2025 Community Accolades
- Brianna Lau
- Feb 22
- 15 min read
This year we brought back our accolades to celebrate amateur theatre in our Northern Virginia/DC/Maryland area. We are so pumped to see what people were excited about. Without further ado, the 2025 Community Accolades!
Blithe Spirit
Dominion Stage
October - November 2025
Meghan Williams Elkins: I loved every time she was onstage. She was a standout in a wicked strong cast.
Alden Michels and the Cast: Blithe Spirit had an energy that you don't often see in community theatre. The show was incredibly tight, never slowing down or leaving the audience hanging. The actors had the energy one would expect from a professional production.
Alden Michels: This production was so crisp and so well paced. The stakes felt so real--absolutely genuine people in the strangest of circumstances.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Shakespeare’s Kings and Queens
Independent Theatre Company
July 2025
Jeff Elmore: Jeff's diction is crisp and forbidding as an iceberg. As the stern, exhausted, dying king Henry IV, his world-weary monologue was so full of emotion and dynamics that it almost felt like an operatic aria.
Megan Fraedrich: Megan did a masterful job arranging these monologues and scenes to tell the epic story of the two complete history cycles. Abridging Shakespeare is intimidating--abridging eight of his shows is impossible. She frequently does the impossible.
Brianna Lau: Bri's performance as true "drama king" Richard II delivered a wonderfully complex balance of pathos and humor, obnoxiousness and sympathy. Richard's immaturity and pettiness could be quite funny at times, but Brianna also sent a chill down my spine with her "hollow crown" monologue, which felt so incredibly present, like we were sitting with her as she slowly realized the true weight of the fate that lay before her character. I'd love to see her play this character in the full staged production!
Stephanie Oden: This portrayal of Richard III is different from any I've ever seen before because it shows scenes from his "villain origin story" as a young man and we really got to see the complexity in Stephanie's characterization as Richard hardens into an absolutely loathsome, evil king. Stephanie is so compelling as Richard, in all his multifacetedness. She is so funny, charismatic, and likeable that you don't fully grasp Richard's descent into irredeemable evil until he's already there.
Sarah Pfanz: This portrayal of Henry VI is so compelling because it’s so easy to see that being king since he was a baby has stunted him, yet he’s sincerely trying to do his very best. Sarah's attention to the text and historical context gives her performance such depth and yet is so very fun to watch! She ages from a teenage boy to a dying 50-year-old man within three scenes and was so believable. What a great death scene!
Spencer Pilcher: Henry V is one of Shakespeare's most demanding and multifaceted roles, with many long monologues and a wide range of different emotions. Spencer handles this very challenging material beautifully, with great nuance and energy, and captured a powerful arc from goofy young slacker to a respected king who commands forces into battle. He truly commanded the stage and made it easy to see why so many would follow him into the breach!
Eliza Souser: Eliza's creativity really shone in her portrayal of the Chorus, where she playfully interacted with the audience and brought Shakespeare's text to life in our imaginations. She also depicted a beautifully conflicted Lady Anne, who somehow falls for the man who murders her first husband, and made even that unnatural decision feel inevitable.
Gutenberg!
City of Fairfax Theatre Company
September 2025
Andy Shaw & Peter Marsh: These two were a perfect comic pair!
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
City of Fairfax Theatre Company
July 2025
Gargoyles (Megan "MJ" Cooper, Anthony Galace, Lexi Mellott, Lorali OByrne, Evan Zimmerman, Courtney Washington) and Storytellers (William Choi, Jessica Ferebee-Doyen, Kaya Harrison, Victoria Junck, America Michelle, Maria Valdisera): Both of these groups of characters are played multiple ways over multiple productions, with the most common version being the entire ensemble playing multiple gargoyle and storyteller tracks. In CFTC’s Hunchback, each of the six gargoyles and six storytellers had a unique identity, and both groups seemed like mini-families bouncing off of each other and Quasimodo and Clopin respectively. (Also, the gargoyle's character-driven movements and the storyteller’s elegant dancing were top-notch!)
Matthew Brown: Matthew’s passion for music, especially choral music like in Hunchback, is clearly shown through how he music directs. He made the unbelievable challenge of splitting a 40 person cast in multiple ways for different numbers, which still making the score cohesive, look like child’s play. This includes the very difficult “Entr’acte,” which unlike most musicals, is sung by a choir (which in this case were multiple cast members who he worked on the number with for literal hours).
Ken & Patti Crowley: The Crowleys always work hard behind the scenes on creating colorfully specific and direct scenes with light, but Hunchback was a particular feat. They worked through multiple thunderstorms and much breaking equipment to make the lighting that audiences saw during performances.
Zachary Flick: Zachary is a very collaborative director that also has very clear visions for his shows. He treads the fine line of deciding what makes sense for the production without hurting creative egos with grace. With Hunchback in particular, he also incorporated actors in more ways that worked best for them than many other directors. He also prioritizes and delegates in a way I’m simply jealous of. I can’t wait to see what he does next (and hopefully be involved)!
Brittany Huffman: Brittany was able to keep a great balance between being relatable and keeping the strictness needed during rehearsals. Before, during, and after some performances, she needed to be an expert communicator when the theater was particularly warm and made quick decisions for the cast, crew, and audience with Dawn Morrow. Brittany smashed her musical stage manager debut!
Nathan Nichipor: Nathan is much more than a co-choreographer; he is a superhero! Not only did he choreograph the musical along with Melody Vidmar, he also swung for multiple roles over the course of the production, AND worked on multiple technical elements. His work did not go unnoticed and definitely deserves recognition!
If Books Could Kill
YAM Productions
August 2025
Tricia Pisarra: Tricia's performance as the deliciously haughty Pauline was so delightful. Her lines still pop into my head in her voice.
Kinky Boots
Little Theatre of Alexandria
July - August 2025
Clayton Alex James: In a show that shines so bright, Clayton shines even brighter as Lola. With a performance that perfectly captured the character's principled, vulnerable, confident, multifaceted self, Clayton's performance as Lola alone made the price of admission worth it.
The Lightning Thief
Sterling Playmakers
August 2025
Jared Latimer: Jared Latimer was a thoroughly entertaining Dionysus. This role is such a difficult one to get right, since you're thrust into the narrative so quickly and have to make an impression fast, but Jared really sold the vibe of a camp counselor who REALLY doesn't want to be there.
Alex Lew: Percy Jackson is a very tricky character to play for multiple reasons. First, Percy needs to be not only cartoonishly comedic, but also relatable, and Alex performed both sides of Percy with ease. He showed Percy’s lack of book smarts and signature snark while reacting to and behind other characters, but still made the character one the audience wanted to root for. Second, Percy Does. Not. Stop. He has one scene that’s maybe 30 seconds where he isn’t on stage, and he is expected to not just be on, but also lead the production as the whole story is clearly from his point of view. Another thing Alex succeeded in, and for multiple performances at that!
Johnathan Villa: I didn't know there was such a perfect way of bringing Grover from the page to the stage until seeing Johnathan’s performance. His physicality in particular was both impressive and a joy to watch. It’s kind of wild that he played an adolescent more realistically than some actual pre-teens.
Much Ado About Nothing
Little Theatre of Alexandria
March - April 2025
Jeff Elmore: With a goofy thick Southern accent reminiscent of Benoit Blanc, a pith helmet that dramatically flew off his head, and a penchant for food-themed mispronunciations of characters’ names, Elmore truly made the role of Dogberry his own and was never afraid to be totally silly.
Julie Fischer: The set of the Bar Messina and its upstairs apartment was so beautiful, detailed, and lived-in. It worked so well as the setting for all of the play’s action and captured the feeling of New Orleans.
Jaye Frazier: Jaye didn’t sign on to understudy a role but stepped into the part of Conrade with extremely minimal notice or rehearsal and absolutely crushed the role! What a great team player!
Amelia Jacquat: I’ve never seen a funnier, more scene-stealing, more affecting rendition of Hero, a character who can sometimes be a little bland. Jacquat did very fine work bringing a 16th century character into the 21st century, with all its different gender norms and moral values, and making Hero seem at home there.
Seth Rue: Rue’s extreme physical comedy must be seen to be believed. Super high energy, imaginative interpretation of Benedick that always felt fresh.
Our Town
Sterling Playmakers
October 2025
Kathleen Beck: Some of the crispest diction and best delivery I've heard in ages. There are truly no small parts, and she stole her scenes in the supporting role of Mrs. Soames.
Rachel MacGregor: The amount of emotion she can convey with a simple movement of her eyes is incredible. She could be a movie star. There wasn't a dry eye in the house after her big speech at the end.
Chris Shea: As George, Shea’s incredibly expressive face and playful physical acting choices brought youthful levity to the first act, followed by a devastating gut punch as he collapsed with grief in the second act.
Leecy Silk: Silk demonstrated so perfectly the importance of being present in the moment as an actor even as her character learns the importance of living in the moment. Her delivery felt so earnest and natural throughout, her bond with her dad was charming and her big final monologue felt so immediate, like we were discovering everything along with her. Silk shone every moment she was on stage.
The Play That Goes Wrong
The Arlington Players
February 2025
Cast and Crew: The Play That Goes Wrong at The Arlington Players is the sort of production that sticks with you for a long time. Every part of the production was so refined and showed a level of care about the craft that the entire experience was elevated. It was truly one of the best community theatre shows I have ever seen.
Anastasia Brunk: Anastasia’s slapstick physical comedy was hysterically funny and it was immensely enjoyable to watch her character’s gradual progression from timid discomfort with an onstage role to viciously fighting for stage time.
Judah Canizares: I’ve seen many productions of The Play That Goes Wrong before, but never saw the play within a play role Perkins the butler characterized this way before. Dennis/Perkins usually comes across as a purely inept actor. Judah plays him more like a doleful first mate on a sinking ship who knows he’s going down with the ship but is still hopelessly following the captain’s orders to the best of his ability. His character’s self-aware despair mounted from disastrously mispronounced words to being chained to a sofa too big to fit through the door. Judah played this wacky comedy like a Shakespearean tragedy and it was amazing.
John Jennings: As jolly scenery-chewing Max, John’s carefree disposition brought a side-splitting contrast to the immense stress and anxiety that the other characters exhibited as the set literally collapsed among them. John was a clear fan-favorite character who audiences cheered for as he played up his dramatic gestures. It is delightful to watch a performer having so much fun onstage and even more delightful to watch a performer playing a performer having so much fun onstage!
The Play That Goes Wrong
Little Theatre of Alexandria
June 2025
Adam R. Adkins: Adkins seemed born to play the roles of director Chris Bean and play-within-a-play star Inspector Carter. Watching his character’s anxiety and irritability mount as the play devolved into chaos around him anchored the comedy in something that felt real and made it all even funnier. He embodied every actor’s nightmares with spot-on diction and impeccable timing.
Will MacLeod: At the performance I saw, MacLeod played Robert Grove and absolutely channeled the spirit of Monty Python in his buttoned-up, stiff-upper lip delivery combined with frenetic physical comedy. It was the funniest performance I’ve seen all year, made more impressive by the fact that MacLeod understudied not one but TWO physically demanding leading roles.
Queerplatonic: A Love Story
Globe Openstage
July 2025
Arielle Seidman-Joria: This original script is not only hilarious, but will resonate deeply with anyone who has ever felt like they didn’t fit in for who they were, or how they loved.
The Rocky Horror Show
Reston Community Players
October 2025
Cast and Crew: Rocky Horror at RCP was what community theatre should strive to be. It was a show that felt like they embraced the "community" of community theatre. It was kooky, fun, and strange in all the best ways.
The Secret Garden
Prince William Little Theatre
March 2025
Anna Jones: Anna gave one of the most powerful child actor performances I've ever seen-- including professional theatre-- as Mary Lennox. This is a huge and immensely challenging role, and the entire show rests on her shoulders, yet she totally disappeared into the role and carried the story with a fabulous English accent, the right amount of attitude (Mary is a brat and that's hard for a kid to portray well), and clear vocals.
Anna Jones: I was so impressed with her portrayal of Mary--both bratty and lovable. It's such a hard lead role, and you have to have a strong actress to keep her likeable while being true to the character.
Alden Michels: What a beautifully heart-breaking yet grounded portrayal of Archibald Craven, a character that could easily become saccharine or maudlin. His singing was utterly beautiful and the pain in his eyes was haunting. Every time he was onstage, I forgot about the rest of the world outside the theatre. Alden also doubled as the dialect coach and is probably one of the reasons this show had some of the most consistent accent work I've seen in years.
Cam Powell: His spirited, twinkle-eyed portrayal of Dickon made his two big numbers the most enjoyable in the show! I almost cried with joy during "Wick."
Shelby Young: This score felt like it was written specifically for Shelby's voice. The effortless crystalline beauty of her upper-range was spine-tingling.
Tartuffe
Silver Spring Stage
October - November 2025
Jacqueline Youm: After getting the rights to WITCH fell through, Silver Spring Stage was faced with a difficult decision: leave a gaping hole in their season, or come up with a replacement show on a very tight schedule. Jackie took the bull by the horns and chose the latter option, stepping up to direct the classic French farce Tartuffe. Casting decisions were finalized on September 29, with opening night on October 31, leaving only a month to put the show together. In addition to directing, Jackie wore several other hats during the production: she played the role of Dorine, selected her own music for the show, ran house, did publicity, and even took on duties normally assigned to stage management. I don't know too many people who would be able to pull off this show the way Jackie could given the circumstances.
Unscripted Sketch Comedy Improv Troupe
Unscripted
November 2025
Dawn Campbell: She formed a sketch comedy improv troupe in Virginia and performed in variety shows!
VHS Christmas Carol
YAM Productions
December 2025
Wendy Briggs: Wendy's soaring vocals and eerie movements in the "Final Ghost" sequence are some of the most memorable moments in the show, and her portrayal of both the inscrutable ghost character and poor sweet Tiny Tim made the moments when she reveals both Scrooge's and Tim's fates even more powerful. The image of her magically dragging Scrooge into the grave stuck with me long after I left the theatre.
Wendy Briggs: Amazing range. She pulled off playing Tiny Tim and the Ghost of Christmas Future in the same production. Pretty sure that’s never been done before.
Anastasia Brunk: Anastasia's choreography was one of the most entertaining parts of the show and perfectly suited the vibe of each number, the personalities of the characters and skill sets of the performers. From the fun line dance in "Christmas Electricity" to the funky flow of "I'm the Ghost," each number had a distinct feel that separated it from the rest of the show, a special achievement in an entirely sung-through musical.
Krista Grimmett-Adams: The energy, playfulness, and storytelling ability she brought to her role as the narrator kept audiences on the edges of their seats and brought a joyous spirit to the whole production!
Brianna Lau: Bri made some incredibly clever directorial choices with casting, doubling, and blocking that brought out the themes of the piece in new, powerful ways. In addition to directing, she also produced, stage managed, ran lights, and did publicity!
The last show I did had 10 people doing all the work that Bri did on this one. Her dedication is so apparent in everything she does and this is so clearly a labor of love— love of theatre, love of the material, love of her cast and creative team, and love of the message behind the piece.
VHS Christmas Carol, while wrapped in a fun and funky 1980s aesthetic, embodies all of the qualities of the tale you know and love— the importance of giving and generosity and kindness and community and joy— and those are qualities that I admire about Bri, too, as she brings this show to life!
Brianna Lau: She made Dickens feel new (and old) again.
Brianna Lau: Brianna clearly worked her tail off when it came to this production. She used her social media and networking skills to get the team she needed, and not only directed this production, but also designed for it in multiple ways. She should feel very proud about this major step for YAM!
Spencer Pilcher: Spencer expertly balanced comedy and drama with his portrayal of Scrooge, and his rich, powerful voice shone from high to low notes. He brought gravitas and stakes to even some of the goofiest lyrics. Even in the rare moments when he wasn't the focus of the scene, his reactions and facial expressions in the background were always a joy to watch.
Lorenzo Soto: The extreme energy, joy, and charisma that Lorenzo brought to his all-singing, all-dancing portrayal of the Ghost of Christmas Present could be bottled and sold as an antidote to the winter blues. What a truly showstopping performance!
1776
Good Shepherd Players
April 2025
Chris Dockins: Benjamin Franklin is one of the most iconic figures in history, yet Chris made the role his own with an endearing balance of wit, wisdom, irreverence, and canny machinations. His line delivery of each witticism and aphorism was dead-on, made even more impressive by the minimal amount of rehearsal for the semi-staged production. It takes immense stage presence to steal the show in a powerful ensemble piece like 1776, yet Chris did it.
Chris Dockins: Chris brought such energy to this role and delivered the sort of performance someone would hope for for such an iconic Founding Father. Every time he was on stage, he commanded the audience's attention and he really drove the energy of those scenes, becoming one of the most memorable performances of the show.
Mel Gumina: As the show's antagonist--but not villain--John Dickinson, Mel Gumina walked a challenging line. She made Dickinson easy to hate, and yet we believed that this person could easily exist in any democratic body and, moreover, has his own unique moral code and set of beliefs by which he lives his life. She played Dickinson with a steely resolve yet a disarming chumminess. Her mountingly zealous number "Cool Considerate Men" was truly memorable.
Richard Jacobson: Richard Jacobson gave an absolutely ferocious, show-stopping rendition of "Molasses to Rum" as Ned Rutledge. His Rutledge was genteel, terrifying, and unforgettable.
Richard Jacobson: As Southern firebrand Edward Rutledge, Richard Jacobson didn't just say the quiet part out loud, he belted it at the top of his lungs. He embodied a character with truly loathsome beliefs yet also stripped bare much of our mythology about who can really be called "innocent" of the sins of slavery in our country's history. Jacobson's song was so powerfully delivered and so searing that it almost felt painful to look at. One of the most chilling theatrical moments this year.
Greg LaNave: Greg WAS John Adams. His sheer passion and dedication--up to and including getting off-book for what was intended to be a semi-staged concert production--mirrors Adams' tireless drive for independence. The spirit with which he played Adams drove the stakes of the show and almost made us feel suspense over whether he'd ever be able to pull off a unanimous vote.
Nancy Lavallee: She breathed new life into an old classic with this gender-mixed, immersive, modern take on 1776 staged in the round. I felt like I was a part of the action.
Taylor Walker: Taylor's enchanting vocals as Abigail Adams made everything she sang sound so thrilling that even the phrase "Saltpeter, John!" could have blown the roof off of the theatre!
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Sterling Playmakers
November 2025
Full Cast: The cast of this show was the strongest ensemble I've seen in any stage production this year. The synthesis of voices, personalities, and energies was perfection. Not only did the score sound amazing, all of those little nonverbal interactions in the background of each scene fleshed out the characters and made them feel real.
Full Cast: There wasn't a weak link in the bunch. What a great show!
Zach Burgess: He attacked the role of goofy space cadet Leaf Coneybear with absolute unhinged glee. One of the most fun performances I've seen this year! He had the audience shrieking with laughter.
Cecelia Hilliard: The lighting design for the scenes in which Leaf goes into a trance and correctly spells words, surrounded by a supernatural colorful light, was so crisply done and made a funny moment hilarious.
Nathan McGraw: He stole the show with his dry delivery of the most absurd spelling words and example sentences-- and the single funniest line delivery I've heard all year, about getting resuscitated by a 12-year-old, if memory serves. He made Panch so compelling, I wanted to see him do a spin-off musical about him.
Spencer Pilcher: Spencer is an absolute DREAM in this role. I literally do not think it could be done better. He’s prickly yet sweet, hilariously quirky yet sympathetic and grounded, he does a great and consistent character voice but also gets to really show the considerable range and power of his vocals. The physicality— especially the “Magic Foot” is just fantastic. Barfée is such an incredibly strange character, but Spencer made me believe that not only could this guy exist, he had me rooting for him to take home the trophy in the bee!
Spencer Pilcher: Guy has a magic foot!
McKinley Seale: McKinley probably had the most emotional heavy-lifting to do as the shy, neglected bookworm Olive Ostrovsky and knocked it out of the park. Her 11 o’ clock “I Love You” song stopped the show with her beautifully plaintive, expressive voice. Her characterization of Olive is so earnest, she brought tears to my eyes.
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