STAGE

NAACP Theatre Awards: Long Beach Civic Light Opera’s “Sophisticated Ladies” was the big winner Monday at the NAACP Theatre Awards, which were presented during a ceremony at the Los Angeles Hilton marred by mishaps and delays. The Long Beach production won seven of its 13 nominations on the Equity level, including best actress (Theresa Hayes), best director (Bruce Heath) and best producer (Martin Wiviott). Brock Peters won best actor for “Driving Miss Daisy.” In the “99-Seat Theater Plan and Special Shows” category, “Monsoon Christmas” and “Woman From the Town” scored four awards each, while Inner City Cultural Center’s “Shadow Box,” who came in with nine nominations, went away empty-handed. “Phantom of the Opera” star Robert Guilluame was presented with a special Trailblazer Award for his achievements by host Bill Overton. The ceremony was marked by several no-shows, numerous glitches and an apparent disorganization which stretched the proceedings past midnight. The wrong winners were announced in three categories, and several slides showing nominees and honorees were mixed up.