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Theater Awards
Washington Area Theatre Community Honors (WATCH)
www.washingtontheater.org
 

 

 
Each year since 2000, the WATCH program has presented awards celebrating quality work at community theaters in the Potomac Region. A gala awards ceremony has been held each March at the Birchmere Music Hall in Alexandria. For  the 2008 calendar year, twenty-nine theater companies were participating as the program grew in popularity. Each company provides judges who view the work of other theaters and cast their ballots.

The 29 community theater companies participating in the 2008 calendar year program were:

  2nd Flight Productions
  Aldersgate Church Community Theatre
  The Arlington Players
  Bowie Community Theatre
  Castaways Repertory Theatre
  Chevy Chase Players
  Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Dominion Stage
  Elden Street Players
  Fauquier Community Theatre
  The Foundry Players
  Greenbelt Arts Center
  Hard Bargain Players
  Kensington Arts Theatre
  Laurel Mill Playhouse
  Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Montgomery Playhouse
  Port City Playhouse
  Port Tobacco Players
  Prince William Little Theatre
  Providence Players of Fairfax
  Reston Community Players
  Rockville Little Theatre
  Rockville Musical Theatre
  Rooftop Productions
  St. Mark’s Players
  Silver Spring Stage
  Tantallon Community Players
 
Vienna Theatre Company


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The recipients and nominees for work in 2008:

Outstanding Musical:

  Sweet Smell of Success – Produced by Irene Molnar & Stage Managed by Terri Carnahan - Arlington Players
  Tick, Tick, Boom! - Produced by Rich Klare & Stage Managed by Jessica Armstrong Carrington - Elden Street Players
  A New Brain - Produced by Malca Giblin & Stage Managed by Patty Hackett -Kensington Arts Theatre
  Zanna Don't - Produced by Brian Campbell & Matt Karner - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Urinetown - Produced by Eileen Mullee & Stage Managed by Kaiti Parish - Reston Community Players

Outstanding Play:

  Hauptmann – Produced by Tom Stuckey & Stage Managed by Bridgette Marchand & Josh Riffle - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Enchanted April – Produced by Herb Elkin & Stage Managed by Mary Koster - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Rabbit Hole – Produced by Charlotte Robinson & Stage Managed by Judi Hilton- Hyde - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Doubt, a Parable – Produced by Nanette Reynolds & Stage Managed by Leslie Peterson - Elden Street Players
  Picnic – Produced by Margaret Evans-Joyce & Richard Scwab & Stage Managed by Heather Franklin and Sheila Price - Little Theatre of Alexandria

Outstanding Direction of a Musical:

  Jeffrey R. Breslow - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Todd C. Huse - Tick, Tick, Boom! - Elden Street Players
  Michael Kharfen - 110 in the Shade - Kensington Arts Theatre
  John K. Monnett - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  Andrew JM Regiec - Forbidden Broadway - Reston Community Players

Outstanding Direction of a Play:

  Gloria DuGan - Doubt, a Parable - Elden Street Players
  Howard Vincent Kurtz - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Tom Newbrough - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Beth Terranova - Hauptmann - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Mary Fawcett Watko - Enchanted April - Colonial Players of Annapolis

Outstanding Music Direction:

  Mark V. Deal - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - Arlington Players
  John-Michael d'Haviland - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  David Rohde - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Elisa Rosman - Urinetown - Reston Community Players
  Meredyth Stirling - The All Night Strut - Prince William Little Theatre

Outstanding Choreography:

  Matt Anderson & Catherine Oh - Urinetown - Reston Community Players
  Kay Casstevens - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - Arlington Players
  Shannon Khatcheressian - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Aurelia Michael - Zanna Don't - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Andrew JM Regiec - Forbidden Broadway - Reston Community Players

Outstanding Stage Combat Choreography:

  Jamie Hannah - The Cripple of Inishmaan - Silver Spring Stage
  Craig Hower - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  Steve Lada - The House of Blue Leaves - Dominion Stage
  David Timmermann & Randy Tusing - Noises Off - Port Tobacco Players
  Beth Whitehead - Moon Over Buffalo - Providence Players
 
Outstanding lead actor in a play:
 
  Patrick David as "George/Cyrano" - Moon Over Buffalo - Providence Players
  Hans Dettmar as "John Merrick" - The Elephant Man - 2nd Flight Productions
  Jim Gallagher as "Howie" - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Ryan Manning as "Cripple Billy" - The Cripple of Inishmaan - Silver Spring Stage
  Matthew Randall as "Norman" - The Dresser - Port City Playhouse
  Pat Reynolds as "Bruno Richard Hauptmann" - Hauptmann - Colonial Players of Annapolis

Outstanding lead actress in a play:

  Darice Clewell as "Lotty Wilton" - Enchanted April - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Jane MacFarlane as "Sister Aloysius" - Doubt, a Parable - Elden Street Players
  Lorraine Magee as "Heidi Holland" - The Heidi Chronicles - Foundry Players
  Karen Jadlos Shotts as "Hedda Gabler" - Hedda Gabler - Elden Street Players
  Kris Valerio as "Becca" - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis

Outstanding lead actor in a musical:
 
  Matt Garcia as "Fred & Petruchio" - Kiss Me, Kate - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Andy Izquierdo as "Gordon Michael Schwinn" - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  John Loughney as "Bobby Strong" - Urinetown - Reston Community Players
  John Loughney as "Jon" - Tick, Tick, Boom! - Elden Street Players
  Mick Tinder as "John Adams" - 1776 - Little Theatre of Alexandria

Outstanding lead actress in a musical:
 
  Margaret (Maggie) Allman as "Desiree Armfeldt" - A Little Night Music - St.Mark's Players
  Allison Block as "Maria Rainer" - The Sound of Music - Rockville Musical Theatre
  Katie McManus as "Lizzie" - 110 in the Shade - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Brittany O'Grady & Whitney Turner as "Mary " - The Secret Garden - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Elizabeth Yeats as "Queenie" - The Wild Party - Dominion Stage

Outstanding featured actor in a play:

  Kevin Dykstra as "Arnold" - The Boys Next Door - Montgomery Playhouse
  Joshua Greenwald as "Jason" - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  David Jones as "Norman" - The Boys Next Door - Montgomery Playhouse
  Jim Reiter as "Dr. Condon, Alexander Woolcott, HL Mencken, Albert Osborne, Arthur Koehler, Guard & Policeman" - Hauptmann
     - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Nader Tavangar as "Eilert Lovborg" - Hedda Gabler - Elden Street Players

Outstanding featured actress in a play:

   Robin Covington as "Sarah" - Seascape - Silver Spring Stage
  Millie Ferrara as "Nat" - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Rebecca Lenehan as "Rosemary Sydney" - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Jamie Miller as "Izzy" - Rabbit Hole - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Karen Schlumpf as "Isobel" - An Experiment with an Air Pump - Reston Community Players

Outstanding featured actor in a musical:

  Tim Adams as "Steve" - Zanna Don't - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Rafael Cuesta, Jr. as "The Wiz" - The Wiz - St. Mark's Players
  Josh Doyle as "Michael" - Tick, Tick, Boom! - Elden Street Players
  Ryan Khatcheressian as "Roger Delli-Bovi" - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Ryan Manning as "Jim" - 110 in the Shade - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Ryan Manning as "Buck" - Zanna Don't - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Jay Tilley as "Officer Lockstock" - Urinetown - Reston Community Players

Outstanding featured actress in a musical:
 
  Lisa Anne Bailey as "Mimi Schwinn" - A New Brain - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Kristen Garaffo as "Susan" - Tick, Tick, Boom! - Elden Street Players
  Katie McManus as "Penelope Pennywise" - Urinetown - Reston Community Players
  June Schreiner as "Little Sally" - Urinetown - Reston Community Players
  Shelly Schubert as "The Mother Abbess" - The Sound of Music - Fauquier Community Theatre
  Laura Wehrmeyer as "Lily" - The Secret Garden - Little Theatre of Alexandria

Outstanding cameo in a musical:

  Cathy Arnold as "Claire" - bare, a pop opera - 2nd Flight Productions
  Albert Coia as "Erronius" - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - Arlington Players
  Malinda Ellerman as "Loretta" - Zanna Don't - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Ryan Manning as "Bronco" - Zanna Don't - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Sam Nystrom as "Bobo" - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players

Outstanding cameo in a play:

  Sally Cusenza as "Abbess Agatha" - Incorruptible - Silver Spring Stage
  R. Anne Hull as "Olga" - You Can't Take it With You - Laurel Mill Playhouse
  Lolita-Marie as "Mrs. Muller" - Doubt, a Parable - Elden Street Players
  Gavin Tameris as "Delivery Man" - Barefoot in the Park - Castaways Repertory Theatre
  Jonas Ventimiglia as "Bert" - All My Sons - Rockville Little Theatre
  Robin Zerbe as "Miss Sandwich" - The Elephant Man - 2nd Flight Productions

 
Outstanding Set Design:
  Sarah Ann Carlson & Jason Carlson - Hotbed Hotel - Port Tobacco Players
  Michael deBlois - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  Howard Vincent Kurtz - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  John Merritt - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  John Merritt & Joe Stine - Disney's Beauty & the Beast - Port Tobacco Players
  Maggie Modig - Bus Stop - Reston Community Players
 
Outstanding Set Construction:
  John Bilton & John Merritt - Hotbed Hotel - Port Tobacco Players
  Michael deBlois - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  John Merritt - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  John Reckeweg - Noises Off - Port Tobacco Players
  Jack Schaeffer & Jerry Wolfe - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria

 
Outstanding Set Painting:
  Amanda Acker, Candice Bolton, Karinn Cologne, Sandy Kozel, Ellie Lockwood & John Segota - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum -
      Arlington Players
  Sarah Ann Carlson & John Merritt - Hotbed Hotel - Port Tobacco Players
  Nancy Daugherty & Martha Lynch - The Sound of Music - Fauquier Community Theatre
  John Merritt - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  De Nicholson-Lamb & Kevin O'Dowd - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria
 
Outstanding Set Decoration and Set Dressing:
 
  Kim Moore Bessler & Lynne O'Meara - Hotbed Hotel - Port Tobacco Players
  Brandon R. McWilliams, Michael Sandner, Will Sweeney, & Sonya Okin - Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean -
    Silver Spring Stage
  Jerry & Bea Morse, Mike Smith - Bus Stop - Reston Community Players
  Michael Smith - Hedda Gabler - Elden Street Players
  (no names listed) - Meet Me in St. Louis - Tantallon Community Players

Outstanding Properties:

  Janice Bean & Yvonne Epps-Giddings - Meet Me in St. Louis - Tantallon Community Players
  Kim Moore Bessler & Lynne O'Meara - Hotbed Hotel - Port Tobacco Players
  Karen Kleyle - Noises Off - Port Tobacco Players
  Sonya Okin - The Cripple of Inishmaan - Silver Spring Stage
  Donna Reynolds - The Dresser - Port City Playhouse
  Michael Smith - Hedda Gabler - Elden Street Players
  Mike Smith, Jerry & Bea Morse - Bus Stop - Reston Community Players

Outstanding Lighting Design:

  AnnMarie Castrigno - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  Franklin Coleman - An Experiment with an Air Pump - Reston Community Players
  Ken & Patti Crowley - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Ken & Patti Crowley - The Secret Garden - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Leslie Wanko - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players

Outstanding Sound Design:

  Wes Bedsworth - Hauptmann - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  William Chrapcynski - An Experiment with an Air Pump - Reston Community Players
  Anna Hawkins - Dearly Departed - Aldersgate Church Community Theatre
  David Standish & Jeff Hitaffer - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  Brian Vargas - And Then There Were None - Arlington Players
  Alan Wray - Picnic - Little Theatre of Alexandria

Outstanding Costume Design:

  Mary Ayala-Bush & Lori Levitt - Sweet Smell of Success - Arlington Players
  Jean Beall & Donna Soraparu - Enchanted April - Colonial Players of Annapolis
  Pat Brennan - Disney's Beauty & the Beast - Port Tobacco Players
  Jo Rake - Meet Me in St. Louis - Tantallon Community Players
  Eric Scerbo - Seascape - Silver Spring Stage

Outstanding Makeup Design:

  Susan Braun - Scrooge - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  The Cast - Seascape - Silver Spring Stage
  Jen Durham - The Wiz - St. Mark's Players
  Sheila Hyman - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  Eric Jones & Denise A. Levien - The Rocky Horror Show - Greenbelt Arts Center

Outstanding Hair Design:

  Sheila Hyman - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  Eric Jones & Denise A. Levien - The Rocky Horror Show - Greenbelt Arts Center
  Paul Morton - Scrooge - Little Theatre of Alexandria
  Sue Pinkman, Mark Bartyczak & Anna Michelle Jackson - Forbidden Broadway - Reston Community Players
  Sue Pinkman & Anna Michelle Jackson - An Experiment with an Air Pump - Reston Community Players
  Bette Williams - The Secret Garden - Little Theatre of Alexandria

Outstanding Special Effects:

  John Decker - 110 in the Shade - Kensington Arts Theatre
  Todd Fleming & Andrew S. Greenleaf - Dinner with Friends - Silver Spring Stage
  Keith Linville - Dracula: The Case of the Silver Scream - Port Tobacco Players
  Tel Monks, Jerry Skene, Robb Hunter & Rick Schneider - An Experiment with an Air Pump - Reston Community Players
  Russell M. Wyland - Scrooge - Little Theatre of Alexandria