Hartford — The compelling drama, “All is Calm,” a moving, captivating play about the Christmas Truce of 1914, which was staged at Playhouse on Park, and the 50th Anniversary of the Pulitzer Prize winning musical, “A Chorus Line” at Goodspeed Musicals, took top honors at the 34th annual Connecticut Critics Circle Awards (ctcritics.org) held on Monday, June 22, 2026.
The event, which celebrates the work from the state’s professional theaters during the 2025 – 2026 season, was held at Hartford Stage in downtown Hartford. The ceremony was emceed by Stuart Brown, President of the CT Critics Circle.
“A Chorus Line” was also honored for Best Director of a Musical (Rob Ruggiero), Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Diego Guevara), and Best Choreography (Parker Esse and Baayork Lee). Ryan Mac from the Goodspeed Musical “All Shook Up” received Best Actor in a Musical.
Hartford Stage received three awards. The chilling, highly theatrical production of “Rope” was recognized for Costume Design (Risa Ando), and Best Direction of a Play (Melia Bensussen). Their gripping staging of “Death of a Salesman” won for Outstanding Lighting Design.
Theaterwork Hartford’s world premiere of “Circus Fire,” staged in the round at the historic First Company Governor’s Foot Guard, won for Best Ensemble.
Two productions from A.C.T. of CT garnered three awards. The musical “Waitress” received Best Featured Actress (Shaylen Harger) and Best Actress in a Musical (Abigail Sparrow). Camilla Tassi was honored for Outstanding Projections for “Dear Evan Hansen.”
The Yale Repertory Theatre’s production of the 1959 absurdist classic, “Rhinoceros” by Eugène Ionesco, won for Best Actor in a Play (Reg Rogers) and Best Sound Design for Xi (Zoey) Lin.
Other winners were Christina Acosta Robinson for Best Actress in a Play for the Ivoryton Playhouse’s production of “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill;” Missy Drowse in the Ken Ludwig comedy, “Fox on the Fairway” at Music Theatre of Connecticut, for Best Featured Actress in a Play; Terrence Riggins received the Best Featured Actor in a Play for his powerful performance in August Wilson’s “Gem of the Ocean” at Long Wharf Theatre; and Christopher & Justin Swader received Outstanding Set Design for the Sharon Playhouse production of “The Mousetrap.”
James Bundy, who is retiring as the Elizabeth Parker Ware Dean of the David Geffen School of Drama and Artistic Director of Yale Repertory Theatre received a special award. Rebecka Jones and Noble Shropshire were also recognized for their 25 years of continuous performance in the Hartford Stage production of “A Christmas Carol.” Donna Lynn Hilton of Goodspeed Musicals was honored with the Tom Killen Award for lifetime service to the theater.
The Annual Awards Ceremony was live streamed. The recording will be posted to the CT Critics Circle website (ctcritics.org) the week of June 29.
Helping to present the awards were Connecticut Critic Circle members Karen Isaacs, Nancy Sasso Janis, and Tim Leininger.
The Connecticut Critics Circle was founded in 1990. The statewide organization is comprised of reviewers, writers, and broadcasters that cover the professional theaters throughout the entire state. The annual awards honor the actors, directors, designers and others who help make our professional theater so highly regarded in and outside the state.
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