The 2008 Merritt Awards were handed out on Monday, March 3, celebrating the best in Nova Scotia’s theatre. Halifax-based 2b Theatre won four of the seven categories it was nominated for, including Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for Stephen McCarthy, who played the Storyteller in 2b’s Revisited, and Outstanding Direction for Christian Barry. Barry also received the Mayor’s Award for Emerging Theatre Artist from Peter Kelly, who was in attendance. Zuppa Circus Theatre received two—Stewart Legere, who played Harry Linden in Penny Dreadful, for Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role and David Christensen and Jason MacIsaac (both of Heavy Blinkers) for Outstanding Sound Design or Soundscape. Two big awards that eluded 2b, Best Actress in a Leading Role and Outstanding New Play by a Nova Scotian Playwright, went respectively to Andrea Lee Norwood for her portrayal of Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker and Shahin Sayadi for The Veil.
This article appears in Mar 6-12, 2008.