Nominations for the 29th annual awards were announced Sept. 21. In 2003-04, Fiddler played Miami's Actors' Playhouse, while Palm Beach productions of Heartbeats and The Life respectively ran at the Caldwell Theatre and the Atlantis Playhouse. Among plays, the Caldwell Theatre Company production of Take Me Out and The Goat, Or Who Is Sylvia? at the GableStage in Miami each earned seven nominations.

Winners, including still to-be-announced non-resident (touring) theatre productions and career arts honors, will be announced Nov. 8 at Fort Lauderdale's Broward Center for the Performing Arts. Florence Henderson, star of last season's Florida Follies, hosts the ceremonies featuring the Peter Graves Orchestra and a guest star lineup to be announced, including tributes to the nominated shows.

The Life (the Cy Coleman musical about Times Square hookers) is the first nominated show for the Atlantis Playhouse, a two-year-old non-Equity company. Also earning its first nominations is the three-year-old Palm Beach Dramaworks with a total of 12. Its musical revue Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris snagged six, including Best Musical, and the drama The Dresser earned five, including Best Play.

Nominees in the Best New Work category include Beauty of the Father by Nilo Cruz (New Theatre); Blind Date by Mario Diament (New Theatre); Fell in Love With a Girl by Samara Siskind (Mad Cat Theatre Company); Heaven Help Us by Ray Roderick and James Hindman (Florida Stage); Running With Scissors by Michael McKeever (Florida Stage).

According to the announcement, the most notable omission in the 2003-04 nominations is The Coconut Grove Playhouse, the region’s largest resident theatre with a $5.3 million annual budget. The issue was debated at several points during the four-hour final balloting session, but scoring of Grove entries never reached placement status. The Grove has an opportunity to pick up non resident awards in separate balloting to take place shortly, for its presentation of Cookin' at the Cookery. The regional theatre panel consists of 24 qualifying voters representing theatre and arts professionals, arts educators and patrons, and critics. A separate panel of critics on venues' opening-night press lists will vote shortly in non resident categories.

Proceeds from the Nov. Nov. 8 ceremony, and a benefit Nov. 1 gala nominees' reception, go to the Carbonell Awards scholarship fund for South Florida theatre and arts students. Tickets are $45 in advance, $50 after Nov. 1 and at the door. Special $100 benefit tickets include a direct donation to the scholarship fund, prestige seating at the Award Ceremony plus admission to all receptions.

Tickets are now on sale at the Broward Center box office, (954) 462-0222 and online at www.browardcenter.org.

For further information, visit the awards online at www.carbonellawards.org.

2004 CARBONELL NOMINATIONS

Best New Work