#Leon Dobkowski

[droughtofapathy]

DroughtofApathy's Off-Broadway Awards

Earlier last week, the Lucille Lotrel Awards kicked off award season with the 2024-2025 slate of nominees. The Lortels are the only awards that recognize exclusively off-Broadway productions. Not every show that plays off-Broadway is eligible, and frankly, I'm not even sure how it would be possible to vote on all of them. This year, seventy shows were under consideration (the full list is not public knowledge), and thirty-two were nominated in some capacity. And I must dissent.

I saw fifty-five off-Broadway productions that opened between April 1, 2024 and April 1, 2025. Here is what I would nominate (and award):

Outstanding Play All of Me Produced by The New Group; Written by Laura Winter

Bad Kreyol Produced by Signature Theatre & Manhattan Theatre Club; Written by Dominique Morisseau

The Blood Quilt Produced by Lincoln Center Theatre; Written by Katori Hall

Counting and Cracking Produced by Belvoir St Theatre & Kurinji; Written by S. Shakthidharan

Liberation Produced by Roundabout Theatre Company; Written by Bess Wohl

The Welkin Produced by Atlantic Theatre Company; Written by Lucy Kirkwood

Outstanding Musical* Three Houses Produced by Signature Theatre Company; Written by Dave Malloy

Outstanding Solo Show A Knock on the Roof Produced by NYTW; Written and Performed by Khawla Ibraheem

Outstanding Revival: Cymbeline Produced by NAATCO

The Dead, 1904 Produced by Irish Repertory Theatre

Outstanding Director Sarah Benson, The Welkin Moisés Kaufman, Here There Are Blueberries Whitney White, Liberation

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play F. Murray Abraham, Beckett's Briefs Andrew Barth Feldman, We Had a World Taylor Mac, Orlando

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play Shohreh Aghdashloo, What Became of Us Kate Baldwin, The Dead, 1904 Joanna Gleason, We Had a World Sandra Oh, The Welkin Jeanine Serralles, We Had a World Kara Young, Table 17

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Betsy Aidem, Liberation Pascale Armand, Bad Kreyol Mary Beth Peil, The Dead, 1904 Maryann Plunkett, Deep Blue Sound Kate Walsh, Jordans

Outstanding Ensemble Liberation Betsy Aidem, Audrey Corsa, Kayla Davion, Susannah Flood, Kristolyn Lloyd, Irene Sofia Lucio, Charlie Thurston, Adina Verson

The Welkin Tilly Botsford, Paige Gilbert, Ann Harada, Jenn Kidwell, Mary McCann, Emily Cass McDonnell, MacKenzie Mercer, Sandra Oh, Dale Soules, Danny Wolohan, Haley Wong, Hannah Cabell, Glenn Fitzgerald, Nadine Malouf, Susannah Perkins, Simone Recasner

Outstanding Scenic Design dots, Three Houses Dale Ferguson, Counting and Cracking Emmie Finckel, Inside the Amazon Warehouse Parking Lot Adam Rigg, The Blood Quilt Jason Sherwood, Bad Kreyol

Outstanding Costume Design: Oana Botez, Orlando Leon Dobkowski, The Dead, 1904 Qween Jean, Liberation Haydee Zelideth, Bad Kreyol

*Only seven of these shows were musicals, and only one (Three Houses) was at all noteworthy, and so I have dispensed of most musical-related categories.

[tenaciouspostfun]

If you are looking for a fun musical Rock & Roll Man is for you. At the New World Stages Gary Kupper, Larry Marshak and Rose Caiola have written a fun show about Alan Freed, the man credited with inventing the term Rock & Roll from the vast R & B singers of the 1950's and 60's.

The musical is somewhat informative about the Cleveland DJ who refused to have the new music of that era silenced. Freed would end up drinking himself to death. Although it wasn't made really clear in the play, Freed was a womanizer, cavorted with gangsters, Joe Pantoliano as Morris Levy ( Pantoliano would double as Leo Mintz, a record store owner).

As Alan Freed, Constantine Maroulis sings and dances his way into the audiences hearts. With a spunky cast and set(Tim Mackabee), and gitchy but insightful costumes (Leon Dobkowski) and backing both of these two spectacles is superb lighting by Matthew Richards and Aja M. Jackson. Freed is able to tell his story about how he brought Little Richard (Rodrick Covington), Valisia Lekae as VaVern Baker, Dominique Scott as Jerry Lee Lewis and many more to the big stage and gave them plenty of air time, even toured with them. It was Freed that took the time, the chance, giving these great artists a shot at the big time.

Eventually Freed would come to New York City radio (WINS) and would meet Levy, a promoter, nightclub owner (Birdland) and gangster. This would lead to many problems. Already in the crosshairs of the FBI, J.Edgar Hoover (Bob Ari) would investigate Freed for graft (payola). It is here where the story gets dicey and weak a little bit. Was Freed in a drunken stupor, or was Hoover actually there? It was never really clear and the cross dressing scene with Hoover was very cheesy, indeed! I think the direction (Randal Myler) at this juncture in a otherwise good musical gets weakened. For the most part the Choreography by Stephanie Klemons is strong. The vast majority of the actors impersonating the famous singers are spot on.

In the music and lyrics by Gary Kupper, the show hammers out some terrific song... "Ready Teddy", "Sixty Minute Man", 'Jim Dandy" in the first act and act two with... "Peggy Sue", "Roll Over Beethoven, "Good Man" and the final song with the great voice of Maroulis "Rock and Roll Music".

As far as a musical goes, "Rock & Roll Man" is a goody; as its plot line goes, it is fair at best bordering on weak.