NEW YORK CITY: The 63rd annual Drama Desk Awards were presented on June 3 at Town Hall and honored Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions that opened during the 2017-18 season. TheaterMania presented the awards, which were hosted by Michael Urie.
SpongeBob SquarePants was the biggest winner of the night, garnering six awards including outstanding musical, outstanding director for Tina Landau, and outstanding actor for Ethan Slater. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Carousel were the other front runners, with five awards each, including outstanding director for Cursed Child’s John Tiffany and outstanding actress and featured actress for Carousel’s Jessie Mueller and Lindsay Mendez, respectively.
Other winners included Lincoln Center Theater’s Admissions by Joshua Harmon, which won outstanding play; Angels in America, which won three awards, including outstanding revival of a play; and My Fair Lady, which won two awards, including outstanding revival of a musical.
In addition to the competitive awards, special awards were given to members of the New York theatre community who have made significant contributions throughout the season. Sean Carvajal and Edi Gathegi of Signature Theatre’s Jesus Hopped the ‘A’ Train were presented with a special award for their last-minute entrances into the production.
The Ensemble Award was given to the cast of School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play (Nabiyah Be, MaameYaa Boafo, Paige Gilbert, Zainab Jah, Níkẹ Uche Kadri, Abena Mensah-Bonsu, Mirirai Sithole, and Myra Lucretia Taylor).
Juan Castano of Oedipus El Rey, A Parallelogram, and Transfers received the Sam Norkin Award for his varied performances throughout the season.
The Drama Desk Awards are the only New York theatre awards that evaluate and recognize Broadway, off-Broadway, and off-off-Broadway shows by the same criteria.
The complete list of winners is below:
Outstanding Play
Admissions, by Joshua Harmon, Lincoln Center Theater
Outstanding Musical
SpongeBob SquarePants
Outstanding Revival of a Play
Angels in America
Outstanding Revival of a Musical
My Fair Lady
Outstanding Actor in a Play
Andrew Garfield, Angels in America
Outstanding Actress in a Play
Glenda Jackson, Three Tall Women
Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Ethan Slater, SpongeBob SquarePants
Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Jessie Mueller, Carousel
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Nathan Lane, Angels in America
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Jamie Brewer, Amy and the Orphans, Roundabout Underground
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Gavin Lee, SpongeBob SquarePants
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Lindsay Mendez, Carousel
Outstanding Director of a Play
John Tiffany, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Outstanding Director of a Musical
Tina Landau, SpongeBob SquarePants
The LaDuca Award for Outstanding Choreography
Justin Peck, Carousel
Outstanding Music
David Friedman, Desperate Measures, The York Theatre Company
Outstanding Lyrics
Peter Kellogg, Desperate Measures
Outstanding Book of a Musical
Tina Fey, Mean Girls
Outstanding Orchestrations
Jonathan Tunick, Carousel
Outstanding Music in a Play
Imogen Heap, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
The Hudson Scenic Studio Award for Outstanding Set Design of a Play
Miriam Buether, Three Tall Women
Outstanding Set Design for a Musical
David Zinn, SpongeBob SquarePants
Outstanding Costume Design for a Play
Jonathan Fensom, Farinelli and the King
Outstanding Costume Design for a Musical
Catherine Zuber, My Fair Lady
Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play
Neil Austin, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Outstanding Lighting Design for a Musical
Jules Fisher, Peggy Eisenhauer, Once on This Island
Outstanding Projection Design
Finn Ross and Ash J. Woodward, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Outstanding Sound Design in a Play
Gareth Fry, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical
Kai Harada, The Band’s Visit
Outstanding Wig and Hair
Charles G. LaPointe, SpongeBob SquarePants
Outstanding Solo Performance
Billy Crudup, Harry Clarke, Vineyard Theatre
The Chase Award for Unique Theatrical Experience
Derren Brown: Secret, Atlantic Theater Company
Outstanding Fight Choreography
Steve Rankin, Carousel
Outstanding Puppet Design
Michael Curry, Frozen
SPECIAL AWARDS
Ensemble Award
School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play; Nabiyah Be, MaameYaa Boafo, Paige Gilbert, Zainab Jah, Níkẹ Uche Kadri, Abena Mensah-Bonsu, Mirirai Sithole, and Myra Lucretia Taylor
Special Award
Sean Carvajal and Edi Gathegi
Sam Norkin Award
Juan Castano
