AWARDS SEASON 2017: Drama Desk Award Winners

Some award years are more hard to predict than others, but this year, all of the awards seem to be going to the same set of shows and people…with Come From Away, Hello, Dolly!, Andy Karl, Bette Midler, Gavin Creel and Jenn Colella taking home the big prizes at last night’s Drama Desk Awards. For the plays, Hollywood actors cleaned up again, alongside this year’s favorites, Oslo and Jitney. The biggest surprise of the night was probably the tie for Outstanding Director of a Musical for Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812‘s Rachel Chavkin and The Band’s Visit (which is transferring to Broadway)’s David Cromer!

We can’t believe awards season 2017 is almost over! We’re guessing the Tonys will go the way most of these other awards this year have gone for the big prizes, so the pressure is on to make sure you make good picks for the design categories in your Tony pool this year. We’ll be live updating, blogging, facebooking and tweeting from the Tonys red carpet and ceremony and want to know your thoughts on everything, so be sure to follow us and join in the conversation!

2017 Drama Desk Awards Winners

Outstanding Musical
Come From Away
Anastasia
The Band’s Visit
Hadestown
The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

Outstanding Play
Oslo
If I Forget
Indecent
A Life
Sweat

Outstanding Revival of a Musical
Hello, Dolly!
Falsettos
Sweeney Todd
Sweet Charity
Tick, Tick…BOOM!

Outstanding Revival of a Play
Jitney
The Front Page
The Hairy Ape
The Little Foxes
Master Harold…and the Boys
Picnic

Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Andy Karl, Groundhog Day
Nick Blaemire, Tick, Tick…BOOM!
Jon Jon Briones, Miss Saigon
Nick Cordero, A Bronx Tale
Jeremy Secomb, Sweeney Todd

Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Bette Midler, Hello, Dolly!
Christy Altomare, Anastasia
Christine Ebersole, War Paint
Sutton Foster, Sweet Charity
Patti LuPone, War Paint
Laura Osnes, Bandstand

Outstanding Actor in a Play
Kevin Kline, Present Laughter
Bobby Cannavale, The Hairy Ape
Daniel Craig, Othello
David Hyde Pierce, A Life
John Douglas Thompson, Jitney

Outstanding Actress in a Play
Laura Linney, The Little Foxes
Cate Blanchett, The Present
Laurie Metcalf, A Doll’s House, Part 2
Amy Ryan, Love, Love, Love
Harriet Walter, The Tempest

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Gavin Creel, Hello, Dolly!
Jeffry Denman, Kid Victory
George Salazar, The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical
Ari’el Stachel, The Band’s Visit
Brandon Uranowitz, Falsettos

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Jenn Colella, Come From Away
Kate Baldwin, Hello, Dolly!
Stephanie J. Block, Falsettos
Mary Beth Peil, Anastasia
Nora Schell, Spamilton

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Danny DeVito, The Price
Michael Aronov, Oslo
Nathan Lane, The Front Page
Jeremy Shamos, If I Forget
Justice Smith, Yen

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Cynthia Nixon, The Little Foxes
Jayne Houdyshell, A Doll’s House, Part 2
Randy Graff, The Babylon Line
Marie Mullen, The Beauty Queen of Leenane
Emily Skinner, Picnic
Kate Walsh, If I Forget

Outstanding Director of a Musical
Rachel Chavkin, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812
David Cromer, The Band’s Visit
Christopher Ashley, Come From Away
Bill Buckhurst, Sweeney Todd
Jerry Zaks, Hello, Dolly!

Outstanding Director of a Play
Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Jitney
Richard Jones, The Hairy Ape
Anne Kauffman, A Life
Richard Nelson, What Did You Expect?/Women of a Certain Age
Daniel Sullivan, The Little Foxes
Daniel Sullivan, If I Forget

Outstanding Choreography
Andy Blankenbuehler, Bandstand
Warren Carlyle, Hello, Dolly!
Aletta Collins, The Hairy Ape
Kelly Devine, Come From Away
Denis Jones, Holiday Inn

Outstanding Book of a Musical
Joe Tracz, The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical
Terrence McNally, Anastasia
Itamar Moses, The Band’s Visit
Richard Oberacker, Bandstand
Irene Sankoff and David Hein, Come From Away

Outstanding Music
David Yazbek, The Band’s Visit
Stephen Flaherty, Anastasia
Dave Malloy, Beardo
Richard Oberacker, Bandstand
Irene Sankoff and David Hein, Come From Away

Outstanding Lyrics
David Yazbek, The Band’s Visit
Gerard Alessandrini, Spamilton
GQ and JQ, Othello: The Remix
Michael Korie, War Paint
Irene Sankoff and David Hein, Come From Away

Outstanding Orchestrations
Bill Elliott and Greg Anthony Rassen, Bandstand
Doug Besterman, Anastasia
Bruce Coughlin, War Paint
Benjamin Cox, Sweeney Todd
August Eriksmoen, Come From Away
Jamshied Sharifi, The Band’s Visit

Outstanding Music in a Play
Bill Sims Jr., Jitney
Daniel Ocanto, Graham Ulicny, and Sean Smith, Alligator
Marcus Shelby, Notes From the Field

Outstanding Revue
Life Is for Living: Conversations With Coward
Hello Dillie!

Outstanding Set Design for a Play
Nigel Hook, The Play That Goes Wrong
David Gallo, Jitney
Laura Jellinek, A Life
Stewart Laing, The Hairy Ape
Douglas W. Schmidt, The Front Page

Outstanding Set Design for a Musical
Mimi Lien, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812
Lez Brotherston, 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips
Simon Kenny, Sweeney Todd
Santo Loquasto, Hello, Dolly!
Jason Sherwood, The View UpStairs

Outstanding Costume Design for a Play
Jane Greenwood, The Little Foxes
Susan Hilferty, Present Laughter
Murell Horton, The Liar
Toni-Leslie James, Jitney
Stewart Laing, The Hairy Ape
Ann Roth, The Front Page

Outstanding Costume Design for a Musical
Catherine Zuber, War Paint
Linda Cho, Anastasia
Toni-Leslie James, Come From Away
Santo Loquasto, Hello, Dolly!
Anita Yavich, The View UpStairs
Paloma Young, Bandstand

Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play
Christopher Akerlind, Indecent
James Farncombe, The Tempest
Rick Fisher, The Judas Kiss
Mimi Jordan Sherin, The Hairy Ape
Stephen Strawbridge, Master Harold…and the Boys
Justin Townsend, The Little Foxes

Outstanding Lighting Design for a Musical
Bradley King, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812
Jeff Croiter, Bandstand
Mark Henderson, Sunset Boulevard
Bradley King, Hadestown
Amy Mae, Sweeney Todd
Malcolm Rippeth, 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips

Outstanding Projection Design
Aaron Rhyne, Anastasia
Reid Farrington, CasablancaBox
Elaine McCarthy, Notes From the Field
Jared Mezzocchi, Vietgone
John Narun, Gorey: The Secret Lives of Edward Gorey

Outstanding Sound Design in a Play
Gareth Fry and Pete Malkin, The Encounter
Mikhail Fiksel, A Life
Brian Quijada, Where Did We Sit on the Bus?
Leon Rothenberg, Notes From the Field
Jane Shaw, Men on Boats
Matt Stine, Sweeney Todd

Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical
Nicholas Pope, Natasha, Pierre And The Great Comet Of 1812
Simon Baker, 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips
Peter Hylenski, Anastasia
Scott Lehrer, Hello, Dolly!
Mick Potter, Cats
Brian Ronan, War Paint

Outstanding Wig and Hair
David Brian Brown, War Paint
Campbell Young Associates, Hello, Dolly!
John Jared Janas, Yours Unfaithfully
Jason Hayes, The View UpStairs
Josh Marquette, Present Laughter
Tom Watson, The Little Foxes

Outstanding Solo Performance
Ed Dixon, Georgie: My Adventures With George Rose
Nancy Anderson, The Pen (Inner Voices)
Marin Ireland, On the Exhale
Sarah Jones, Sell/Buy/Date
Brian Quijada, Where Did We Sit on the Bus?
Anna Deavere Smith, Notes From the Field

Unique Theatrical Experience
The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart
CasablancaBox
The Paper Hat Game
The Ephemera Trilogy

Outstanding Fight Choreography
U. Jonathan Toppo, Sweat
J. David Brimmer, Yen
Donal O’Farrell, Quietly
Michael Rossmy and Rick Sordelet, Troilus and Cressida
Thomas Schall, Othello
Thomas Schall, The Hairy Ape

Outstanding Adaptation
David Ives, The Liar
Ellen McLaughlin, The Trojan Women

Outstanding Puppet Design
Basil Twist, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Lyndie Wright, Sarah Wright, 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips

Outstanding Ensemble
The Wolves, The Playwrights Realm: The superbly talented cast of Sarah DeLappe’s debut play – Mia Barron, Brenna Coates, Jenna Dioguardi, Samia Finnerty, Midori Francis, Lizzy Jutila, Sarah Mezzanotte, Tedra Millan, Lauren Patten, and Susannah Perkins – jelled as one, proving that team spirit is just a alive on the stage as it is on the soccer field.

Special Award:
Phil LaDuca: Proving that character comes from the ground up, the designer’s innovative flexible dance shoe ensures that hoofers on any stage remain on point.

Sam Norkin Award:
Lila Neugebauer: During a season that saw her helm the original works The Antipodes, Everybody, Miles for Mary, and The Wolves, and resurrect the works of esteemed playwrights Edward Albee, Maria Irene Fornes, and Adrienne Kennedy in Signature Plays, director Lila Neugebauer has shown that her dauntless insight into the human condition knows no bounds.