CMU School of Drama


Wednesday, November 08, 2017

Aurora’s “Madison County,” WABE’s Lois Reitzes receive Suzi Awards

artsatl.com: When the Suzi Bass Awards — recognizing excellence in local theater — were handed out last night, the evening’s big winner was Aurora Theatre’s The Bridges of Madison County, which picked up seven awards, including Best Musical.

Based on the 1992 book by Robert James Waller and later turned into a Clint Eastwood-directed movie, the production charts the brief relationship between a lonely Italian-American woman living in Iowa with her family and a photographer visiting the area. The production — staged by Aurora Theatre earlier this season — also took home Best Director of a Musical for Justin Anderson, Best Actress in a Musical for Kristin Markiton and Best Actor in a Musical for Travis Smith.

1 comment:

Mary Emily Landers said...

Being from Atlanta, many of the names of those recognized for their successes are very familiar to me- some of whom I have worked for and with-, due to the tight knit nature of the Atlanta arts community. What I found interesting was the way the article highlighted the successes of Aurora Theatre in particular, who at the Suzi Bass Awards usually receives at least one award stemming from their productions. The Suzi Bass Awards are always inherently very political, which is why all of the companies highlighted are incredibly well known and already well established. It is very rare that theatre companies with a lower budget (who do not contribute towards the creation and funding of the award ceremony) do not receive any recognition for equally or more astounding work. I still do admire the way the Suzi Bass awards function, in the way they connect together the Atlanta theatre community and bring awareness to the arts emerging out of Atlanta, however I do think it plays into the politics that many companies fall into the trap of.