Obie Award
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The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards bestowed by The Village Voice newspaper to Off-Broadway theater artists in New York City. Similar to the Tony Awards for Broadway productions, the Obies cover off- and off-off-Broadway productions.
The Obie Awards were initiated by Edwin (Ed) Fancher, publisher of the The Village Voice, who handled the financing and business side of the project. They were first given in 1956 under the direction of theater critic Jerry Tallmer. Initially, only off-Broadway productions were eligible; in 1964, off-off-Broadway productions were made eligible.
With the exception of the Lifetime Achievement and Best New American Play awards, there are no fixed categories and no listed nominations. [1] Awards in the past have included performance, direction, best production, design, special citations, and sustained achievement. Not every category is awarded every year. The Village Voice also awards annual Obie grants to selected companies, as well as a Ross Wetzsteon Grant, named after its former theater editor.
Other awards for off-Broadway theater are the Lucille Lortel Awards, the Drama Desk Awards, the Drama League Award, and the Outer Critics Circle Awards.
The ceremony for the 2007-08 season was held on May 19, 2008.[2]
