Review: BWW-CLE Professional Theater Tributes--2018

Greater Cleveland is blessed with a vital theater scene. It the purpose of BROADWAY WORLD.COM-PROFESSIONAL CLEVELAND THEATER TRIBUTES (BWW-CLE Theater Tributes), to recognize theatrical experiences that, in the subjective view of this reviewer deserve special recognition.

Designees are listed in alphabetical, not in rank order.

15 TOP CLE THEATRICAL ACHIEVEMENTS OF 2018

Celeste Cosentino for undertaking the herculean task and successfully staging ANGELS IN AMERICA, Parts I and II at Ensemble Theatre

Christine Howey, the recently retired SCENE theater critic, for her many years of in-your face, up-front, creative reviews

Dorothy Silver's stellar five-minute monologue on why she went crazy in Dobama's JOHN

George Brandt for his compelling GROUNDED, which was locally given a stellar staging @ Dobama and Anjanette Hall for her outstanding performance in that production

Gina Vernaci for her being named president and chief operating officer of Playhouse Square

HOW TO END POVERTY IN 90 MINUTES @ Cleveland Public Theaterfor creatively bringing community awareness to poverty in Cleveland

Martin Céspedes for an outstanding season of choreographic excellence including his work on JANE EYRE @ Cleveland Music Theatre and HAIR, SHREK and GYPSY @ Beck Center

MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG @ Lakeland Civic Theatre for proving that a flop can become a hit with the right talent, creative directing, and production essentials

OUTSTANDING MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTIONS: AVENUE Q @ Blank Canvas, JANE EYRE @ Cleveland Musical Theatre, MAMMA MIA! @ Great Lakes Theater, MEMPHIS @ Cain Park, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG @ Lakeland Civic Theatre, NEXT TO NORMAL @ Porthouse, OKLAHOMA @ Porthouse, PASSING STRANGE, Karamu

OUTSTANDING NON-MUSICAL PRODUCTIONS: ALABAMA STORY @ Ensemble Theatre, ANGELS IN AMERICA, PART I & II @ Ensemble, APPROPRIATE @ Dobama, BLOOMSDAY @ none too fragile, BOOGIEBAN@ none too fragile, FREAK STORM @ none too fragile, GROUNDED @ Dobama, LOVE LETTERS @ Theatre in the Circle, MACBETH @ Great Lakes Theater, PRIDE AND PREJUDICE @ Great Lakes Theater, SASSY MAMAS @ Karamu, SWEAT @ Cleveland Play House, THE ROYALE @ Cleveland Play House, WHO'S AFRAID OF Virginia Woolf @ Beck Center

Porthouseon its 50thanniversary and Terri Kent, Artistic Director on her 18thseason

Roe Green, for her philanthropic contributions to Cleveland area theater organizations (Maltz Performing Arts Center, Kent State University, Cleveland Play House, Case Western Reserve)

Sean Derry and none too fragile for the world premiere of BOOGIEBANand its up-coming tour to Chicago and New York and the theater's consistent excellence in production quality

Tony Sias for leading the rebirth of Karamu as a viable theatre program, proving one man can make a difference

Victoria Bussert for her skills and tenacity in developing a top-ranked small university musical theatre program that continues to be a pipe-line to Broadway and professional theatres

If you would like to read any of my reviews for the year, please go to www.royberko.info, enter the blog and click on "2018 Reviews" or click on the name of the producing theatre and scroll through their performances. Reviews from previous years may also be accessed.

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