The Actors� Equity
Foundation, which supports the
professional theatre community, has announced the recipients of its awards for performers for the 2024�2025 season.
Jessica Hecht, who played Suzanne in Eureka Day, and Francis Jue, seen as HYH and others in Yellow Face, have been named winners of The Richard Seff Award, given annually since 2004 to character actors, 50 years old or older, for the best performance in a featured or unfeatured supporting role in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production. Recent recipients, who must have been members of Actors' Equity Association for at least 25 years, include Kecia Lewis, Ciarán O'Reilly, Linda Lavin, and Francis Guinan.
Recipients of the Clarence Derwent Award for the two most promising performances of the season are Nicholas Barasch (Frederic in Pirates! The Penzance Musical) and Julia Lester (Wilma in All Nighter). Established in 1945, previous artists acknowledged at the early stages of their careers include Judy Holliday, Frederick O’Neal, Gene Wilder, Morgan Freeman and, most recently, Andrew Durand and Hannah Cruz.
The Joe A. Callaway Award, given to two actors for best performances in a classical play, is awarded to Steven Epp (Earl of Worcester/Francis/Silence in Henry IV) and Kimber Elayne Sprawl (Emilia in Othello). Past recipients of the award, established in 1989, include Alfre Woodard, Victor Garber, Frank Langella, Kate Burton and, most recently, Marin Ireland and Jonathan Hadary.
Jennifer Leigh Warren (Big River, Little Shop of Horrors) will be honored with The Michael McCarty Recognition Award, celebrating Los Angeles-based Equity actors who have built their lives in the theatre. The award is named for Michael McCarty, a veteran Equity actor who intended the award to be given to an established mature actor in Los Angeles.
“These actors may have been in the industry for decades, or for a far shorter time,� said Judy Rice, president of Actor’s Equity Foundation, in a statement. “The Foundation is proud to celebrate what they share: a demonstration of true commitment to their craft.�
Awards will be presented June 23 at Green Fig in New York City. The ceremony will also include the Foundation’s humanitarian Patrick Quinn Award, as well as the presentation of Actors� Equity Association’s ACCA Award for Outstanding Broadway Chorus (winners to be announced) and the Paul Robeson Award, a humanitarian honor jointly administered by the Foundation and Actors' Equity Association, to the previously reported Leslie Ishii.
The judges panel for the seasonal performance awards included Joe Dziemianowicz, New York Theatre Guide; Adam Feldman, Time Out New York; Elysa Gardner, New York Sun, New York Stage Review; Harry Haun, The Observer; Kobi Kassal, Theatrely; and Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter, New York Stage Review.
The Actors' Equity Foundation was created in 1962 to aid and assist the members of the acting profession and to promote the theatre arts. It is separate from Actors� Equity Association and is funded by estate bequests and individual donations. Visit .
