Artsbeat

by Debra Auspitz

The crowd in the Annenberg Center’s Zellerbach Theatre on Monday night was dressed to the nines, but the vibe at the 2003 Barrymore Awards was closer to a packed sports bar than a stuffy awards ceremony. As the Theater Alliance of Greater Philadelphia’s annual salute to Philly theater wore on (and on, despite the often hilarious hijinks by ever-charming host Tony Braithwaite) the crowd clearly showed its loyalties. From the nosebleed seats, one could look down on the auditorium and predict which part of the room would erupt in raucous cheers next. Philadelphia Theatre Company's associates and fans kept the left side of the auditorium hopping, nearly trampling each other when PTC's production of The Last Five Years won Outstanding Overall Production of a Musical and Jeffrey Hatcher's A Picasso won Outstanding New Play, while a few rows behind them Pig Iron folks leapt to their feet in triumph as Emmanuelle Delpech-Ramey picked up the Barrymore for Supporting Actress in a Musical for James Joyce is Dead and So is Paris: The Lucia Joyce Cabaret. Pig Iron collaborator James Sugg was once again recognized for his sound-design talent, this time for The Wilma Theater's production of Red. 1812 Productions occupied a row in the center section of seats and maintained a respectable level of loud cheering, but for sheer volume the prize had to go to People's Light and Theatre Co., which seemed to have an army assembled on the right side of the room, shooting the decibel level off the charts as PLT's production of Suzan-Lori Parks' In the Blood took home four of the six awards it was nominated for. The whole room went crazy for Lifetime Achievement winner Tom McCarthy, who solidified the party atmosphere of the evening by giving a moving speech while sipping a pint of beer.

The production that led the evening in nominations, Prince Music Theater's Green Violin, took home four awards out of 11 nods, including Barrymores for director Rebecca Bayla Taichman, lead actor Raúl Esparza, choreographer David Dorfman and composer Frank London. The Prince had 22 nominations in total, more than any other company, and won six awards, including one for Christine Andreas' leading role in Pal Joey. Andreas was one of several knockout musical performances that broke up the evening, starting with a piece from the Arden's excellent production of Pacific Overtures, which was nominated for eight Barrymores but didn't end up taking any home. In the end, the Arden won only one of its 15 nominations, for Ian Merrill Peakes' performance in All My Sons. It was a good night for Peakes -- he was also the recipient of the $10,000 F. Otto Haas Award for an emerging artist. Crowd favorite Bat Boy: The Musical took home an award for ensemble in a musical, but Ben Dibble's much-lauded performance as the titular character lost the Barrymore to Green Violin's Esparza. For a full list of the night's nominees and winners, go to www.theatrealliance.org.