Media Alerts

JOSEPH JEFFERSON CITATIONS WING AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN NON-UNION CHICAGO THEATRE TO BE HELD AT PARK WEST IN CHICAGO ON MONDAY, JUNE 9, 2003, HOSTED BY RICHARD B. TURNER

Requests to send a video crew or photographer to the ceremony (reception at 6:30 PM, awards at 7:30 PM), as well as requests for media comps to the ceremony, must be received by 6/6/03, 5 PM – call 773.276.3434

The 30th Anniversary of the Joseph Jefferson Citations Wing Awards for Excellence in Non-Union Chicago Theatre will be held on Monday, June 9, 2003, starting at 6:30 PM, at The Park West, 322 West Armitage Avenue in Chicago. Founding Chair of the Citations Wing and longtime Jeff Committee member Richard B. Turner will host the ceremony (Turner bio available on request).

Photo, film and interview opportunities will be available for the media during the cocktail reception from 6:30 – 7:30 PM, and on a limited basis during the ceremony, which starts at 7:30 PM. Please RSVP media attendance (including photographer and/or video crew) to Tree Falls Productions at 773.276.3434 by Friday, June 6, 2003, at 5 PM. If unable to attend the ceremony, please submit requests for production and/or ceremony photos, and/or ceremony videos by that deadline as well.

The Jeff Citations Wing was created to recognize outstanding achievement in professional productions of Chicago area theatres not operating under union contracts. During the 2002-2003 Citations season (April 1, 2002 - March 31, 2003), the Jeff Committee judged 119 productions from 55 producing organizations, resulting in a record-breaking 100 Jeff Citation nominations total for this season. Recipients will be presented with a plaque.

In addition to Turner, other presenters during the evening will include mostly past recipients (in alphabetical order): past Citations Wing Chair and critic Jonathan Abarbanel, actress Michelle Courvais, writer Ralph Covert, costume designer Patricia Hart, critic/director Justin Hayford, actress Jennifer Kern, actor/musician Reginald Lawrence, musical director Jeffrey Lewis, writer G. Riley Mills, Jeff Committee Chair Jerry Proffit, actor/director Stephen Rader, actress Linda Reiter, choreographer Marc Robin, actor Darryl Maximilian Robinson, designer Robert G. Smith, actor Jason Vizza, actor Joseph Wycoff. Scenes from Porchlight Theatre’s production of “Company,� TimeLine Theatre’s “Awake and Sing,� and Griffin’s “A Night in Mantua� will be performed during the ceremony.

Founded in 1968, the mission of the Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee, a Chicago non-profit, is to honor excellence in theatrical productions in the Chicago theatre community. The Committee was originally chartered to recognize Equity productions; however, the non-Equity wing was inaugurated in 1973 to celebrate outstanding achievement in non-union Chicago theatre. Combined with the Equity Jeff Awards for it’s first two years, the Citations Wing held its own award ceremony beginning in 1976, when 17 Citations were awarded to seven companies. The 45-member Committee, composed of theatre professionals and enthusiasts, evaluates over 200 theatrical productions yearly and holds two awards ceremonies each year. The Citations Awards, honoring outstanding achievement in non-union productions, are presented in early June. The Jeff Awards for excellence in Equity theatre will be celebrated on November 3, 2003, at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. For more information, visit www.jeffawards.org.