1995
1997 
Production and Director
The Best Production award for 1996 goes to Shakespeare Repertory's Romantic-poet vision of Hamlet, a moving tale of the struggle of a gentle soul to reconcile the demands of the medieval revenge code. The bloodbath of violence and revenge at the conclusion is terrifying, followed hard by the heartbreaking image of Hamlet's best friend sprinkling the petals from one of Ophelia's flowers to gently fall over Hamlet's face.
The Best Director award for 1996 goes to Barbara Gaines for her daringly different Richard III, also at Shakespeare Repertory, narrowly besting her own work in the poignant and poetic Hamlet. Gaines depicts a young Richard as almost a modern rock-'n'-roll icon -towering and lanky, dressed entirely in black - with emphasis on subtlety and emotion rather than melodrama and violence. Prominent female characters and a shockingly brutal Richmond - horrifically scarred and criminally insane - in a searingly unique vision.
Performance
The Best Actress award for 1996 goes to Lia Mortensen's lovely and petite Lady in The Next Theatre Company's Macbeth, an elegant woman who exudes beauty and grace as well as an icy intellectualism and a vicious cunning. Mortensen's slinking seductress Lady Macbeth conceals her fiery ambition and lusty physicality beneath a prudently posed exterior, sometimes belied by flashing eyes or whispered venom.
The Best Actor award for 1996 goes to Robert Petkoff in the title role of Shakespeare Repertory's Hamlet. A long-haired outsider and a poetic rebel akin to Shelley or Byron, Petkoff's Hamlet is close to perfect: thirtyish but looking much younger, revealing flashes of the prince's former wit and frolic beneath his melancholy, and hinting at the uncertainty and shame that underlies his titanic anger.
The Best Supporting Actor award for 1996 goes to Kevin Gudahl for his crushed and bewildered Clarence in Richard III at Shakespeare Repertory. Gudahl speaks with a palpable ache and walks with a stagger - much like his evil younger brother - but as though carrying a great burden. Steeped in guilt and contrition, he contrasts with his brother's carefree innocence despite heinous crimes.
The Best Supporting Actress award for 1996 goes to Mariann Mayberry as Ophelia in Shakespeare Repertory's Hamlet, her physical maturity and delicacy of spirit a memorable match for Robert Petkoff's prince. Mayberry is at her heartbreaking best in the tearful 4.5 remembrance scene, tenderly offering a withered flower.
Technicals
The Best Scenic Design award for 1996 goes to James Noone for his impressive depiction of the austere sterility of the Denmark kingdom within Hamlet at Shakespeare Repertory. Noone's stage is dominated by an enormous mirror-like scrim hung deep at the back of the stage that billows slightly and reflects side lighting, providing dim upstage reflections so actors and audience appear like ghosts within the shimmering glimmer.
The Best Costume Design award for 1996 goes to Michael Krass, also for Shakespeare Repertory's Hamlet. Set in the era of the Romantic English poets, Hamlet is a dashing young rebel in tights and a billowing white shirt open to the chest, standing opposed against Claudius and Gertrude in passionate red.
The Best Lighting Design award for 1996 goes to Kenneth Posner for the evocative lighting of Richard III at Shakespeare Repertory. A dark mood is maintained via sparse lighting, most of it from the sides or beneath the stage or from scattered spotlights. Richard's haunting ghosts are eerily back-lit in white, emerging from the swirling inferno of a glowing red fireplace.
The Best Sound and Music Design award for 1996 goes to David Dieckmann for greasy joan and co.'s Pericles, narrowly besting the original music, authentic Celtic arrangements, and recurring character themes within Next Theatre Company's Macbeth. The entire Pericles cast alternates playing instruments just off-stage, utilizing a variety of percussive instruments - drums and cymbals and maracas - that enhance the occasional woodwind to contribute to the mysterious Mediterranean atmosphere.