Columbia College Chicago Theatre and Music Alumni and Faculty Nominated for Jeff Awards

Congratulations to the alumni and faculty of the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department and Columbia College Chicago Music Department who have been nominated for Joseph Jefferson Awards, Chicago’s top theatre award. The Non-Equity “Jeff Awards” honor excellence in Chicago’s non-Equity theatre during the 2023 theatre season, which ran from January 1 to December 31, 2023. The list of this year’s Non-Equity Jeff Award nominees was announced on February 6, 2024, by the Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee. The list includes nominations for alumni, former students, and faculty from Columbia College Chicago in the areas of performance, direction, design, musical composition, and playwriting — including:
Performer in a Supporting Role – Musical:

Jon Parker Jackson

Columbia College alum Jon Parker Jackson ’18, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BFA Program in Musical Theatre, for his performance in Assassins at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre.

Quinn Rigg

Columbia College alum Quinn Rigg ’20, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BFA Program in Musical Theatre Performance, for his performance in Kokandy Productions’ The SpongeBob Musical at the Chopin Theatre.

Director – Musical:

Daryl Brooks (Photo: Joe Mazza/brave lux)

Columbia College Theatre Department faculty member Daryl Brooks, for Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre’s Assassins.

Scenic Design:

Kevin Rolfs

Columbia College alum Kevin Rolfs ’17, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Theatre Design and Technology, for his scenic design for Invictus Theatre Company’s The Crucible.

Projection Design:

DJ Douglass

Columbia College alum D.J. Douglass ’12, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Musical Theatre, for Invictus Theatre Company’s The Mountaintop.

Original Music in a Play:

Petter Wahlbäck

Columbia College alum and faculty member Petter Wahlbäck ’00, MFA ’08, a graduate of the Music Department’s BA Program in Music Composition and MFA Program in Music Composition for the Screen, for his music for Dying for It at The Artistic Home.

New Work:

Shannon O’Neill

Columbia College alum Shannon O’Neill ’07, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting, nominated for her play The Kelly Girls, which was presented by the Factory Theatre, where O’Neill is co-artistic director.

John Hildreth

Former Columbia College Theatre Department faculty member John Hildreth, nominated for his play Cat’s Cradle, which was presented by Lifeline Theatre, whose artistic director is Columbia College alum Ilesa Duncan ’99.

Aaron Reese Boseman

In addition, Columbia College Theatre Department alums were cast and creative team members of musicals nominated in the categories of Production and Ensemble, including Theo Ubique’s Assassins, Kokandy Productions’ The Spongebob Musical, and Once on This Island, presented by Pulse Theatre Company Chicago, whose co-founder and artistic director is Columbia College alum and faculty member alum Aaron Reese Boseman12, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s Theatre Directing program.

The 50th Anniversary Jeff Non-Equity Awards will take place on Monday, March 25, at Park West, 322 W. Armitage, Chicago. For more information, click here.