SCR Tops List of Critics Circle Nominations

For the second year in a row, Costa Mesa’s Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory tops the list of nominations for the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle awards for distinguished achievement in theater for 1988.

Altogether, SCR (whose 1987 production of “Misalliance” was the big winner at last year’s awards) leads the number of nominations with a total of 13. The Los Angeles Theatre Center has nine, the Pasadena Playhouse eight and the Taper and the Ahmanson, two each.

Of 61 nominations, announced in Los Angeles Wednesday, SCR’s “The Crucible” is first in line with 10, followed by “Fences” with six, “Les Miserables” five, and “El Salvador” (at the Gnu Theater in North Hollywood) four. A total of 28 shows garnered at least one nomination.

Whether it reflects a trend towards the professionalizing of Los Angeles theater, merely the luck of the draw or the residual effect of the extended battle between Actors’ Equity and the Waiver theater operators, it is noteworthy that 48 of the nominations went to Equity productions and only 13 to shows in Equity Waiver venues. That is the largest gap between union and non-union shows in the circle’s 20-year history. The list:

Production: “Born Yesterday,” Pasadena Playhouse, produced by the Pasadena Playhouse, Susan Dietz, artistic director, Lars Hansen, managing director; “The Crucible,” SCR, David Emmes, producing artistic director, Martin Benson, artistic director, SCR; “El Salvador,” Gnu Theatre, Diane Wade, producer; “Fences,” Doolittle Theatre, produced by Carole Shorenstein Hays in association with Yale Repertory Theatre, by arrangement with James A. Doolittle.

Direction: Don Amendolia, “Born Yesterday”; Martin Benson, “The Crucible”; Deborah LaVine, “Distant Fires” (International City Theatre); Bradford O’Neil, “The House of Correction” (Los Angeles Theatre Center); Victor Pappas, “South Central Rain” (Tamarind Theatre); Lloyd Richards, “Fences”; Jeff Seymour, “El Salvador”; Ted Swindley, “Carnal Knowledge” (Pasadena Playhouse).

Writing: Jamie Baker, “Don’t Go Back to Rockville” (Victory Theatre); Jules Feiffer, “Carnal Knowledge”; Rafael Lima, “El Salvador”; Marlane Meyer, “Etta Jenks” (LATC); August Wilson, “Fences.”

Leading performance: Danny Aiello, “Hurlyburly” (Westwood Playhouse); Lee Arenberg, “Carnage” (Tiffany Theatre); Kathy Bates, “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune” (Mark Taper Forum); Gregory Harrison, “Carnal Knowledge”; James Earl Jones, “Fences”; Nan Martin, “Aunt Dan and Lemon” (SCR); James Morrison, “El Salvador”; Deirdre O’Connell, “Etta Jenks”; Chita Rivera, “Can-Can” (Pantages Theatre/Orange County Performing Arts Center); Carole Shelley, “Broadway Bound” (Ahmanson Theatre); Joe Spano, “The School for Scandal” (SCR); Lynne Thigpen, “Fences”; Chloe Webb, “The Model Apartment” (LATC); Paxton Whitehead, “How the Other Half Loves” (Tiffany Theatre).

Featured performance: Ron Boussom, “How the Other Half Loves”; Kandis Chappell, “The Crucible”; Richard Doyle, “The Crucible”; I.M. Hobson, “The Crucible”; Vincent J. Isaacs, “Distant Fires”; Scott Lincoln, “South Central Rain”; Deirdre O’Connell, “Stars in the Morning Sky” (LATC).

Creation performance: Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney, “The Kathy and Mo Show” (LATC); Jude Narita, “Coming Into Passion/Song for a Sansai” (Fountain Theatre).

Ensemble performance: “The Colored Museum” (Mark Taper Forum); “Lies and Legends: The Musical Stories of Harry Chapin” (Pasadena Playhouse).

Scenic design: John Napier, “Les Miserables” (Shubert Theatre); Don Llewellyn, “Distant Fires”; Deborah Raymond and Dorian Vernacchio, “Breaking the Silence” (Pasadena Playhouse); James D. Sandefur, “Fences”; Susan Tuohy, “The Crucible.”

Costume design: Robert Blackman, “The Crucible”; Bob Crowley, “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” (Ahmanson Theatre); Andreane Neofitou, “Les Miserables”; Shigeru Yaji, “The School for Scandal.”

Lighting design: Margaret Anne Dunn, “Stone Wedding” (LATC); David Hersey, “Les Miserables”; Tom Ruzika, “The Crucible”; Robert Wierzel, “Etta Jenks.”

Sound design: Tony Meola/Autograph, “Les Miserables”; Michael Roth, “The Crucible.”

Original Music: Harry Chapin, “Lies and Legends” (score); Marcos Loya, “Stone Wedding” (incidental music); Michael Roth, “The Crucible” (incidental music); Claude-Michel Schoenberg, “Les Miserables” (score).

The awards, which will celebrate 20 years of theater in Los Angeles, will be presented at a dinner April 9 at the Sheraton Grande, 333 S. Figueroa St. Tickets are $47.50 if ordered before April 1, $52.50 after. They may be ordered by mail through Ticket Express, 6607 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood 90028, or by calling (213) 465-0070.

PUBLIC PROTEST: An open-to-the-public “Protest Against the Arrest of Vaclav Havel” will take place Monday at 8 p.m. at the Mark Taper Forum.

The event is designed to draw attention to the plight of the Czech playwright, whose politically fused work (his award-winning “Largo Desolato” was produced at Taper, Too in 1987) and public demonstrations led to his Jan 16. arrest in Prague. The Taper evening will feature readings of excerpts from Havel’s plays and letters--by such artists as John Malkovich, Michael Gross, Richard Jordan, Robin Gammell and Raye Birk. Admission is free and reservations are not necessary; the event will also be taped for later broadcast on KCRW (89.9 FM). Call (213) 972-7373.

Additionally, Amnesty International has selected Havel and 13 other human rights activists as “prisoners of conscience” for the month of February.