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The Big Easy Entertainment Awards honors local artists for achievements in music and theatre.

By David Lee Simmons

Multifaceted entertainer and humorist Harry Shearer returns as the master of ceremonies.

The 18th Annual Big Easy Entertainment Awards promises to be an evening of legends. The ceremony honoring achievement in music and theatre will be held April 18 at the Municipal Auditorium inside Armstrong Park.

The Neville Brothers, who helped redefine the sound of New Orleans rhythm and blues, rode the success of their nominated album Walkin' in the Shadow of Life to win the coveted Entertainer of the Year honor. Meters bassist George Porter Jr., serving as this year's Honorary Music Chairman, will help give out the music awards, which will include the Lifetime Achievement in Music award for the Soul Queen of New Orleans, Irma Thomas, and the Music Heritage Award for Creole music pioneer Bois Sec Ardoin. This year's awards marks the first for the category DJ/Electronica.

George Porter Jr. will be this year's Honorary Music Chairman.

Honorary Theatre Chairman Ryan Rilette, artistic director for Southern Rep, will help give out the theatre awards, which will include a Lifetime Achievement Award for NORD's Bob Bruce.

Harrah's Casino New Orleans will receive the Business Recognition Award.

Entertainer, humorist and part-time New Orleans resident Harry Shearer will return as the master of ceremonies for the awards, which are sponsored by Southern Comfort, John Jay, Gambit Weekly, Mardi Gras Productions, and Coleman E. Adler & Sons. Proceeds from the Big Easy Entertainment Awards benefit the Foundation for Entertainment Development & Education.

Two-pronged attack: The versatile Mikko was nominated for Best Director (Biloxi Blues) and Best Original Work (Jour de Gloire, pictured).

The gala features live performances by selected nominees, putting unique combinations of talent together. VIP tickets are $125 each and include an open bar, buffet dinner, special reserved seating for the awards ceremonies and the Celebration Bash that follows. Tables for 10 are available for $1,000 before March 31, $1,250 and $1,500 beginning April 1. To purchase tickets, contact Gloria Powers at 486-5900, ext. 160.

2005 BIG EASY ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS

SPECIAL HONOREES

Neville Brothers
Entertainer of the Year

George Porter Jr.
Honorary Music Chairman

South Louisiana music pioneer Bois Sec Ardoin will receive the Music Heritage Award.

Photo by David Richmond

Ryan Rilette
Honorary Theatre Chairman

Irma Thomas
Lifetime Achievement Award in Music

Bois Sec Ardoin
Music Heritage Award

Bob Bruce, NORD
Lifetime Achievement Award in Theatre

MUSIC AWARDS NOMINEES

BRASS BAND
Dirty Dozen Brass Band
ReBirth Brass Band
Soul Rebels

Enigmatic music impresario Quintron scored one of the nominations in the newly created DJ/Electronica category.

TRADITIONAL JAZZ
Tom McDermott
New Orleans Jazz Vipers
Kermit Ruffins
Dr. Michael White

CONTEMPORARY JAZZ
Astral Project
Maurice Brown
Naked on the Floor

GOSPEL CHOIR
Franklin Avenue Baptist Church
Sarah T. Reed High School
Greater St. Stephens Church

GOSPEL GROUP/INDIVIDUAL
Beyond Measure
Bishop Paul Morton
Cynthia Liggins Thomas

FUNK
Ivan Neville's Dumpsta Phunk
Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen
Big Sam's Funky Nation

RHYTHM & BLUES
Dr. John
Neville Brothers
Walter "Wolfman" Washington

Bud Landry, Kelly Fouchi and Marc Fouchi in Rivertown Rep's Damn Yankees, which earned five nominations including Best Musical.

RAP/HIP-HOP
Bionik Brown
Juvenile
Lil' Wayne
Manny Fresh

DJ/ELECTRONICA
Permagrin
Quintron
White Bitch

BLUES
Tab Benoit
Sansone, Krown & Fohl
Snooks Eaglin

ROCK
Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes
Pleasure Club
World Leader Pretend

Legendary group the Neville Brothers are this year's Entertainer of the Year; the group also is nominated in two categories.

ROOTS ROCK
C.C. Adcock
Susan Cowsill
Sonny Landreth

ZYDECO
Geno Delafose
Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas
Curley Taylor

CAJUN
BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet
Jonno
T-Sale
Amanda Shaw

NORD's Bob Bruce will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award in Theatre.

WORLD MUSIC/REGGAE
007
Panorama Jazz Band
Saaraba

COUNTRY/FOLK
Spencer Bohren
Jeff & Vida
Jim McCormick

LATIN
Gringo de Choro
Otra
Vivaz

MALE PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Troy Andrews
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
Maurice Brown
Stanton Moore

FEMALE PERFORMER OF THE YEAR
Theresa Andersson
Tricia Boutté aka "Sista Teedy"
Amanda Shaw
Irma Thomas

Irma Thomas, the Soul Queen of New Orleans, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award in Music.

EMERGING GROUP or ARTIST
Big Blue Marble
Marc Broussard
Hot Club of New Orleans
Imagination Movers

BEST ALBUM
C.C. Adcock, Lafayette Marquis
Maurice Brown, Hip to Bop
Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Funeral for a Friend
The Neville Brothers, Walkin' in the Shadow of Life

THEATRE AWARDS NOMINATIONS

BEST MUSICAL
Boobs! The Musical (All Kinds of Theatre & SRU Productions)
Damn Yankees (Rivertown Repertory Theatre)
Little Shop of Horrors (Brandt Blocker Presents, at Rivertown Repertory Theatre)
Smokey Joe's Cafe (Jefferson Performing Arts Society)

Brian Peterson (at right, opposite Flynn De Marco) was nominated for Best Actor (Comedy or Drama) for Bad Seed.

BEST DRAMA
A Few Good Men (Fred Nuccio & Tari Hohn Lagasse at True Brew Theatre)
Intimate Apparel (Southern Rep Theatre)
Tru (Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré)
Yellowman (Southern Rep Theatre)

BEST COMEDY
Boston Marriage (Drama!)
The Glass Mendacity (Krewe des Sept)
Miz Caraway & the Kingfish (Hero Productions & Evangeline Oak Productions)
Sordid Lives (Running With Scissors)

BEST DIRECTOR (COMEDY OR DRAMA)
Luis Q. Barroso, Boston Marriage
Mikko, Biloxi Blues (Rivertown Repertory Theatre)
Richard Read and Flynn De Marco, Bad Seed and Sordid Lives
Ryan Rilette, The Goat (Southern Rep Theatre)

Boobs! The Musical earned four nominations including Best Musical.

BEST DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Brandt Blocker, Little Shop of Horrors and Smokey Joe's Cafe
Diane Lala, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Summer Lyric Theatre at Tulane)
Gary Rucker, Damn Yankees
Carl Walker, Boobs! The Musical

BEST MUSICAL DIRECTOR
Brandt Blocker, Little Shop of Horrors and Smokey Joe's Cafe
Harry Mayronne, Boobs! The Musical
Flo Presti, Damn Yankees
C. Leonard Raybon, Camelot and The Mikado (both Tulane Summer Lyric Theatre)

The Dirty Dozen Brass Band's Funeral For a Friend earned the band nominations in the Brass Band and Album categories.

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
Jaune Buisson, Little Shop of Horrors and Smokey Joe's Cafe
Kelly Fouchi, Damn Yankees
Karen Hebert, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine (Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré)
Diane Lala, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Cecile Casey Covert, Boobs! The Musical
Julie Winn, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Kirche Leigh Zeile, Intimate Apparel

BEST SET DESIGN
Geoffrey Hall, The Goat
Takeshi Kata, Intimate Apparel
Bill Walker, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine

Pop-rocking Big Blue Marble is one of four upstart nominees in the Emerging Group or Artist category.

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN
Mark Barton, Intimate Apparel
Jonathan Foucheaux, Little Shop of Horrors and Smokey Joe's Cafe
Dan Zimmer, Damn Yankees

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A CHILD
David Bologna, Oliver! and Disney's Beauty and the Beast (Jefferson Performing Arts Society)
Garrison Linn, To Kill a Mockingbird (Voices in the Dark, at UNO Downtown Theatre)
Tyler Richier, To Kill a Mockingbird
Daisey Rosato, To Kill a Mockingbird

BEST ACTOR (Comedy or Drama)
Bob Edes, Tru
Gavin Mahlie, Richard III (The Shakespeare Festival at Tulane)
Brian Peterson, Bad Seed (Running With Scissors)
William Ragsdale, The Goat

Southern Rep artistic director Ryan Rilette will serve as this year's Honorary Theatre Chairman.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Blake Balu, Biloxi Blues
Jerry Lee Leighton, A Few Good Men
Karl Lengel, The Goat
Gavin Mahlie, When Ya Smilin' (The Producers Circle and Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré)

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Keith Claverie, Little Shop of Horrors
Greg DiLeo, Pump Boys and Dinettes
Ricky Graham, The Mikado
Brian Rosenberg, A Day in Hollywood/A Night In The Ukraine

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Luis Q. Barroso, Little Shop of Horrors
Matthew Michael, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine
David Stone, The Mikado
Kenneth Thompson, Little Shop of Horrors

Drummer and Galactic member Stanton Moore was a surprise nominee in the Male Performer of the Year category.

BEST ACTRESS (Comedy or Drama)
Karen Kaia Livers, Intimate Apparel
Kathy Randels, To Flee, Flee This Sad Hotel (ArtSpot Productions)
Janet Shea, Miz Caraway & the Kingfish
Diane Shortes, Boston Marriage

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Troi Bechet, Intimate Apparel
Wendi Berman, Boston Marriage
Maureen Brennan, The Glass Mendacity
Carol Sutton, Intimate Apparel  

The cast of Intimate Apparel, nominated for seven awards: Randy Maggiore, Troi Bechet, Carol Sutton, Tony Molina, Lara Grice and Karen-Kaia Livers (sitting).

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Emily Antrainer, Little Shop of Horrors
Angela Mannino, The Mikado
Gabrielle Porter,Smokey Joe's Cafe
Savannah Wise, Disney's Beauty and the Beast

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Tracy Collins, Pump Boys and Dinettes (Rivertown Repertory Theatre)
Adella Gautier, 70, Girls, 70 (Artists' Cooperative Theater)
Amanda Zirkenback, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine

BEST ORIGINAL WORK FOR THEATRE
Chekhov's Wild Ride, Moving Humans & ArtSpot Productions
Jour de Gloire, Mikko
Mating Habits/Things I've Done, R.J. Tsarov
To Flee, Flee This Sad Hotel, Kathy Randels  

Gabrielle Porter (with Michael Larche), earned one of six nominations for JPAS' production of Smokey Joe's Cafe.

BEST UNIVERSITY PRODUCTION 2004
Hallowed Ground, Tulane University
Madame de Sade, Tulane University
The Oldest Profession, Loyola University Shakespeare in Hollywood, Loyola University