Drama Desk Special Award

The Drama Desk Special Award is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee comprising New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It is a non-competitive award that honors an individual or an organization that has made a significant contribution to Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway, or legitimate not-for-profit theatre.

The special award was first presented at the 21st Annual Drama Desk Awards in 1975. The first recipients were Donald Sinden for London Assurance and Tovah Feldshuh for Yentl.

Winners

1976

• Hartman Theatre Company for Outstanding Contribution by a New Theater Company
• Queens Theater in the Park for Outstanding Contribution by a New Theater Company

1978

• Off-Off Broadway Theater Movement for Outstanding Contribution to Theater

1980

• La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club for Performances by International Companies

1982

• Jonathan Tunick
• Ridiculous Theatrical Company
• The Royal Shakespeare Company for The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby

1983

• WPA Theatre
• Douglas Watt for Distinguished Achievement
• Richard Wilbur for his English translation of The Misanthrope

1984

• Alan Schneider for serving a wide range of playwrights
• Michael Bennett, Joseph Papp, and the Shubert Organization for the 3,389th performance of A Chorus Line
• B.H. Barry for consistent excellence in fight staging
• Equity Library Theatre for showcasing theater professionals
• InterArt Theater for nurturing female theater artists

1985

• Gerard Alessandrini for Forbidden Broadway
• Ridiculous Theatrical Company for quick change wizardry in The Mystery of Irma Vep
• Claudette Colbert and Rex Harrison for the continuing pleasure of their company
• Veterans Ensemble Theater Company for giving voice to trauma of Vietnam

1986

• Thomas Z. Shepard for preserving musical theatre heritage on record
• Agnes De Mille for her enduring legacy of cherished choreography
• Joyce Theater for the American Theater Exchange program
• The New Amsterdam Theater Company for distinguished concert productions
• Donald Pippin for musical direction and commitment to theater
• Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn for their continuing theatrical partnership

1987

• Stanley Lebowsky for musical direction and commitment to theater
• Paul Davis and Frank Verlizzo for inspired art work for theatrical productions
• Henry Cohen, Donald Rose, and Robert Kimball for rescuing classic Broadway scores

1988

• Actors' Equity for 75 years of championing the professional actor
• Theatre on Film and Tape Archive for the preservation of our theatrical heritage
• Yale Repertory Theatre for nurturing plays of significance
• Michael Feinstein for celebrating American musical theater songs

1989

• Bernard Gersten
• Gregory Mosher
• Jerome Robbins
• John A. McGlinn
• Manhattan Theatre Club
• Paul Gemignani

1990

• The Fund for New American Plays for support of American playwrights and theaters
• Jule Styne for a lifetime of glorious theater music
• Kevin Haney for his makeup for Tru and other shows

1991

• Brooklyn Academy of Music for bringing international productions to New York
• James McMullan for consistently inspired art work for theater
• New Dramatists for decades of nurturing American playwrights
• Harold Rome for his distinctive contribution to musical theatre

1993

• Early Stages
• The Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Festival for puppetry at the Public Theater
• RCA Victor Records

1994

• John A. Willis for fifty years of devotion to theater and its artists
• Janet Hayes Walker for twenty-five years at the York Theatre Company

1995

• Eileen Atkins
• Otis L. Guernsey, Jr.
• The Non-Traditional Casting Project

1995

• Barrow Group for Off-Off Broadway Excellence

1996

• George C. Scott for lifetime devotion to theatre
• Repertorio Español for providing Spanish-language entertainment
• Signature Theatre Company for the concept of annually serving one playwright
• Theatreworks/USA for thirty-five years of entertaining children and parents

1997

• The Moscow Sovremennik Theatre Company for Into the Whirlwind and Three Sisters

1998

• Vineyard Theatre for quality work and the new S.P.A.C.E. program
• Arthur Miller for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater

1999

• Al Hirschfeld for Lifetime Achievement
• Sony Classical for its Columbia Broadway Masterworks series
• The Actors' Fund of America

2000

• Alexander H. Cohen (posthumously), Barnard Hughes, and Helen Stenborg for Lifetime Achievement

2001

• Reba McEntire for Annie Get Your Gun
• Seán Campion and Conleth Hill for Stones in His Pockets

2002

• Paul Huntley for Lifetime Achievement
• Billy Rosenfield for preserving musical theatre recordings
• Mint Theater Company for presenting/preserving little known classics
• Worth Street Theater Company for its Stage Door Canteen shows at Ground Zero

2003

• Brooklyn Academy of Music for bringing international works to New York

2004

• The Flea Theater
• Classical Theatre of Harlem
• Dakin Matthews for Henry IV

2005

• Keen Company for plays that build upon our theatrical heritage
• The Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Festival for fifty years of exceptional theater contributions

2006

• BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop for nurturing, developing, and promoting new talent for the musical theater
• York Theatre Company for its vital contributions to theater by developing and presenting new musicals
• Sh-K-Boom Records/Ghostlight Records for dedication to the preservation of musical theater through cast recordings

2007

• John Kander and Fred Ebb for forty-two years of excellence in advancing the art of the musical theatre
• Austin Pendleton - a Renaissance man of the American theatre
• Transport Group for its breadth of vision and its presentation of challenging productions
• Folksbiene for preserving for ninety-two consecutive seasons the cultural legacy of Yiddish theatre in America

2008

• Edward Albee, "whose provocative plays, including this season's Peter and Jerry, enrich the American theater"
• James Earl Jones, who has been "a commanding force on the stage for nearly half a century"
• Playwrights Horizons "for ongoing support to generations of theater artists and undiminished commitment to producing new work"
• 59E59 Theaters, "whose imaginative curatorial vision has created a stimulating environment to nurture a diverse range of artists"

2009

Source: Variety^[1]

• Liza Minnelli, "a beloved musical theater icon, for her enduring career of sustained excellence, and her glorious performance in Liza's at The Palace...!"
• Atlantic Theater Company and artistic director Neil Pepe "for exceptional craftsmanship, dedication to excellence and productions that engage, inspire and enlighten"
• TADA! Youth Theater "for providing an invaluable contribution to the future of the theater. The company makes outstanding training and experience accessible and affordable to young people and mounts productions remarkable for their quality and professionalism"
• Forbidden Broadway "at the end of its nearly three-decade run and the creators, casts, designers who made it an unparalleled New York institution cherished for its satire and celebration of Broadway"

2010

Source:Playbill^[2]

• The cast, creative team and producers of Horton Foote’s The Orphans' Home Cycle for "the breadth of vision, which inspired the exceptional direction, performances, sets, lighting, costumes, music and sound that made it the theatrical event of this season."
• Jerry Herman "for enchanting and dazzling audiences with his exuberant music and heartfelt lyrics for more than half a century."
• Godlight Theatre Company for "consistent originality and excellence in dramatizing modern literature, and especially for the vibrant theatricality of its innovative productions."
• Ma-Yi Theater Company for "more than two decades of excellence and for nurturing Asian-American voices in stylistically varied and engaging theater."

References

1. ^ Cox, Gordon.'Billy' dominates Drama Desk Awards" Variety, May 17, 2009
2. ^ Gans, Andrew."Drama Desk Award Nominations Announced; 'Ragtime' and 'Scottsboro' Top List" playbill.com, May 3, 2010

External links

• Official Drama Desk Award website