Slow Burn Theatre Company Tops with Six Awards Including Five for Outstanding Musical The Little Mermaid
Maltz Jupiter Theater Wins Five Awards for Four Shows, and
Miami New Drama and Zoetic Stage Earn Three Each
Best Play is The Lehman Trilogy at GableStage, and Outstanding New Work is Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard at Miami New Drama
(South Florida – November 12, 2024) The Carbonell Awards, South Florida’s Theater & Arts Honors, today announced the winners in 20 competitive categories for the 2023-2024 theater season. This year’s winners were announced in a glittery ceremony held last night at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center before several hundred performers, producers, directors, designers, publicists, and theater fans.
“Nearly 90 productions at 29 different theatres were evaluated by a diverse group of more than 40 experienced judges representing all three participating counties (Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach). In mid-September, the Carbonell Awards announced 120 finalists from 13 different theaters during last season,” says Carbonell Board President Gary Schweikhart.
Slow Burn Theatre Company in Fort Lauderdale was the biggest winner, picking up six different Carbonell Awards, including:
- Outstanding Production, Musical – The Little Mermaid
- Outstanding Direction, Play – Patrick Fitzwater, The Little Mermaid
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role, Musical – Melanie Fernandez, The Little Mermaid
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Male Role, Musical – Marc Christopher, The SpongeBob Musical
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Female Role, Musical – Heather Jane Rolff, The Little Mermaid
- Outstanding Choreography – Nicolette Quintero, The Little Mermaid
Maltz Jupiter Theatre won five major awards this year, including:
- Outstanding Music Direction – Michael Ursua, 42nd Street
- Outstanding Scenic Design, Play, or Musical – Paul Tate Depoo III, Murder on the Orient Express
- Outstanding Lighting Design, Play or Musical – James E. Lawlor III, Murder on the Orient Express
- Outstanding Sound Design, Play or Musical – Scott Stauffer, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
- Outstanding Achievement of an Artistic Specialty – Zak Borovay for Projection Design, A Christmas Carol
Miami New Drama garnered three major awards, including:
- Outstanding New Work, Play or Musical – Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard, by Moises Kaufman
- Outstanding Direction, Play – Moises Kaufman, Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Female Role, Play – Mariaca Semprún, Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard
Zoetic Stage in Miami won three major awards, including:
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Male Role, Play – Gabriell Salgado, Clyde’s
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role, Play – Jeni Hacker, Wicked Child
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Male Role, Play – Michael McKeever, Wicked Child
The Wick Theatre in Boca Raton picked up two Carbonell Awards:
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Male Role, Musical – Bruce Sabath, Fiddler on the Roof
- Outstanding Costume Design, Play or Musical – Ellis Tillman, I Love a Piano
GableStage took home only a single award this year, but it was a big one:
Outstanding Production, Play – The Lehman Trilogy
In addition to the 20 competitive award categories, the 47th annual Carbonell Awards also presented six Special Awards selected by the nonprofit organization’s board of directors, including:
+ The George Abbott Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts to Nilo Cruz, the Cuban American playwright who gained national prominence in 2003 when he won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for Anna in the Tropics, for which he also received a Steinberg Award and Tony Award nomination. His plays include A Park in Our House; Two Sisters and a Piano; A Bicycle Country; Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams; Lorca in a Green Dress; Hurricane; Sotto Voce; Bathing in Moonlight; Hotel Desiderium; Kisses through the Glass; and Thirst on Water Street. His work has been seen at numerous theaters throughout the country and around the world.
+ The Vinnette Carroll Award for significant achievement in advancing the cause of diversity, equality, and inclusion in South Florida theater to Director and Actor John Pryor, who has been a valued theater professor at Miami-Dade Community College and Florida Memorial College
+ The Ruth Foreman Award, which recognizes contributions to South Florida theater development by an individual or group, to Marilynn Wick, Founder and CEO of The Wick Theatre & Museum Club and Costume World, Inc.
+ The Bill Hindman Award, which honors significant, long-term contributions to the region’s cultural life and onstage career achievement, to Carl Waisanen, who served as Production Stage Manager for more than 120 shows at Actors’ Playhouse in Coral Gables.
+ The Howard Kleinberg Award, which honors an individual or organization for contributions to the health and development of the arts in South Florida, to Kermit Christman, Founder & Artistic Producing Director of the Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival.
+ The Bill von Maurer Award for Theatrical Excellence, which honors a theater company that exemplifies excellence for the totality of its programming: productions, educational outreach, developmental programs, and audiences served, to Area Stage, founded by John & Maria Rodaz and now celebrating its 35th anniversary offering world-class professional productions and a vibrant conservatory program.
As part of the 2024 Carbonell Awards, $2,000 Jack Zink Memorial Student Scholarships were presented to Alexandra Dreszer (Miami-Dade County), Lillian Jones (Palm Beach County), and Morgan Brooke Wilder (Broward County).
During last night’s Carbonell Awards, the nonprofit organization made two major announcements for 2025:
+ For the first time since 1997, the annual award ceremony will be held in Palm Beach County—at the FAU University Theatre in Boca Raton.
+ The launch of a new Special Award—the Jan McArt Award for outstanding achievement by a small theatre.
Last night’s Carbonell Awards Ceremony was produced by celebrated playwright, actor, and designer Michael McKeever and Stuart Meltzer, the founding artistic director of Zoetic Stage—both of whom have won multiple Carbonell Awards and had previously produced and directed numerous Carbonell Ceremonies. Caryl Fantel, another Carbonell Award recipient returned as Music Director.
Sponsors of the 47th Annual Carbonell Awards included the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Broward Cultural Division, Carbonell Sculptures Ltd., Cultural Council for Palm Beach County, Donald M. Ephraim Sun & Stars International Film Festival presented by MorseLife Health System, John Knox Village, Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, Lauderhill Performing Arts Center, Miami-Dade County Auditorium, Miami-Dade Department of Cultural Affairs, The Dennis C. Moss Center (formerly The South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center), OutClique Magazine, South Florida Theater Magazine, South Florida Theatre League, Mark Traverso & Conor Walton, and Donald R. Walters, P.A.
About The Carbonell Awards: The Carbonell Awards fosters the artistic growth of professional theater in South Florida by celebrating the excellence and diversity of our theater artists, providing educational scholarships, and building audience appreciation and civic pride by highlighting achievements of our theater community. More than 20 professional theater companies in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties participate in the awards process every year. The Carbonell Awards also celebrate the accomplishments of local artistic leaders by presenting various Special Awards.
Along with New York’s Drama Desk and Chicago’s Joseph Jefferson Awards, the Carbonell Awards are among the nation’s oldest regional arts awards and predate others, including Washington, D.C.’s Helen Hayes Awards. The Carbonell Awards are named after the internationally renowned sculptor Manuel Carbonell, who designed the signature solid bronze and marble award given annually to Carbonell Award winners. Over the last 46 years, the Carbonell family has donated more than $250,000 in awards. For more information, please visit www.carbonellawards.org.
