Congratulations to the alumni and faculty of the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department, the Columbia College Chicago Music Department, and the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago who have been nominated for 2020 Joseph Jefferson Awards, Chicago’s top theatre award. The Equity “Jeff Awards” honor excellence in Chicago’s Equity theatre during the 2019-2020 theatre season. The list of this year’s Equity Jeff Award nominees, announced September 15, includes nominations for alumni, former students, and faculty from Columbia College Chicago in the areas of performance, direction, musical direction, and design — including:
Harmony France (Photo: Joe Mazza/BraveLux)
Performer in a Revue: former Theatre Department Acting program student Harmony France for Always…Patsy Cline (Firebrand Theatre).
A.C. Smith
Celeste Williams
Performer in a Supporting Role – Play: Columbia College Theatre Department alum A.C. Smith ’86, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Theatre, for King Hedley II (Court Theatre); and Theatre Department faculty member Celeste Williams for The First Deep Breath (Victory Gardens Theater).
David Cromer
Director of a Play — Large: Former Columbia College Theatre Department student and faculty member David Cromer HDR ’17 — recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Columbia College in 2017 — for Bug (Steppenwolf Theatre).
Jeffrey Levin
Sound Design – Large: Columbia College Music Department alum Jeffrey Levin ’10, a graduate of the Columbia College Music Department‘s BA Program in Music with a Composition Concentration, for Kill Move Paradise (TimeLine Theatre Company).
Sound Design – Midsize: Music Department alum Jeffrey Levin for Grey House (A Red Orchid Theatre).
Original Music in a Play: Music Department alum Jeffrey Levin for Kill Move Paradise (TimeLine Theatre Company).
Heather Gilbert
Lighting Design – Large: Theatre Department Theatre Design program faculty member Heather Gilbert for Bug (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); and Theatre Department alum Jesse Klug ’05, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s Theatre Design program, for Beauty and the Beast (Paramount Theatre).
Jermaine Hill
Andra Velis Simon
Musical Direction: Columbia College Theatre Department faculty member Jermaine Hill, coordinator of the Theatre Department’s Musical Theatre Program, nominated twice, for The Color Purple (Drury Lane Theatre) and Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (Porchlight Music Theatre); and Theatre Department faculty member Andra Velis Simon for Always…Patsy Cline (Firebrand Theatre).
Mike Tutaj
Projection Design: Theatre Department faculty member Mike Tutaj, nominated twice, for Oslo (TimeLine Theatre Company) and The Secret of My Success (Paramount Theatre).
Erin Kilmurray (Photo: Joe Mazza/BraveLux)
Artistic Specialization: Dance Center of Columbia College alum Erin Kilmurray ’08, a graduate of the Dance Center’s BA Program in Dance, for Movement Design for Oedipus Rex (Court Theatre).
In addition, Columbia College alumni and faculty were cast members of several shows nominated for Jeff Awards in the “Ensemble” category, including Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (Porchlight Music Theatre), An American in Paris (Drury Lane Productions), and The Color Purple (Drury Lane Productions). And Columbia alumni and faculty were in the casts and creative teams for several shows nominated for Jeff Awards in the “Production” category, including the plays Oslo (TimeLine Theatre Company), Bug (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), and King Hedley II (Court Theatre) and the musicals Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies (Porchlight Music Theatre), An American in Paris (Drury Lane Productions), The Color Purple (Drury Lane Production), Monty Python’s Spamalot (Mercury Theater Chicago), and Always…Patsy Cline (Firebrand Theatre).
