Pacino to pick up Norton Award for an old friend
The Elliot Norton Awards will get a serious dose of star power this year, as actor Al Pacino will be on hand to accept a special award for the late actor Paul Benedict. Benedict, who died in December at his home on Martha's Vineyard, might be best known for playing Harry Bentley on "The Jeffersons," but he also appeared often onstage. Benedict performed with Pacino in Theatre Company of Boston productions in the 1960s, and in 2007 he starred in the American Repertory Theater production of Harold Pinter's "No Man's Land."
The 27th edition of the Norton Awards, which recognize greatness in Boston-area theater, will take place May 11 at Sanders Theatre in Cambridge. At the ceremony, a prize for sustained excellence will go to longtime New Repertory Theatre artistic director Rick Lombardo. Lombardo, whose dozen years at New Rep were marked by 18 Norton Awards for the company, has taken the artistic director post at the San Jose Repertory Theatre.
The Huntington Theatre Company and SpeakEasy Stage Company led the way in award nominations, with the Huntington garnering 12 nods for productions such as "The Corn Is Green," "Rock 'n' Roll," and "She Loves Me," and SpeakEasy taking 11 nominations for productions including "The History Boys," "The Light in the Piazza," and "The Seafarer." The Lyric Stage Company was not far behind, with seven nominations. In the acting categories, nominees include Karen McDonald, Larry Coen, Kate Burton, Brooks Ashmanskas, Richard Snee, and father and daughter Will Lyman and Georgia Lyman. Spiro Veloudos, the producing artistic director at Lyric Stage who took a rare acting spin in the company production of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," also garnered an acting nomination.
In the outstanding musical production category, North Shore Music Theatre, now struggling for survival, will have its production of "Show Boat" up against SpeakEasy's "Piazza" and the Huntington's "She Loves Me." In the category of outstanding production by a large company, nominations went to the Huntington's "Corn" and "Rock 'n' Roll" and the ART's "Endgame."
For a complete list of nominees, visit boston.com/ae/theater_arts/exhibitionist. Tickets: $15. 617-496-2222, www.boxoffice.harvard.edu 