Outer Critics Circle Award Nominations

The Outer Critics Circle Award nominations were announced. Some of the nominations - and omissions - surprised me, and are making me a little nervous about Tony nominations. But, the other thing to consider is that several new-to-Broadway shows were considered in seasons past, when they ran off-Broadway. (Venus in Fur and Peter and the Starcatcher, for example, fall into this category.) Visit Playbill for details about the awards.

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY
The Lyons (review of the Vineyard production)
One Man, Two Guvnors
Seminar
Stick Fly

OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
Bonnie & Clyde
Newsies
Once
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
[So, the terrible Bonnie & Clyde receives a nod but not Leap of Faith? And in the tech battle, Spider Man beat Ghost to a nomination?]

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY
Blood and Gifts
The School for Lies
Sons of the Prophet
Tribes
[The School for Lies played in May, so I'm proud of the nominating committee for remembering that far back! But, I didn't like Sons of the Prophet and wish that the glorious The Big Meal or Completeness could have claimed a spot, instead.]

OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL
Death Takes a Holiday
Lucky Guy
Play It Cool
Queen of the Mist


OUTSTANDING BOOK OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Newsies
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Once
Queen of the Mist

OUTSTANDING NEW SCORE (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Bonnie & Clyde
Death Takes a Holiday
Newsies
Queen of the Mist
[Gross. The score of Bonnie & Clyde had multiple personality disorder, and the score of Death made me want to die. Awful.]

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
The Best Man
Death of a Salesman
The Lady From Dubuque
Private Lives
[No love for the incredible revival of How I Learned to Drive? For shame!]

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Carrie
Evita
Follies
Porgy and Bess

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Mark Brokaw, The Lyons
David Cromer, Tribes
Nicholas Hytner, One Man, Two Guvnors
Mike Nichols, Death of a Salesman

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Jeff Calhoun, Newsies
Michael Grandage, Evita
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
John Tiffany, Once

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER
Rob Ashford, Evita
Christopher Gattelli, Newsies
Steven Hoggett, Once
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
[Granted, I haven't seen any of these, but was there no way to make room for Sergio Trujillo and his work on Leap of Faith? Has the nominating committee seen Leslie Odom, Jr., do his thing?]

OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Bob Crowley, Once
Derek McLane, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Christopher Oram, Evita
George Tsypin, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Gregg Barnes, Follies
Eiko Ishioka, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
William Ivey Long, Don’t Dress for Dinner
Martin Pakledinaz, Nice Work If You Can Get It

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Neil Austin, Evita
Donald Holder, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Brian MacDevitt, Death of a Salesman
Hugh Vanstone, Ghost: The Musical
[While the lighting in Death of a Salesman was highly effective, the lighting in Ghost was another character, and would be my choice among the nominees.]

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A PLAY
James Corden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Santino Fontana, Sons of the Prophet
Russell Harvard, Tribes
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Death of a Salesman
Hamish Linklater, The School for Lies

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Tracie Bennett, End of the Rainbow
Tyne Daly, Master Class
Linda Lavin, The Lyons
Nicole Ari Parker, A Streetcar Named Desire
Laila Robins, The Lady From Dubuque

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Danny Burstein, Follies
Raúl Esparza, Leap of Faith
Jeremy Jordan, Newsies
Steve Kazee, Once
Norm Lewis, Porgy and Bess
[Obviously, you know I'm rooting for the incomparable Raul Esparza!]

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jan Maxwell, Follies
Marin Mazzie, Carrie
Audra McDonald, Porgy and Bess
Cristin Milioti, Once
Kelli O’Hara, Nice Work If You Can Get It
[Though I didn't love Follies, and she's going up against Audra McDonald, Jan Maxwell was sensational in Follies. I'm rooting for her.]

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY
Will Brill, Tribes
Tom Edden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Andrew Garfield, Death of a Salesman
James Earl Jones, The Best Man
Jefferson Mays, Blood and Gifts

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Joanna Gleason, Sons of the Prophet
Spencer Kayden, Don’t Dress for Dinner
Angela Lansbury, The Best Man
Judith Light, Other Desert Cities
Daphne Rubin-Vega, A Streetcar Named Desire
[Note that while Other Desert Cities is mostly ineligible this year because it was considered last year for its off-Broadway run, Judith Light is new for the Broadway iteration and therefore eligible. And she did quite a good job, too!]

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Phillip Boykin, Porgy and Bess
Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Newsies
Michael McGrath, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Patrick Page, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Chris Sullivan, Nice Work If You Can Get It

OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jayne Houdyshell, Follies
Judy Kaye, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Rebecca Luker, Death Takes a Holiday
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Ghost: The Musical
Melissa Van Der Schyff, Bonnie & Clyde

OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Judy Gold, My Life as a Sitcom
David Greenspan, The Patsy
Denis O’Hare, An Iliad
Stephen Spinella, An Iliad

JOHN GASSNER AWARD (Presented for an American play, preferably by a new playwright)
Robert Askins, Hand to God

Gabe McKinley, CQ/CX
Erika Sheffer, Russian Transport
Jeff Talbott, The Submission

Winners of the Outer Critics Circle Awards will be announced on May 14 and then feted at Sardi's May 24.