LONG ISLAND ‘ENCORE’ THEATER AWARDS – 2013
Selected by reviewer Jeb Ladouceur
;)
White Chritmas at John W. Engeman Theater, NorthportBest Play or Musical: “White Christmas” – John W. Engeman Theater, Northport
Big, Brassy, and Wonderful … in the finest Engeman tradition. Easily deserving of four 2013 awards.
Best Actor (Play or Musical): John Scacchetti – “Singin’ In the Rain” - Gateway Performing Arts Center, Patchogue
The reincarnation of Donald O’Connor, Scacchetti turned in the kind of performance that has made Gateway the envy of many Broadway companies.
Best Actress (Play or Musical): Missy Dowes – “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” - Performing Arts Center, Smithtown
Long Island Theater presented a number of ingénue performers this past year … and Missy was as good as any of them. She’s a knockout!
Best Supporting Actor (Play or Musical): Frank Dispigno – “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” - BroadHollow Theater Company, Lindenhurst
If you missed Dispigno’s interpretation of ‘Big Daddy Pollitt,’ write yourself a note … and don’t miss whatever role he’s playing next.
Best Supporting Actress (Play or Musical): Jennifer Collester Tully – “Les Miserables” - Theatre Three, Port Jefferson
Jen Tully is as comfortable on stage as any comic actress you’ll ever see … even in a heavy play like this one.
Best Newcomer (Male or Female) - (Play or Musical): Rachel Greenblatt – “Grease” - Performing Arts Center, Smithtown
Greenblatt’s debut performance puts her right on the heels of her show biz-savvy siblings Molly and Josh.
Best Child Actor (Boy or Girl) - (Play or Musical): Katie Dolce - “White Christmas” – John W. Engeman Theater, Northport
Cute little Katie possesses a hefty portion of Shirley Temple stage presence. This child looks like she was born tilting a top hat and twirling a cane.
Best Director (Play or Musical): Jeffrey Sanzel – “The Diary of Anne Frank” - Theatre Three, Port Jefferson
Sanzel gave us the finest “…Anne Frank” production since Garson Kanin received a Tony nomination for his masterful direction in 1956.
Best Choreography: Drew Humphrey - “White Christmas” – John W. Engeman Theater, Northport
Humphrey lights up the Engeman stage, as do every one of his fellow dancers, and they don’t even seem to be trying.
Best Scenic Design (Play or Musical): Jonathan Collins – “Twelve Angry Men” - John W. Engeman Theater, Northport
If ever a play demanded an authentic period set, this one does. Collins even provides twenty-foot ceilings and a looming portrait of then-president Eisenhower.
Best Costume Design (Play or Musical): Chakira-Iliana Doherty – “The Diary of Anne Frank” Theatre Three, Port Jefferson
Combining the threadbare with this important play’s required nobility is a challenge that calls for the keenest theatrical insight. Doherty delivers.
Best Lighting Design (Play or Musical): Wilburn Bonnell - “White Christmas” – John W. Engeman Theater, Northport
Bonnell’s magical mixture of light, color, and fabric transported audiences to the festive locale that surely the great Irving Berlin had in mind for this show.
Award-winning Smithtown writer Jeb Ladouceur is the author of eight novels. His theater reviews appear in several major L. I. newspapers. In Ladouceur’s new thriller, “The Dealer” released last month, extortionists threaten to destroy Hoover Dam demolishing the Las Vegas Strip - if casino operators don’t pay millions.