John (play)

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John is a play from Pulitzer Prize winning American playwright Annie Baker. The show premiered off-Broadway at New York's Signature Theatre Company in 2015, and was directed by Sam Gold. [1] Time ranked John as one of its top 10 plays and musicals of 2015, where it took the number four spot. [2] The play also reached number eight on the Hollywood Reporter's list of the "Best New York Theatre of 2015." [3]

The off-Broadway production was nominated for numerous awards, including five nods at the 2016 Lucille Lortel Awards: Outstanding Play; Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play (Georgia Engel); Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (Lois Smith); Outstanding Scenic Design (Mimi Lien); and Outstanding Lighting Design (Mark Barton). [4] John was also nominated for six Drama Desk Awards in 2016: Outstanding Play; Outstanding Actress in a Play (Georgia Engel); Outstanding Director of a Play; Outstanding Set Design for a Play (Mimi Lien); Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play (Mike Barton); and Outstanding Sound Design in a Play (Bray Poor). [5] At the 2016 Obie Awards, John Georgia Engel won in the performance category, while Annie Baker, Sam Gold and the design team won a Special Citation for Collaboration. [6]

Canadian premiere

The Company Theatre (TCT) brought the Canadian premiere of John to Canadian Stage's Berkeley Street Theatre in 2017. [7] Directed by Jonathan Goad, a member of TCT's ensemble, John starred TCT's co-Artistic Director Philip Riccio as Elias and Loretta Yu as Jenny. Nancy Beatty played Mertis, the owner of the B&B Elias and Jenny visit, while Nora McLellan took on the role of Genevieve, Mertis' Blind friend. [8] The critically acclaimed production [9] boasted a familiar creative team, with Kevin Lamotte (lighting design: Belleville, 2014; Domesticated, 2015), Michael Laird (sound design: Marion Bridge, 2007; Festen , 2008; Through the Leaves , 2010; Speaking in Tongues, 2012/13), and Michael Sinclair (stage management: Speaking in Tongues, 2012/13; Belleville, 2014; Domesticated, 2015) all returning to the TCT. Shannon Lea Doyle, a TCT newcomer, designed the production's set. [10]

The production was nominated for four 2017 Dora Mavor Moore Awards in the Independent Theatre category: Riccio received a nod for Outstanding Performance Male, both Beatty and McLellan were nominated for Outstanding Performance Female, and Doyle was nominated for Outstanding Set Design. [11] McLellan and Doyle won in their respective categories. [12] John was also picked up three awards at the 2017 Toronto Theatre Critics Awards: Best Supporting Actress (McLellan), Best International Play, and Best Production (John tied with Ex Machina/Canadian Stage's production of Robert LePage's 887 ). [13]

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References

  1. ↑ "John". Concord Theatricals. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  2. ↑ "Top 10 Plays & Musicals". Time. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  3. ↑ Rooney, David (2015-12-17). "David Rooney's Best New York Theater of 2015". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  4. ↑ Millward, Tom (2017-10-19). "The 2016 Lucille Lortel Awards - And the Winners are..." New York Theatre Guide. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  5. ↑ Rosky, Nicole. "FULL LIST! The Winners of the 2016 Drama Desk Awards!". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  6. ↑ "2016 Obie Award Winners Announced". Obie Awards. 2016-05-23. Retrieved 2022-06-07.
  7. ↑ Nestruck, J. Kelly (2017-05-25). "Come From Away picks up three Toronto Theatre Critics Awards". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  8. ↑ Sumi, Glenn (2017-02-07). "John shows the extraordinary beneath the ordinary". NOW Magazine. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  9. ↑ "Company Theatre's John a fine introduction to Annie Baker's work: review". The Toronto Star. 2017-02-03. ISSN   0319-0781 . Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  10. ↑ "Company Theatre's production of JOHN by Pulitzer Prize winner Annie Baker". Toronto Guardian. 2017-02-06. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  11. ↑ "Intermission | Nominations: 38th Annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards". Intermission. 2017-05-30. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  12. ↑ "Intermission | 38th Annual Dora Mavor Moore Award Winners". Intermission. 2017-06-26. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  13. ↑ "Intermission | 2017 Toronto Theatre Critics Award Winners". Intermission. 2017-05-25. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
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