Winners of the 41st Annual Lucille Lortel Awards, recognizing the best of Off- and Off-Off-Broadway Theatre, were revealed May 3 in an Alex Moffat-hosted ceremony at NYU Skirball. Audible Theater’s Mexodus emerged as the most successful production of the evening, winning four categories, including the evening’s top honor: Outstanding Musical. The show also won for its direction (by David Mendizábal), sound design (by Mikhail Fiksel), and for writer-star Nygel D. Robinson’s leading performance. The musical had gone into tonight’s ceremony as the season’s most nominated show, competing in nine categories.
But awards were otherwise shared between multiple productions, with Mexodus being the only title to take more than one category. Outstanding Play went to Jordan Tannahill’s Prince Faggot, while The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee won the Revival category. The evening’s other acting awards went to Aigner Mizzelle for her leading performance in The Monsters, Nick Rashad Burroughs for his featured performance in Goddess, and David Turner for his featured performance in Mother Russia.
Presenters for the evening included Patrick Ball (Becky Shaw), Maya Boyd (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), Susannah Flood (Liberation), Stephanie Hsu (The Rocky Horror Show), Aasif Mandvi (Fallen Angels), Lea Michele (Chess), Francis Jue (Yellow Face), David Stone (Kimberly Akimbo), and James Lapine (Sunday in the Park With George).
The evening also saw several special, non-competitive awards bestowed, including a Lifetime Achievement Award for National Asian American Theatre Company founder Mia Katigbak, and late composer and lyricist William Finn, who was posthumously inducted onto the famed Playwrights’ Sidewalk in front of the Lucille Lortel Theatre in Manhattan’s West Village. A tribute to the latter featured performances from noted Finn interpreters Carolee Carmello, Lilli Cooper, Mary Testa, and Chip Zien. The evening also featured an In Memoriam segment that included Isa Briones (Just In Time) singing Bobby Darin’s “The Curtain Falls.”
READ: Mexodus Has Been Called ‘The Next Hamilton.’ Its Creators Don’t Mind the Comparison
See the full list of winners below:
Outstanding Play
Cold War Choir Practice, Ro Reddick
Kyoto, Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson
THE MONSTERS, Ngozi Anyanwu
Mother Russia, Lauren Yee
WINNER – Prince Faggot, Jordan Tannahill
READ: Prince Faggot May Look Like It’s About the Royal Family, But It’s Actually About Queer Joy
Outstanding Musical
BIGFOOT!
WINNER – Mexodus
My Joy Is Heavy
Night Side Songs
Saturday Church
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Outstanding Revival
WINNER – The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Bus Stop
Gruesome Playground Injuries
Titus Andronicus
The Weir
Outstanding Solo Show
Hold Me in the Water, written and performed by Ryan J. Haddad
WINNER – I’m Assuming You Know David Greenspan, by Mona Pirnot and performed by David Greenspan
Nothing Can Take You From The Hand Of God, written by Jen Tullock and Frank Winters, performed by Jen Tullock
Other, written and performed by Ari’el Stachel
The Unknown, by David Cale and performed by Sean Hayes
READ: Sean Hayes Did Not Want to Do a Solo Show; Then Leigh Silverman Sent Him The Unknown
Outstanding Director
Knud Adams, Cold War Choir Practice
Shayok Misha Chowdhury, Prince Faggot
Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, Kyoto
WINNER – David Mendizábal, Mexodus
Keenan Tyler Oliphant, Practice
Outstanding Choreographer
WINNER – Edgar Godineaux and Jared Grimes, Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole
Darrell Grand Moultrie, Goddess
Darrell Grand Moultrie, Saturday Church
Tony Thomas, Mexodus
Rickey Tripp, THE MONSTERS
READ: Saturday Church Is Preaching a Message of Love and Allyship
Outstanding Lead Performer in a Play
Noah Galvin, The Reservoir
Marin Ireland, Queens
John Krasinski, Angry Alan
WINNER – Aigner Mizzelle, The Monsters
Okieriete Onaodowan, The Monsters
Susannah Perkins, Antigone (This Play I Read In High School)
Kara Young, Gruesome Playground Injuries
Outstanding Featured Performer in a Play
Jorge Bosch, Kyoto
Felicia Curry, Bowl EP
Crystal Finn, Cold War Choir Practice
David Greenspan, Prince Faggot
Lizan Mitchell, Cold War Choir Practice
Deirdre O’Connell, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
WINNER – David Turner, Mother Russia
READ: Ro Reddick Doesn’t Mind If You Laugh During Cold War Choir Practice
Outstanding Lead Performer in a Musical
Abigail Bengson, My Joy Is Heavy
J. Harrison Ghee, Saturday Church
Dulé Hill, Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole
Ruthie Ann Miles, The Seat of Our Pants
Brian Quijada, Mexodus
WINNER – Nygel D. Robinson, Mexodus
Daniel J. Watts, Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole
Outstanding Featured Performer in a Musical
WINNER – Nick Rashad Burroughs, Goddess
Judy Kuhn, The Baker’s Wife
Erin Morton, Heathers The Musical
Stephanie Jae Park, Monte Cristo
Caleb Quezon, Saturday Church
Natalie Walker, The Last Bimbo of the Apocalypse
Lynne Wintersteller, About Time
READ: The Cast of The Baker’s Wife Is Rediscovering Stephen Schwartz’s Musical
Outstanding Ensemble
Initiative, Olivia Rose Barresi, Brandon Burk, Greg Cuellar, Harrison Densmore, Carson Higgins, Andrea Lopez Alvarez, Jamie Sanders, Christopher Dylan White
WINNER – Night Side Songs, Robin de Jesús, Brooke Ishibashi, Jonathan Raviv, Kris Saint-Louis, Mary Testa
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Philippe Arroyo, Autumn Best, Leana Rae Concepcion, Justin Cooley, Lilli Cooper, Jason Kravits, Matt Manuel, Kevin McHale, Jasmine Amy Rogers
READ: After Glee, Kevin McHale Has Found His Bliss By Going Against Type
Outstanding Scenic Design
WINNER – Miriam Buether, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
Afsoon Pajoufar, Cold War Choir Practice
Riw Rakkulchon, Mexodus
Adam Rigg and Anton Volovsek, Bowl EP
David Zinn, Prince Faggot
Outstanding Costume Design
Montana Levi Blanco, Prince Faggot
Enver Chakartash, TARTUFFE
WINNER – Qween Jean, Saturday Church
Celeste Jennings, minor.ity
Kaye Voyce, The Seat of Our Pants
Outstanding Lighting Design
Isabella Byrd, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
Isabella Byrd, Prince Faggot
Mextly Couzin, Mexodus
WINNER – Cha See, The Unknown
Studio Luna, Marcel on the Train
Outstanding Sound Design
Caroline Eng, The Unknown
WINNER – Mikhail Fiksel, Mexodus
Ryan Gamblin, Bowl EP
Drew Levy, The Weir
Bray Poor, Eurydice
Outstanding Projection Design
David Bengali, My Joy Is Heavy
Stefania Bulbarella, Nothing Can Take You From The Hand Of God
Akhila Krishnan, Kyoto
Johnny Moreno, Mexodus
WINNER – John Narun, Bughouse
HONORARY AWARDS
Lifetime Achievement: Mia Katigbak
Playwrights’ Sidewalk Inductee: William Finn
Productions with multiple wins:
Mexodus – 4
The Lortel Awards are produced by the Off-Broadway League and the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
Visit LortelAwards.org.