Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Lighting Design

Last updated
Outer Critics Circle Award for
Outstanding Lighting Design
Awarded forOutstanding Lighting Design
Location New York City
Presented by Outer Critics Circle
Currently held by Jon Clark, Stranger Things: The First Shadow (2025)
Website OuterCriticsCircle.org

The Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Lighting Design is an honor presented at the Outer Critics Circle Awards, a ceremony established in 1950 for excellence in Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, to lighting designers of any production. The category was added to the ceremony in 1988 as "Best Lighting Design" before being changed to "Outstanding Lighting Design" in 1999.

Contents

Paul Gallo holds the record for the most wins, with five from eight nominations. Four designers share the record for the most nominations, with nine each: Donald Holder, Natasha Katz, Brian MacDevitt and Kenneth Posner.

Award winners and nominees

Key
  and bold indicates the winner.

1980s

YearNameWorkRef.
1988
Andrew Bridge The Phantom of the Opera
1988
Paul Gallo Lend Me a Tenor

1990s

YearNameWorkRef.
Note: award given as "Best Set, Costume and Lighting Design"
1990
Paul Gallo City of Angels
1991
Tharon Musser The Secret Garden
1992
Paul Gallo Crazy for You
Trevor Dawson Dancing at Lughnasa
Richard Pilbrow Four Baboons Adoring the Sun
Peter Kaczorowski Song of Singapore
1993
Chris Parry The Who's Tommy
1994
Paul Pyant Carousel
1995
Richard Pilbrow Show Boat
1996
Nigel Levings The King and I
1997 (tie)
Paul Gallo Titanic
Peter Kaczorowski Steel Pier'
Ken Billington Chicago
Beverly Emmons Jekyll & Hyde
1998
Donald Holder The Lion King
Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer Ragtime
Mike Baldassari and Peggy Eisenhauer Cabaret
Natasha Katz The Scarlet Pimpernel
Note: award given as "Outstanding Lighting Design"
1999
Paul Gallo The Civil War
Andrew Bridge Fosse
Brian MacDevitt Night Must Fall
Mark Henderson The Iceman Cometh

2000s

YearNameWorkRef.
2000
Peter Kaczorowski Contact
Paule Constable Amadeus
Donald Holder The Green Bird
Kenneth Posner The Wild Party
2001
Brian MacDevitt The Invention of Love
Peter Kaczorowski The Producers
Kenneth Posner The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Paul Gallo 42nd Street
2002
David Hersey Oklahoma!
Donald Holder Thoroughly Modern Millie
David Weiner36 Views
James F. Ingalls The Elephant Man
2003
Nigel Levings La Bohème
Rui Rita Enchanted April
Paul Gallo Man of La Mancha
Brian MacDevitt Nine
Kenneth Posner Hairspray
2004
Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhauer Assassins
Kenneth Posner Wicked
David Lander I Am My Own Wife
Brian MacDevitt Fiddler on the Roof
2005
Christopher Akerlind The Light in the Piazza
Brian MacDevitt The Pillowman
Mark Henderson Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Hugh Vanstone Spamalot
Donald Holder Gem of the Ocean
2006
Howell Binkley Jersey Boys
Paul Pyant The Woman in White
Richard Jones Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Jeff Nellis Tryst
2007
Brian MacDevitt, Kenneth Posner and Natasha Katz The Coast of Utopia
Paule Constable Coram Boy
Howard Harrison Mary Poppins
Neil Austin Frost/Nixon
2008
Ken Billington Sunday in the Park with George
Donald Holder Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Peter Kaczorowski Young Frankenstein
Kevin Adams The 39 Steps
2009
Rick Fisher Billy Elliot
David Hersey War Horse
Kevin Adams Hair
Peter Kaczorowski Ruined
David Lander 33 Variations

2010s

YearNameWorkRef.
2010
Kevin Adams American Idiot
Justin Townsend Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson
Ken Billington Sondheim on Sondheim
Kevin Adams The Scottsboro Boys
2011
Paule Constable War Horse
Natasha Katz Sister Act
Malcolm Rippeth Brief Encounter
David Lander Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
2012
Hugh Vanstone Ghost The Musical
Neil Austin Evita
Brian MacDevitt Death of a Salesman
Donald Holder Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark
2013
Kenneth Posner Pippin
Donald Holder Golden Boy
Paul Gallo Dogfight
Ken Billington Chaplin
Kenneth Posner Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella
2014
Kevin Adams Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Paule Constable Les Misérables
Natasha Katz Aladdin
Philip S. Rosenberg A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
Howell Binkley After Midnight
2015
Paule Constable The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Japhy Weideman The Visit
Jeff Croiter Something Rotten!
Rick Fisher The Audience
Natasha Katz An American in Paris
2016
Justin Townsend American Psycho
Ben Stanton Spring Awakening
Donald Holder She Loves Me
Natasha Katz Long Day's Journey Into Night
Kenneth Posner On Your Feet!
2017
Bradley King Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812
Christopher Akerlind Indecent
Donald Holder Anastasia
Natasha Katz Hello, Dolly!
Kenneth Posner War Paint
2018
Neil Austin Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Lap Chi Chu Mlima's Tale
Paul Russell Farinelli and the King
Paule Constable Angels in America
Kevin Adams SpongeBob SquarePants
2019
Bradley King Hadestown
Stacey DerosierLewiston/Clarkston
Neil Austin Ink
Jason Lyons Sugar in Our Wounds
Peter Mumford King Kong

2020s

YearNameWorkRef.
2020 (Hon.) Hugh Vanstone A Christmas Carol
The Height of the Storm
Isabella Byrd Heroes of the Fourth Turning
Justin Townsend Moulin Rouge!
Heather Gilbert The Sound Inside
2021No award given due to COVID-19 pandemic.
2022
Jon Clark The Lehman Trilogy
Natasha Katz MJ
Bradley King Flying Over Sunset
Brian MacDevitt The Minutes
Jen Schriever Lackawanna Blues
2023
Tim Lutkin Life of Pi [1]
Neil Austin Leopoldstadt
Ken Billington New York, New York
Ben Stanton A Christmas Carol
Natasha Katz Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
2024
Brian MacDevitt The Outsiders [2]
Justin Townsend Here Lies Love
Amanda Zieve The Who's Tommy
Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone Back to the Future
Bradley King Water for Elephants
2025
Jon Clark Stranger Things: The First Shadow [3] [4]
Natasha Chivers The Hills of California
Justin Townsend Death Becomes Her
Ben Stanton Maybe Happy Ending
Kevin Adams Swept Away

Multiple wins

5 wins
3 wins
2 wins

Multiple nominations

9 nominations
8 nominations
7 nominations
6 nominations
5 nominations
4 nominations
3 nominations
2 nominations

References

  1. Culwell-Block, Logan (May 16, 2023). "Some Like It Hot Dominates 2023 Outer Critics Circle Awards; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
  2. "Stereophonic Leads 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards, Wins Best Play; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2025-08-19. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
  3. Culwell-Block, Logan (May 12, 2025). "Maybe Happy Ending Leads 2025 Outer Critics Circle Awards; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
  4. Evans, Greg (2025-04-25). "'Death Becomes Her' Broadway Musical Leads Outer Critics Circle Award Nominees – Complete List". Deadline. Retrieved 2025-09-01.