Chicago theater continues to dominate

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Two Chicago Dramatist members have been nominated for Ovation Awards from the LA Stage Alliance. The LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards are the only peer-judged theater awards in LA. Lydia Diamond’s play Stick Fly has been nominated for Best Production, Director, Ensemble, Lighting and Scenic, and rising playwright darling Keith Huff received two nominations for his play The Bird And Mr. Banks, for Best Actor and Best Sound Design. For you non-theater buffs, Huff’s A Steady Rain is raking in cash and praise over on Broadway right now (the casting of Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig doesn’t hurt).

Lydia Diamond’s Stick Fly is unusual as it provides a glimpse into the lives of wealthy African-Americans living in Martha’s Vineyard, and the humorous clash with their lower-class family when they come to visit. The play delivers a love story as well as social, political and historical discussion. Read a review of the show here.

Keith Huff’s The Bird and Mr. Banks has a small cast, but focuses on the male lead, a Mr. Banks with a penchant for blood and birds. Mr. Banks, like any good horror character  lives in a house resembling “Norman Bates Modern”. The play is a bit gruesome, and the Best Sound Scape nomination is understandable once you know the play’s synopsis.

And in case you haven’t heard, the duo that brought us the Tony Award winning Urinetown are doing quite well with their newest musical number Yeast Nation: The Triumph of Life.  Playwrights Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis chose the ancient primordial soup as the backdrop for Yeast Nation, and the play has been so popular that its run has been extended until November 8th.  Yeast Nation recently received a Joseph Jefferson Award nomination (the Tony’s equivalent of Chicago).