Onegin, the Arts Club musical by Amiel Gladstone and Veda Hille, is leading the way in the 13^th annual Ovation! Awards, presented by APPLAUSE! Musicals Society. It's up for a record 13 nominations.

Winners are to be announced on January 29 at an event at the Vancouver Academy of Music.

Gateway Theatre's The Music Man and Align Entertainment's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat have both received 9 nominations, in a year that was strong for musicals in this city. Theatre Under the Stars received seven nominations.

Fighting Chance Productions produced six musicals in 2016 and received 11 nominations; the Arts Club Theatre Company produced five musicalsfor 26 nominations; Gateway Theatre staged two musicals, with nine nominations. 

A jury of ten volunteers from the musical-theatre community choose the nominees and winners of 20 awards. But the general public can get in on the act, too: it's invited to participate in selecting “audience choice” awards in categories including outstanding production, outstanding remount of a musical, outstanding panto, and outstanding special musical-theatre event in 2016. Votes are collected from the general public until midnight January 25online at applausemusicals.com/.

Here's a full list of nominees:

Outstanding Professional Production
Billy Elliot - Arts Club Theatre Company
Fame - Bring On Tomorrow Co-Op
The Music Man - Gateway Theatre
Onegin - Arts Club Theatre Company
Rock of Ages - Arts Club Theatre Company

Outstanding Community Production - Large Theatre (150-plus seats)
Beauty and the Beast - Theatre Under The Stars
Cabaret - Exit 22/Capilano University
Fiddler on the Roof - Royal City Musical Theatre
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - Align Entertainment
Rent – URP Event Production in association with The Capilano University Theatre
Department

Outstanding Community Production - Small Theatre (less than 150 seats)
Bonnie & Clyde - Play On Words Productions
Company - United Players
Hair - The Renegade Arts Company
Tommy - The Renegade Arts Company
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Fighting Chance Productions

Outstanding Chamber Production (small cast/six or fewer performers)
Always… Patsy Cline - First Impressions Theatre
Closer Than Ever - Gateway Theatre
Go, Dog. Go! - Carousel Theatre for Young People
The (Post) Mistress - Arts Club Theatre Company

Outstanding New Work
Carry On, Music & Lyrics by Britt MacLeod, Book by Deborah Vogt - Presented by
Awkward Stage Productions.
Facing East, Music by David Rigano, Book & Lyrics by Mark Eugene Garcia, Based on the
play by Carol Lynn Pearson - Presented by Fighting Chance Productions.
Onegin, by Amiel Gladstone & Veda Hille - Presented by the Arts Club Theatre Company.

Outstanding Music Direction
James Bryson - Fiddler on the Roof
Kevin Michael Cripps - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Caitlin Hayes - Closer Than Ever
Veda Hille - Onegin
Christopher King - The Music Man

Outstanding Direction
Stephen Atkins - Cabaret
Valerie Easton - Fiddler on the Roof
Amiel Gladstone - Onegin
Chad Matchette - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Jovanni Sy - Closer Than Ever
Barbara Tomasic - The Music Man

Outstanding Choreography
Dawn Ewan - Hair
Rachael Carlson - Cats
Keri Minty - Cabaret
Suzanne Ouellette - The Music Man
Tracey Power - Onegin
Melissa Turpin - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Outstanding Set Design
Brian Ball - Fiddler on the Roof (RCMT)
Drew Facey - Onegin
Shizuka Kai - Go, Dog. Go!
Marshall McMahen - The Music Man
Marshall McMahen - Closer Than Ever
Carolyn Rapanos - Cabaret

Outstanding Costume Design
Carmen Alatorre - The Music Man
Jacqueline Firkins - Onegin
Fairlith Harvey - Cats
Stephanie Kong - Go, Dog. Go!
Julie White - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Outstanding Lighting Design
Ed Arteaga - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Jeff Harrison - Closer Than Ever
Robert Sondergaard - Rent
Robert Sondergaard - Rock of Ages
John Webber - Onegin

Outstanding Lead Performance (male)
Stuart Barkley (Joseph) - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Charlie Deagon (William Barfee) - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Nick Fontaine (Bobby) - Company
Jay Hindle (Harold Hill) - The Music Man
Alessandro Juliani (Evgeni Onegin) Onegin
Warren Kimmel (Tevye) Fiddler on the Roof
Kamyar Pazandeh (J.D.) - Heathers (Co-Op)
Kale Penny (Drew) - Rock of Ages

Outstanding Lead Performance (female)
Marlie Collins (Sherrie) - Rock of Ages
Katie-Rose Connors (Narrator) - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Sherry Freeman (Bonnie Parker) - Bonnie & Clyde
Meghan Gardiner (Marion Paroo) - The Music Man
Colleen Rae Lornie (Patsy Cline) - Always… Patsy Cline
Christine Quintana (Veronica Sawyer) - Heathers (Co-Op)
Meg Roe (Tatyana Larin) - Onegin
Sara Walters (Olive Ostrovsky) - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Outstanding Supporting Performance (male/large theatre)
Kurtis D'Aoust (Angel) - Rent
Josh Epstein (Vladimir Lensky) - Onegin
Steven Greenfield (Cogsworth) - Beauty and the Beast
Victor Hunter (Lumiere) - Beauty and the Beast
Keiren Martin Murphy (Dennis) - Rock of Ages
Colin Sheen (Ram Sweeny) Heathers (Co-Op)
Valin Shinyei (Michael) - Billy Elliot
Daniel James White (Riff) - West Side Story

Outstanding Supporting Performance (male/small theatre)
Matthew Fedorowicz (Peter Phyle) - Little Miss Glitz
Julian Galipeau (Claude) - Hair
William Ford Hopkins (Buck Barrow) Bonnie & Clyde
Cody Fonda (Rum Tum Tugger) - Cats
Ryan Lino (Chip Tolentino) - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Seth Little (Miss Holly Gofuckyourself) - Shine, A Burlesque Musical
Dimitrios Stephanoy (Joe) - Fame
Doug Thoms (Old Deuteronomy) - Cats

Outstanding Supporting Performance (female/large theatre)
Steffanie Davis (Martha Dunnstock) Heathers (Co-op)
Paige Fraser (Franz) - Rock of Ages
Lauren Jackson (Olga Larin) - Onegin
Alexandra Lainfiesta (Anita) - West Side Story
Catriona Murphy (Mrs. Wilkinson) - Billy Elliot
Barbara Pollard (Grandma) - Billy Elliot
Annastasia Unger (Martha Dunnstock) - Heathers (Fighting Chance Productions)
Synthia Yusuf (Maureen) - Rent

Outstanding Supporting Performance (female/small theatre)
Caitlin Clugston (Joanne) - Company
Michelle Creber (Grace Lam) - Fame
Lucia Forward & Amanda Lau (Mungojerrie & Rumpleteazer) - Cats
Meaghan Hommy (McKenize Ziplock) - Little Miss Glitz
Danielle Lemon (Lulu) - Shine A Burlesque Musical
Stephanie Liatopoulos (Yvonne) - Bad Girls
Florence Reiher (Namida) - Jumpin’ The Q/Virgins, a musical threesome
Jennifer Suratos (Rona Peretti) - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Outstanding Chorus Gypsy
Ian Backstrom - Tommy, Cats, Hair
Maia Beresford - Rent
Andrew McNee - Onegin
Natalia McLaughlin - Beauty and the Beast
Riley Qualtieri - West Side Story
Stephanie Wong - Hair

Outstanding Newcomer
Jolene Bernardino (Giselle) - Carry On
Nolan Fahey (Billy) - Billy Elliot
Tiana Jung (Jaylene Darlene) - Little Miss Glitz
Jaime MacLean (Jemima Potts) - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Isscac McAndless-Davis (Casey) - Carry On
Jenika Schofield (Hodel) - Fiddler on the Roof (RCMT)
Valin Shinyei (Michael) - Billy Elliot
William Tippery (Fyedka) - Fiddler on the Roof (RCMT)

Special 2016 Awards
• Sharon Grogan for her make up design for Cats, presented by Fighting Chance
Productions.
• The flying car created and operated for the production of Chitty Chitty Bang
Bang produced by Align Entertainment. Production Manger Patti Volk &
Technical Director Robin Richardson.
• The cast of Hair, who created an authentic and youthful tribe, presented by The
Renegade Arts Company.
• The children’s ensemble of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ,
who were an active and engaged part of the entire production.
• The male quartet in The Music Man (Gateway Theatre) including David Cotton,
Oliver Costillo, Sean Patrick Sonier, and Theo Budd)
Other awards are selected by the general public, which include Audience Choice:
Outstanding Production, Outstanding Panto, Outstanding Remounted Musical, and
Outstanding Special Event.

An award for Outstanding Longtime Contribution to the musical theatre community of
the Lower Mainland, and The Cheryl Hutcherson Award will also be announced on January 29.