2023 Artsies Nominations Announced
How to Bruise Gracefully, written by Brittany Fisher, direction by Melissa Mowry
Originally published by the Richmond Theatre Community Circle
August 21, 2023
15th Awards Event and Nominations for the 2022-23 Season
The 15th Richmond Theatre Community Circle (formerly RIchmond Theatre Critics Circle) Awards (“Artsies”), the community’s recognition of excellence in Richmond-area theater, will be held at the November Theatre on Sunday, October 8th. More details will follow.
The Richmond Theatre Community Circle announces the following nominees for this year’s Artsies. The 2022-23 nominees are:
Best Musical
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Virginia Repertory Theatre (Virginia Rep) Gabriel: The Musical, Firehouse Theatre (Firehouse)
Ghost Quartet, Firehouse
Head over Heels, Richmond Triangle Players (RTP)
Best Direction (Musical)
PJ Freebourn, Ghost Quartet, Firehouse
Rick Hammerly, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Virginia Rep Lucian Restivo, Head over Heels, RTP
Foster Solomon, Gabriel: The Musical, Firehouse
Best Lead Performance (Musical)
Lukas D’Errico, Head over Heels
Grey Garrett, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Calvin Malone, Head over Heels
Jerold Solomon, Gabriel: The Musical
Debra Wagoner, Honky Tonk Laundry, Virginia Rep
Best Supporting Performance (Musical)
Logan Foster, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Katie Goffman, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Sydnee Graves, Gabriel: The Musical
Zachary A. Myers, Head over Heels
Shannon Schilstra, Head over Heels
Best Musical Direction
Billy Dye, Gabriel: The Musical
Kim Fox, Head over Heels
Jason Marks, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Amy L. Oblinger, Ghost Quartet
Best Choreography
Nicole Morris-Anastasi, Head over Heels
Nicole Morris-Anastasi, Ghost Quartet
Simeon Rawls, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design (Musical)
Sue Griffin, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Laura Vitale, Head over Heels
Outstanding Achievement in Lighting Design (Musical)
Andrew Bonniwell, Ghost Quartet
Joe Doran, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Michael Jarett, Head over Heels
Steven Koehler, Honky Tonk Laundry
Todd Labelle, Gabriel: The Musical
Outstanding Achievement in Set Design (Musical)
Frank Foster, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Frank Foster, Head over Heels
Dasia Gregg, Gabriel: The Musical
Todd Labelle, Ghost Quartet
Tom Width, Keep on the Sunny Side, Swift Creek Mill Theatre (Swift Creek Mill)
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design (Musical)
Joey Luck, Head over Heels
Jacob Mishler, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Best Play
Gaslight, Swift Creek Mill Theatre
The Inheritance, RTP
The Light, Yes, And! Theatrical Company (Yes, And!) The School for Lies, Richmond Shakespeare
Uncle Vanya, Richmond Shakespeare
Best Direction (Play)
Irene Kuykendall, Gaslight Lucretia Marie, The Light
Jan Powell, Uncle Vanya
Lucian Restivo, The Inheritance James Ricks, The School for Lies
Best Lead Performance (Play)
Lukas D’Errico, The Inheritance Grey Garrett, Placebo, Yes, And! Deejay Gray, The Inheritance Katrinah Carol Lewis, The Light Matt Mitchell, The School for Lies Adam Turck, The Inheritance Lindsey Zelli, Gaslight
Lindsey Zelli, The School for Lies
Best Supporting Performance (Play)
Emily Berry, The Comedy of Errors, Richmond Shakespeare
Axle Burtness, Gaslight
Kylee Márquez-Downie, The School for Lies
Dorothy “Dee D.” Miller, How Black Mothers Say I Love You, RTP Alexander Sapp, Placebo
Tatjana Shields, How to Bruise Gracefully, Cadence Theatre in partnership with Virginia Rep Sara Dabney Tisdale, The School for Lies
Eddie Webster, The Inheritance
Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design (Play)
Anna Bialkowski, Uncle Vanya
Carolan Corcoran, Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, Virginia Rep Cora Delbridge, The School for Lies
Sue Griffin and Marcia Hailey, Steel Magnolias, Virginia Rep William Luther, Christmas on the Rocks, RTP
Outstanding Achievement in Lighting Design (Play)
Gretta Daughtrey, Uncle Vanya
Joe Doran, A Soldier’s Story, Swift Creek Mill
Michael Jarett, The Inheritance
Lynne M. Hartman, Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley BJ Wilkinson, After December, Virginia Rep
Outstanding Achievement in Set Design (Play)
Tennessee Dixon, After December
Frank Foster, The Inheritance
Vinnie Gonzalez, Lewiston, HATTheatre
Chris Raintree, Chicken & Biscuits, Virginia Rep Mercedes Schaum, Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design (Play)
Candace Hudert, The Light
Joey Luck, After December
Lucian Restivo, The Inheritance James Ricks, Uncle Vanya
James Ricks, All’s Well That Ends Well
Ernie McClintock Best Ensemble Acting
A Soldier’s Play, Swift Creek Mill Theatre
How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Richmond Triangle Players The Inheritance, Richmond Triangle Players
The School for Lies, Richmond Shakespeare
Uncle Vanya, Richmond Shakespeare
Breakout Performance
Calie Bain, Uncle Vanya
Lukas D’Errico, The Inheritance/Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley/Head over Heels Theresa Mantiply, Christmas on the Rocks
Nakia Young-El, Steel Magnolias
Lindsey Zelli, Gaslight/Uncle Vanya/The School for Lies
Best Original Work
After December created by Bo Wilson and directed by Rick Hammerly, Virginia Repertory Theatre
Cross Stitch Bandits created by Sanam Laila Hashemi and Steven Burneson and directed by Sharon Ott, Cadence Theatre in partnership with Virginia Rep
Gabriel: The Musical written by Jerold Solomon, Foster Solomon, and Ron Klipp, with music and lyrics by Ron Klipp, and directed by Foster Solomon, Firehouse Theatre
How to Bruise Gracefully created by Brittany Fisher and directed by Melissa Mowry, Cadence Theatre in partnership with Virginia Rep
The event will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 8, at Virginia Rep’s November Theatre. Tickets are $20 for orchestra seating and $25 for balcony seating. They will go on sale September 8 and can be purchased by calling the Virginia Rep box office at 804-282-2620. Get your tickets early – ticket prices go up by $5 on September 24. All proceeds from Artsies ticket sales support the Theatre Artist Fund of Greater Richmond.