This week, Theatre for a New Audience’s production of Alice Childress’s Wedding Band received three Drama League Award nominations, four Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, and four Drama Desk Award nominations. These recent accolades are in addition to three Obies, seven Audelco nominations and two awards, and being named among the Best of 2022 Theatre by the New York Times. We celebrate this incredible company, the audiences who came to see this production, and of course, the late Alice Childress.
The Drama League Awards are the oldest theatrical honors in America and are the only major theatre awards chosen by a cross-section of the theatre community — the industry professionals, producers, artists, audiences, and critics who are Drama League members nationwide. The 2023 Drama League Awards Nominees were announced on April 25, 2023, and Wedding Band received three nominations: Outstanding Revival of a Play, Outstanding Direction of a Play (Awoye Timpo), and Distinguished Performance (Brittany Bradford). Winners will be announced at the 89th Annual Drama League Awards on May 19 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom. View the full list of nominees.
The next day, the Outer Critics Circle, an organization of writers who cover New York theatre for out-of-town and national publications, announced the nominations for the 72nd Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards. Wedding Band received four nominations: Outstanding Revival of a Play (Broadway or Off-Broadway), Outstanding Lead Performer in an Off-Broadway Play (Brittany Bradford), Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off-Broadway Play (Veanne Cox), and Outstanding Scenic Design (Jason Ardizzone-West). Winners of the awards will be announced on May 16, with a ceremony at New York Public Library for the Performing Arts following on May 25. View the full list of nominees.
The announcement of the nominations for the 67th Annual Drama Desk Awards, celebrating the best of Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway, came the following day. Wedding Band‘s four nominations are Outstanding Revival of a Play, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play (Brittany Bradford), Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play (Jason Ardizzone-West), and Outstanding Costume Design of a Play (Qween Jean). Winners will be announced the week of May 29, and the Awards will be presented at Sardi’s on June 6. View the full list of nominees.