The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA) has announced the return of the organization’s Dorian Theater Awards. Nominations for the honors, which celebrate theater productions both with and without an LGBTQ theme, will be announced on May 13; winners will be named on June 2.
Broadway and Off-Broadway productions are eligible for the honors, but with different deadlines. To be eligible for the 2024 Dorian Awards, Broadway productions must open by April 27, while Off-Broadway productions must take a bow by March 31.
Nominations and winners for the Dorian Awards will be selected by GALECA’s theater wing, which was formed in 2023 for the inaugural awards presentation. The group includes over 40 journalists who critique and/or cover New York theater.
“Live theater viscerally reminds us of the power of creativity, empathy and humanity — meaning it’s as vital as ever,” said GALECA theater wing co-chair Sam Eckmann in a statement. “We eagerly look forward to Pride month, when our passionate group of queer journalists will once again champion the awe-inspiring shows and artists who make New York the stage capital of the world.”
The Dorian Awards comprises 17 competitive categories. Broadway-specific categories include Outstanding Broadway Musical, Outstanding Broadway Play, Outstanding Broadway Musical Revival, Outstanding Broadway Play Revival, Outstanding LGBTQ Broadway Production, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Broadway Musical, Outstanding Featured Performance in a Broadway Musical, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Broadway Play, Outstanding Featured Performance in a Broadway Play and Outstanding Broadway Ensemble — along with the Broadway Showstopper Award, the latter of which cites a standout production number or scene. There are fewer Off-Broadway categories, combining the production awards to Outstanding Off-Broadway Production and Outstanding LGBTQ Off-Broadway Production, and combining performer awards to Outstanding Lead Off-Broadway Performance and Outstanding Featured Off-Broadway Performance. Finally, the Dorian Awards acknowledges an artist of the season and an industry trailblazer with two additional categories.
In 2024, “Illinoise” was named Outstanding Broadway Musical and “Stereophonic” took home the corresponding prize for play, while “Merrily We Roll Along” and “Appropriate” won in the Outstanding Broadway Musical Revival and Outstanding Broadway Play Revival categories, respectively. The Off-Broadway mounting of “Oh, Mary!” took home trophies for Outstanding Off-Broadway Production, Outstanding LGBTQ Off-Broadway Production, Outstanding Lead Off-Broadway Performance (for Cole Escola) and Outstanding Featured Off-Broadway Performance (for Conrad Ricamora). Additionally, Escola was named LGBTQ Theater Artist of the Season.
Members of the GALECA theater wing for the 2024-2025 season include Frank J. Avella, Raven Brunner, Kerensa Cadenas, Chris Carpenter, Murtada Elfadl, Adam Feldman, Benjamin Gillespie, Drew Burnett Gregory, Jen Gushue, Brian Eugenio Herrera, Marshall Heyman, James Kleinmann, Naveen Kumar, Ryan Leeds, Christian Lewis, Brian Scott Lipton, Jonathan Mandell, Meg Masseron, Abby Monteil, Michael Musto, Charles O’Keefe, Louis Peitzman, Juan Michael Porter II, Juan A. Ramirez, Gerard Raymond, Mathew Rodriguez, Nathaniel Rogers, Dan Rubins, Gillian Russo, Patrick Ryan, Michael Schulman, Marcus Scott, Joey Sims, Ashley Steves, Tim Teeman, Kyle Turner, Lindsey Weber, Matthew Wexler, Abbey White, Cary Wong and Curtis Wong. In addition to the aforementioned Eckmann, Merryn Johns serves as co-chair.
