Winners of the 71st Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards were announced May 17, with Broadway's The Lehman Trilogy becoming the most-recognized production of the season, winning six categories including Outstanding New Broadway Play. SIX: The Musical pulled in three wins, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical, but it was Atlantic Theater Company's Broadway-bound Kimberly Akimbo that was the most recognized musical, with four wins including Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical.
Lehman Trilogy also took Outstanding Actor in a Play (Simon Russell Beale), Director of a Play (Sam Mendes), Lighting Design (Jon Clark), Sound Design (Nick Powell and Dominic Bilkey), and Video/Projection Design (Luke Halls). The work is nominated for eight 2022 Tony Awards, the most nominated play of the season.
Along with Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical, Kimberly Akimbo won Actress in a Musical (Victoria Clark), Director of a Musical (Jessica Stone), and Book of a Musical (David Lindsay-Abaire). The work is scheduled to begin previews on Broadway October 12, with an opening night set for November 10 at a Shubert theatre to be announced.
Also winning the major production awards were Manhattan Theatre Club's Prayer for the French Republic (Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play), Atlantic Theater Company's English (John Gassner Award for a new American play), and Broadway's Company and Take Me Out (Outstanding Revival of a Musical and Play, respectively).
Special achievement awards were announced for Johanna Day, David Morse, Mary-Louise Parker, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson, all for expertly reprising performances from productions eligible in earlier seasons. Day, Morse, and Parker are currently appearing in the first Broadway production of How I Learned to Drive following their performances in the 1997 original Off-Broadway production, while Santiago-Hudson brought his Lackawanna Blues to the Main Stem earlier this season following its 2001 Off-Broadway premiere.
See the list of winners below. For a full list of nominees, click here.
The Marjorie Gunner Award for Outstanding New Broadway Musical
SIX: The Musical
Outstanding New Broadway Play
The Lehman Trilogy
Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical
Kimberly Akimbo
Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play
Prayer for the French Republic
John Gassner Award (presented to a new American play, preferably by a new playwright)
English by Sanaz Toossi
Outstanding Revival of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Company
Outstanding Revival of a Play (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Take Me Out
Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Jaquel Spivey, A Strange Loop
Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Victoria Clark, Kimberly Akimbo
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Matt Doyle, Company
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Patti LuPone, Company
Outstanding Actor in a Play
Simon Russell Beale, The Lehman Trilogy
Outstanding Actress in a Play
LaChanze, Trouble in Mind
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Take Me Out
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Uzo Aduba, Clyde's
Outstanding Solo Performance
Kristina Wong, Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord
Outstanding Director of a Play
Sam Mendes, The Lehman Trilogy
Outstanding Director of a Musical
Jessica Stone, Kimberly Akimbo
Outstanding Choreography
Christopher Wheeldon and Rich + Tone Talauega, MJ the Musical
Outstanding Book of a Musical
David Lindsay-Abaire, Kimberly Akimbo
Outstanding Score
Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, SIX: The Musical
Outstanding Orchestrations
Jason Howland, Paradise Square
Outstanding Scenic Design (Play or Musical)
Adam Rigg, The Skin of Our Teeth
Outstanding Costume Design (Play or Musical)
Gabriella Slade, SIX: The Musical
Outstanding Lighting Design (Play or Musical)
Jon Clark, The Lehman Trilogy
Outstanding Sound Design (Play or Musical)
Nick Powell and Dominic Bilkey, The Lehman Trilogy
Outstanding Video/Projection Design (Play or Musical)
Luke Halls, The Lehman Trilogy
Special Achievement Awards are presented to:
Johanna Day, David Morse, Mary-Louise Parker, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson for reprising their outstanding performances in How I Learned to Drive and Lackawanna Blues two decades later. All had been eligible in previous seasons.
Outer Critics Circle Commendations are presented to:
- The Standbys, Understudies, and Swings of the theatrical community who step up to perform, often on hours' notice, to keep their shows running.
- To the COVID Safety Supervisors, Managers, and Compliance Officers who put themselves in harm's way eight times a week to keep the curtains up.
Productions with Multiple Wins:
The Lehman Trilogy – 6
Kimberly Akimbo - 4
Company – 3
How I Learned to Drive – 3 (special achievement awards)
SIX: The Musical – 3
Take Me Out - 2
