Theatre’s In White America won for Best Revival. Other winners in the design categories included Alan C. Edwards (Lighting Design) and Rachel Dozier-Ezell (Costume Design) for Classical Theatre of Harlem’s Macbeth; G.W. Mercier (Set Design) for The Public’s Head of Passes; Sound Design for Obadiah Eaves/Sten Severson (Sound Design) for The Public’s The Total Bent).
Check back for the Special AUDELCO guests, presenters, and performers and honorees including: Terry Burrell, Mary Wilson, George Faison, Alyson Williams, Walter Dallas, Lee Summers, Kenny Seymour, Charles Weldon, Debra Ann Byrd, Lin Manuel Miranda, Obediah Wright, Jeffrey V. Thompson, Shawn Luckey, Trent Armand Kendall and Shahadi Wright Joseph (AUDELCO “VIV” RISING STAR AWARD).
For more information, click on www.AUDELCO.org
MAURICE HINES TAPPIN’ THRU LIFE at New World Stages
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Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits
Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers, musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.
