Court Theatre wins three Jeff Awards

Court Theatre received three honors for its 2011-12 season at the 44th annual Equity Jeff Awards ceremony on Oct. 15.

Larry Yando won the Jeff Award for Actor in a Principal Role (Play) for his widely praised performance as Roy Cohn in Angels in America [1]. Timothy Edward Kane’s performance in “An Iliad,” which the Chicago Tribune described as “a masterpiece of acting,” [2] earned him an award for Solo Performance. Invisible Man (in association with Christopher McElroen Productions) received the New Adaptation (Play) honor.  

“I’m proud that two of Chicago’s finest actors, Timothy Edward Kane and Larry Yando, were recognized for their blazing performances in An Iliad and Angels in America,” said Charles Newell, Court Theatre’s artistic director.

“I’m also thrilled that Court’s world-premiere adaptation of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, adapted by Oren Jacoby, was awarded a Jeff for Best New Adaptation. A product of close collaboration between Court Theatre’s artists and University scholars like Ken Warren, Invisible Man’s continuing success in Chicago and beyond is a testament to what Court and the University of Chicago can achieve in partnership,” Newell added.

The Joseph Jefferson Awards honor outstanding theater artists in Chicago and are considered by many to be Chicago’s equivalent of the Tony Awards.

Court received 15 Jeff nominations this year [3]. Each of the productions from its 2011-12 season—Spunk, An Illiad, Invisible Man and Angels in America—received at least one nomination. In 2010, Court received 18 nominations [4], the most in its history.

Court Theatre’s 2012-13 season continues with James Joyce’s The Dead, [5] which opens Nov. 8.