KINGSTON, Jamaica, March 1, 2015 (AMG) — With twenty-two nominations spread over eleven of the award’s twenty categories, including Best Drama and Best Musical, the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts (EMCVPA) School of Drama surpassed the competition as the nominations for the 2015 Actor boy awards were announced last week. This for their three productions staged over the course of 2014 – Wild Alice (8 nominations), An Echo in the Bone (6 nominations) and Dream on Monkey Mountain (8 nominations).
However, it was Jambiz Production’s Saving Alligator High that dominated the nominations, becoming the most nominated theatre production of the night, with a grand total of twelve nominations, including Best Comedy, Best New Jamaican Play and the top honour, Best Production of the Year.
The highly regarded production, written by Patrick Brown, who is no stranger to these awards (Ladies of the Night, 2014; Breadfruit Kingdom, 2012), is a satirical re-imagination of the realities of the Jamaican school system, set in a staff room and played out by a group teachers at an underdeveloped Jamaican high school.
[videoembed type=”youtube” url=”http://youtu.be/CtUa0ve1vRc”]Other prominent nominees for the night include Laff It Off (Oliver Mair Productions) with 9 nominations and Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz (Independent Actors Movement). Being the only nominee the category of Best Tragedy, Her Last Cry (DMH Productions) is the sole nominee to have already been declared winner.
Director Trevor Nairne distinguished himself among the nominees with triple nominations in the directing category (Funny Kind’a Love; Dream on Monkey Mountain; Saving Alligator High).
Outstanding thespians in the batch of nominees included Glen Campbell, who copped double nominations for Best Actor in a Lead Role for his work in Saving Alligator High and Funny Kind’a Love. The other nominees in that category include Christopher McFarlane (Dream on Monkey Mountain), Alwyn Scott (A Small Room) and Tesfa Edwards (Her Last Cry).
Veteran stage actress, Leonie Forbes nabs a nomination for Best Actress in a Lead Role for her portrayal of Molly Parkin in David Tulloch’s For My Daughter, alongside Suzette Barrett (Where Is My Father), Sharee McDonald-Russell (Saving Alligator High), Rosie Murray (For My Daughter) and Ruth Ho-Shing (Divorce Papers).
The Actor Boy Awards, presented annually since 1990, is the longest running awards show in the Caribbean with recognition bestowed on dramatic productions for excellence in Jamaican professional theatre. The history of the awards date back almost thirty years, with the International Theatre Institute (ITI) being the main organizer for the last twenty years.
The Actor Boy Awards 2015 are expected to be held on March 30 at the Courtleigh Auditorium, Kingston. The complete list of nominees is below:
PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR
An Echo in the Bone – EMCVPA School of Drama
Saving Alligator High – Jambiz International
Dream on Monkey Mountain – EMCVPA School of Drama
Funny Kind’a Love – Jambiz International
Wild Alice – EMCVPA School of Drama
MUSICAL
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Independent Actors Movement (I AM)
Wild Alice – EMCVPA School of Drama
Princess Boonoonoonoos – Little Theatre Movement
DRAMA
An Echo in the Bone – EMCVPA School of Drama
Dream on Monkey Mountain – EMCVPA School of Drama
Her Last Cry – DMH Productions
Where is my Father – The Fairfield Theatre
Divorce Papers – Basil Dawkins Productions
REVUE
God Go Wid Yuh – DMH Productions
Laff It Off – Oliver Mair Productions
CHILDRENS THEATRE
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Independent Actors Movement (I AM)
Wild Alice – EMCVPA School of Drama
COMEDY
Saving Alligator High – Jambiz International
Funny Kind’a Love – Jambiz International
Divorce Papers – Basil Dawkins Productions
Laff It Off – Oliver Mair Productions
Wild Alice – EMCVPA School of Drama
TRADEDGY
Her Last Cry – DMH Productions
NEW JAMAICAN PLAY
Saving Alligator High – Patrick Brown
Funny Kind ‘a Love – Patrick Brown
Her Last Cry – Dahlia Harris
Divorce Papers – Basil Dawkins
Laff It Off – Oliver Mair
DIRECTING
Saving Alligator High – Trevor Nairne; Patrick Brown
An Echo in the Bone – Eugene Williams
Funny Kind’a Love – Patrick Brown; Trevor Nairne
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Trevor Nairne
Wild Alice – Pierre LeMaire
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Saving Alligator High – David Crossgill
Absent Friends – Jean Paul Menou
Saving Alligator High – Courtney Wilson
God Go Wid Yuh – Carl Samuels
Laff It Off – Akeem Mignott
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Saving Alligator High – Camille Davis
Saving Alligator High – Sakina Deer
Where Is My Father – Nadean Rawlins
Absent Friends – Shawna-Kae Burns
God Go Wid Yuh – Shanique Brown
ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Christopher McFarlane
Saving Alligator High – Glen Campbell
A Small Room –Alwyn Scott
Funny Kind’a Love – Glen Campbell
Her Last Cry – Tesfa Edwards
ACTRESS IN LEAD ROLE
For My Daughter – Leonie Forbes
Where Is My Father – Suzette Barrett
Saving Alligator High – Sharee McDonald-Russell
For My Daughter – Rosie Murray
Divorce Papers – Ruth Ho Shing
ENSEMBLE CAST
Laff It Off – Oliver Mair Productions
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Independent Actors Movement (I AM)
ORIGINAL SONG
More than Monkey (Anacy Chaptaz:Monkey Bizniz) – Sabrena McDonald; Hugh Douse; Andre Dennis
Trapped (Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz) – Sabrena McDonald; Hugh Douse; Andre Dennis
Laff It Off (Laff it Off) – Oliver Mair; Alex Martin-Blanken; Dalton Spence
Evensong (God Guh Wid Yuh) – Dahlia Harris; Tesfa Edwards
Star Bwoy (Laff it Off) – Oliver Mair; Alex Martin-Blanken; Dalton Spence
ORIGINAL SCORE
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Sabrena McDonald; Hugh Douse; Andre Dennis
Laff It Off – Alex Martin-Blanken; Oliver Mair; Dalton Spence
SET DESIGN
An Echo in the Bone – Ron Steger
Funny Kind’a Love – Trevor Nairne; Patrick Brown
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Ron Steger
Saving Alligator High – Trevor Nairne; Patrick Brown
Wild Alice – Ron Steger
LIGHTING DESIGN
An Echo in the Bone – John DaCosta
Funny Kind’a Love – Patrick Brown; Lenford Salmon
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Trevor Nairne; Calvin Mitchell
Her Last Cry – Nadia Roxburgh
Wild Alice – Nadia Roxburgh
COSTUME DESIGN
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Denise Francis-Erricson
Wild Alice – Pierre LeMaire
An Echo in the Bone – Stacy Ann Banton
Saving Alligator High – Trevor Nairne
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Natasha Griffiths
CHOREOGRAPHY
Anancy Chaptaz: Monkey Bizniz – Paula Shaw
Princess Boonoonoonoos – Patrick Earle
Dream on Monkey Mountain – Patrick Earle/Alice Berry-Gayle
Laff It Off – Michael Holgate
God Guh Wid Yuh – Kevin Moore
