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'Ragtime,' 'On Golden Pond' big winners in Stage West's HAMI Awards

 
Brian Beach, left  as Tateh, won the lead male HAMI for his performance in Stage West’s Ragtime.
Brian Beach, left as Tateh, won the lead male HAMI for his performance in Stage West’s Ragtime.
Published Aug. 3, 2016

SPRING HILL

The beautiful and difficult musical Ragtime and the heartwarming dramedy On Golden Pond were the big winners in their respective divisions at Saturday's annual HAMI Awards, the Stage West Community Playhouse's version of Broadway's Tonys.

Ragtime, with its syncopated, early 20th-century rhythms and sometimes heartbreaking, sometime uplifting themes of racial prejudice, violence and dreams fulfilled, went away with 10 of 13 awards presented in the Main Stage (musical) division, including Favorite Show. The poignant On Golden Pond won seven of 10 possible awards in the Forum division, including Favorite Show.

The quirky musical Little Shop of Horrors won two; the onetime controversial, now mainstream Jesus Christ Superstar won one, and the musical revue Bits of Broadway was shut out, with none in the Main Stage division. The lone Superstar award went to Victoria Primosch, who gave an electrifying performance as Judas Iscariot, a role traditionally played by a male.

In the Forum, the comedy Don't Drink the Water garnered two awards, and the sex farce A Bedfull of Foreigners picked up one, leaving the family dramedy Cheaper by the Dozen with none.

One actor and two crew members received two awards each. Cheryl Roberts won Supporting Female in her role of sexy Simone in Bedfull and as the addled embassy employee Kilroy in Don't Drink the Water. Ellen Hutt won both the director and the set design awards for On Golden Pond. And costume designer Eileen Bernard won for Don't Drink the Water and shared the award with Eileen Katrick for costuming the 30-member cast of Ragtime.

Longtime volunteer Alyce Clark was given the Founders Award.