April, 2009 – 33rd Annual Carbonell Award Nominations

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CULTURAL CORNERGlenn Swift

by Glenn Swift

 

33rd Annual Carbonell Award Nominations

 

At the end of last year, when the future of the Carbonell Awards seemed in doubt due to a firestorm of controversy regarding the selection process, the community rallied together to voice support for South Florida’s oldest and most prestigious arts honors, which applaud the best shows and performances in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. The Carbonell Awards now respond with a rousing slate of nominations for the 33rd Annual Carbonell Awards and ticket prices reduced down by more than 50 percent from years past for the gala ceremony, which will take place Monday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m. in the Amaturo Theater of the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
Nominations encompass the entire length of South Florida with 16 companies receiving nods and 30 of the 83 eligible shows that opened in 2008 being recognized.

Miami-Dade County led the nominations with a total of 42 followed by Palm Beach with 38 and Broward with 20. Top honors were spread out evenly among all three counties as Palm Beach Dramaworks took home the most nominations of any theater company with 15, while Gablestage’s production of Adding Machine in Coral Gables received 11 nominations and Plantation’s Mosaic Theatre Company’s mounting of The Seafarer garnered seven nominations to become the most nominated musical and play, respectively. The late Bruce Adler was nominated as Best Actor in a Play for I’m Not Rappaport at Boca Raton’s New Vista Theatre Company. A lifelong entertainer who was nominated twice for Broadway’s Tony Award, Adler came from a Yiddish theatre family and passed away last July from cancer.

Actor Gordon McConnell will compete against himself for Best Actor in a Play for his performances in Blackbird and Dirty Business, while Oscar Cheda received nominations in two musical categories as Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor for his performances in Adding Machine and She Loves Me, respectively.

With three nominations each, sound designer Steve Shapiro and costume designer Ellis Tillman are the most nominated individuals. Joining McConnell and Cheda as double nominees are scenic designer Michael Amico, choreographer Barbara Flaten, director J. Barry Lewis, musical director David Nagy and lighting designer Jeff Quinn.

Broadway road shows and stock productions will also be honored at the award ceremony, which is named after its designer sculptor Manuel Carbonell. The annual awards ceremony raises scholarships for South Florida arts students. Since the first, single $500 scholarship was given in 1978, dozens of students in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties have received a total of approximately $100,000.

Tickets are $25 with $20 tickets available for groups of 10 or more. Tickets will go on sale Friday, February 27 and are available through the Broward Center’s box office by calling 954-462-0222 or visiting www.browardcenter.org. The Broward Center is located at 201 S.W. 5th Ave. in Fort Lauderdale.
Glenn R. Swift is a freelance writer and editor living in Jensen Beach. Winner of the Florida Magazine Association’s 1999 Bronze Award for Writing Excellence, Swift is one of the most acclaimed entertainment writers in South Florida. He is the Editor and Co-Founder of www.OnStagePalmBeach.com, the definitive Arts & Entertainment website for Palm Beach and the Treasure Coast.