Court Theatre took home the most awards at Chicago’s top theater honors Monday night, leading the 2025 Equity Jeff honors with nine awards, including two for its co-production of “Falsettos” with Timeline Theatre.
Writers Theatre’s production of “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” received the most single awards of any individual show with five, including best large musical production.
The Chicago theater community celebrated the 57th annual Jeff Awards Monday night at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park. The prestigious award ceremony recognizes productions staged under union contracts during the 2024-25 season. (The non-Equity Jeff Awards, which typically go to small and midsize theaters, are announced in spring.)
Among the shows that nabbed honors for Court: the world premiere of “Berlin,” based off the graphic novel series by Jason Lutes about the rise of fascism in the decaying Weimer Republic. The production was recognized for direction (Charles Newell) and new work (adaptation by Mickle Maher.)
Shattered Globe took home seven awards, including best midsize production and best direction for its staging of “Lobby Hero,” a dark comedy by playwright Kenneth Lonergan about a moral dilemma. It was awarded best midsize production and received awards for direction (Nate Santana) and for a performer in a principal role (Elliot Esquivel). Shattered Globe’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’ “A Tale of Two Cities” was honored with awards for best director (Mikael Burke), original music (Christopher Kriz), costume design (Kotryna Hilko) and lighting design (Eric Watkins).
Across 32 categories, 44 recipients representing 40 local theater companies won awards. And it was a big night for musicals. Drury Lane earned six awards for its productions of “Always…Patsy Cline,” “The Da Vinci Code” and “Disney’s The Little Mermaid.”
The Goodman was recognized for its 100th season and four Chicago theaters were honored for celebrating 50th seasons (Marriott Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Oak Park Festival Theatre, and Steppenwolf Theatre Company). Laura D. Glenn from Steppenwolf was the inaugural recipient of the Equity Jeff Impresario Award. The new award honors excellence in stage management.
Here’s a complete list of 2025 Equity Jeff Award winners:
Production – Play (Large)
“Berlin” – Court Theatre
Production – Play (Midsize)
“Lobby Hero” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Production – Musical (Large) – The Susan and Harlan Haimes Award
“Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” – Writers Theatre
Production – Revue
“Always…Patsy Cline”- Drury Lane Productions
Director – Play (Large) – The Michael Maggio Award
Charles Newell – “Berlin” – Court Theatre
Director – Play (Midsize)
Mikael Burke – “A Tale of Two Cities” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Nate Santana – “Lobby Hero” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Director – Musical (Large)
Katie Spelman – “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” – Writers Theatre
Director – Revue
Scott Weinstein – “Always…Patsy Cline” – Drury Lane Productions
Ensemble – Play
“Berlin” – Court Theatre
Ensemble – Musical
“Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812″ – Writers Theatre
Performer In A Principal Role – Play
Atra Asdou – “Iraq, But Funny” – Lookingglass Theatre Company
Elliot Esquivel – “Lobby Hero” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Performer In A Principal Role – Musical
Brittney Mack – “The Color Purple” – Goodman Theatre
Stephen Schellhardt – “Falsettos” – Court Theatre and TimeLine Theatre Company
Performer In A Revue
Bri Sudia – “Always…Patsy Cline”- Drury Lane Productions
Solo Performance
Jean Claudio – “Memorabilia” – Teatro Vista
Performer In A Supporting Role – Play
Rae Gray – “Prayer for the French Republic”- Northlight Theatre and Theater Wit
AnJi White – “East Texas Hot Links” – Court Theatre
Performer In A Supporting Role – Musical
Sarah Bockel – “Falsettos” – Court Theatre and TimeLine Theatre Company
Sawyer Smith – “Disney’s The Little Mermaid” – Drury Lane Productions
New Work – The Libby Adler Mages Award
Atra Asdou – “Iraq, But Funny” – Lookingglass Theatre Company
Mickle Maher – “Berlin” – Court Theatre
Choreography
Kasey Alfonso – “Cats” – Paramount Theatre
Original Music In A Play
Christopher Kriz – “A Tale of Two Cities” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Music Direction
Ryan T. Nelson – “Titanic The Musical” – Marriott Theatre
Scenic Design (Large)
Christopher Oram – “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil The Musical” – Goodman Theatre
Jeffrey D. Kmiec – “Million Dollar Quartet” – Paramount Theatre
Scenic Design (Midsize)
Lauren M. Nichols – “Memorabilia” – Teatro Vista
Lighting Design (Large)
Yael Lubetzky – “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” – Writers Theatre
Lighting Design (Midsize)
Eric Watkins – “A Tale of Two Cities” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Costume Design (Large)
Raquel Adorno – “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” – Writers Theatre
Costume Design (Midsize)
Kotryna Hilko – “A Tale of Two Cities” – Shattered Globe Theatre
Sound Design (Large)
Michael Daly – “Titanic The Musical” – Marriott Theatre
Sound Design (Midsize)
Satya Chávez – “Memorabilia” – Teatro Vista
Projection Design
Anthony Churchill and Mike Tutaj – “The Da Vinci Code” – Drury Lane Productions
Michael Salvatore Commendatore – “Iraq, But Funny” – Lookingglass Theatre Company
Artistic Specialization
Chicago Puppet Studio, Caitlin McLeod and Zachary Sun – Puppet Design – “Disney’s The Little Mermaid” – Drury Lane Productions
Katie Cordts – Wig, Hair and Makeup Design – “Cats” – Paramount Theatre
Sylvia Hernandez DiStasi – Circus Choreography – “Cats” – Paramount Theatre
Short Run Production – Director
Charles Newell – “An Iliad” – Court Theatre
Short Run Production – Performer
Timothy Edward Kane – “An Iliad” – Court Theatre
Special Milestone Awards
100th Anniversary
Goodman Theatre
50th Anniversary
Marriott Theatre
Northlight Theatre
Oak Park Festival Theatre
Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Impresario Award, Honoring Excellence in Stage Management
Laura D. Glenn, Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Shattered Globe Theater staged “A Tale of Two Cities.”