Court Theatre to receive ’22 Regional Theatre Tony Award
Court Theatre, the professional theater of the University of Chicago, and one of the most critically acclaimed theater companies in the country, can add a most coveted accolade to its trove of awards: the 2022 Regional Theatre Tony Award. The news was announced early Wednesday.
The honor comes with a $25,000 grant for the Hyde Park theater company currently in the midst of its 67th season.
The special Tony Award, which each year honors one nonprofit professional regional theater from across the country for fostering “a continuous level of artistic achievement contributing to the growth of theater nationally,” is awarded by the Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, based on the recommendation the American Theatre Critics Association.
Court Theatre is the sixth Chicago theater to receive the regional Tony, joining Steppenwolf Theatre (1985), the Goodman Theatre (1992), Victory Gardens Theater (2001), Chicago Shakespeare Theater (2008) and Lookingglass Theatre (2011).
“[Court Theatre’s] dedication to fostering local talent, artistry and theater within their community and their impact on a national scale, makes it a true honor to highlight their work,” said Heather Hitchens, president and CEO of the American Theatre Wing and Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, in the official announcement.
Court Theatre was founded in 1955 as an amateur summertime theater company at the University of Chicago, pivoting to a professional Equity company in 1975. It moved to its current location — the 251-seat Abelson Auditorium at 5535 S. Ellis — in 1981, and two years later incorporated as an independent nonprofit organization under the leadership of artistic director Charles Newell since 1994, and executive director Angel Ysaguirre since 2018. The theater company has been nominated for more than 250 Joseph Jefferson Awards, winning more than 50 of the honors that each year recognize the best stage productions in the greater Chicago area.
“It has been my life’s joy to be a member of this vibrant, fertile community. This award belongs to them. It belongs to the Court community, the South Side community, and the University of Chicago community. It belongs to everyone who has fought to see themselves onstage and to everyone who has been moved by the power of storytelling . ... My feelings of gratitude mirror Cymbeline’s Imogen, ‘for mine’s beyond beyond,’” Newell said via statement.