The talented performances listed below were an emotional balm to DMV audiences as we navigated life’s stressors in 2023. Be it Michael Kevin Darnall’s heart-wrenching portrayal of Louis in Angels in America (Arena Stage), the comic delight of Louis E. Davis as an in-your-face performance artist in Monumental Travesties (Mosaic Theater), or the delightful whimsy of the Happenstance Theater troupe, DC’s performers escorted audiences through the full range of human emotions, helping us explore the most pressing issues of mankind.
Nancy Robinette, no stranger to awards and accolades, made our list for three separate performances this year, while Quinn Titcomb, likely the youngest performer on the list, caught our reviewer’s attention for her “subtle but piercing” performance as Young Alison in Studio Theatre’s production of Fun Home. DC stalwart Kimberly Gilbert appears twice on our list, taking over as the Ghost of Christmas Present in Ford’s Theatre’s A Christmas Carol and originating the role of Jennifer in Round House Theatre’s Jennifer Who Is Leaving.
From all of us here at DCTA, we send a heartfelt thank you to every performer in the DMV. You make our lives sparkle. And we could all use that extra bit of spark these days.
Cheers,
Nicole Hertvik
Editor-in-Chief and Publisher, DC Theater Arts
Individual Performances
Melody A. Betts as Funmilayo in Fela! at Olney Theatre Center (co-production with Round House Theatre)
Ro Bodie as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in The Mountaintop at Round House Theatre
Zach Brewster-Geisz as David Malter in The Chosen at 1st Stage
Lise Bruneau as Sonia in The Honey Trap at Solas Nua
Tamieka Chavis as Miz Adeline in The Hula Hoopin’ Queen at Imagination Stage
Andrew Cownden as Jaques in As You Like It at STC
Michael Kevin Darnell as Louis in Angels in America Part I: Millennium Approaches at Arena Stage
Louis E. Davis as Chance in Monumental Travesties at Mosaic Theater Company
Maboud Ebrahimzadeh as Brian McConnell in Ink at Round House Theatre
Adrian Blake Enscoe as Little Brother in Swept Away at Arena Stage
Jordan Friend as Nate in A Delicate Ship at 4615 Theatre Company
John Gallagher Jr. as Mate in Swept Away at Arena Stage
Edward Gero as Roy Cohn in Angels in America Part 1: Millennium Approaches at Arena Stage
Kimberly Gilbert as the Ghost of Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol at Ford’s Theatre
Tori Gomez as Medea in Mojada at 1st Stage
Nicole Halmos as Della in The Cake at Prologue Theatre in association with NextStop Theatre Company
Doug Harris as Trevor Barlow in Redeemed at Contemporary American Theatre Festival
Ixchel Hernandez as Nina in In the Heights at NextStop Theatre Company
Bruni Herring as Abuela Claudia in In the Heights at NextStop Theatre Company
Shinah Hey as Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg in Ride the Cyclone at Arena Stage
DeJeaneatte Horne as Felix in The Brothers Paranormal at Olney Theatre Center
Francis Jue as Duch in Cambodian Rock Band at Arena Stage
Stephen Kime as Cosmo Disney in Pitchfork Disney at Red Rat Productions
Fletcher Lowe as Pup in Monsters of the American Cinema at Prologue Theatre
Bryonha Marie as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd at Signature Theatre Company
Ethan Miller as Sergei in The Last Match at 1st Stage
Maryam Najafzada in Snow Maiden in Snow Maiden at Synetic Theater Company
Joe Ngo as Chum in Cambodian Rock Band at Arena Stage
Cody Nickell as Larry Lamb in Ink at Round House Theatre
Patrick Page as Lear in King Lear at Shakespeare Theatre Company
Shereen Pimentel as Eva in Evita at Shakespeare Theatre Company (in association with the American Repertory Theater)
Christopher Michael Richardson as Beadle Bamford in Sweeney Todd at Signature Theatre
Nancy Robinette as Nan in Jennifer Who Is Leaving at Round House Theatre
Nancy Robinette as Bubbe in The Chameleon at Theater J
Theodore Sapp as Shepard Mallory in Ben Butler at Washington Stage Guild
Danielle Scott as Dorra in The Body of a Woman at ExPats Theatre
Awa Sal Secka as Sarah in Ragtime at Signature Theatre
Bobby Smith as Bruce Bechdel in Fun Home at Studio Theatre
Deidra LaWan Starnes as Dorothy in Dorothy’s Dictionary at Washington Stage Guild
Quinn Titcomb as Small Alison in Fun Home at Studio Theatre
Drew Kopas as Tim in The Last Match at 1st Stage
Vato Tsikurishvili as The Boy in Snow Maiden at Synetic Theatre Company
Holly Twyford as Mama in My Mama and the Full-Scale Invasion at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
Nick Westrate as Prior Walter in Angels in America Part I: Millennium Approaches at Arena Stage
Ensemble and Collaboration
Adrift by Happenstance Theatre featuring Gwen Grastorf, Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, and Alex Vernon
Angels in America Part I: Millennium Approaches at Arena Stage featuring John Austin, Frank Britton, Michael Kevin Darnall, Veronica del Cerro, Edward Gero, Brandon Haagenson, Billie Krishawn, Susan Rome, Justin Weaks, Nick Westrate and Deborah Ann Woll
Cambodian Rock Band at Arena Stage featuring Joe Ngo, Abraham Kim, Brooke Ishibashi, Jane Lui, and Tim Liu
Confederates at Mosaic Theatre featuring Joel Ashur, Stori Ayers, Tamieka Chavis, Caro Dubberly, Nikkole Salter, and Deidre Staples
Ride the Cyclone at Arena Stage featuring Kyle Dalsimer, Gabrielle Dominique, Marc Geller, Shinah Hey, Ashlyn Maddox, Nick Martinez, Eli Mayer, Katie Mariko Murray, Ashley D. Nguyen, Matthew Boyd Snyder
The Cake at Prologue Theatre featuring Tara Forseth, Nicole Halmos, Sam Lunay, and Sabrina Lynne Sawyer
The Chameleon at Theatre J featuring Sarah Corey, Eric Hissom, Arielle Moore, RJ Pavel, Nancy Robinette, Ryan Sellers, Dina Thomas and Emma Wallach
The Nosebleed at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company featuring Drae Campbell, Ashil Lee, Cody Nickell, Aya Ogawa, Kaili Y. Turner, and Saori Tsukada
Bars and Measures at Mosaic Theater Company: Joel Ashur as Eric and Louis E. Davis as Bilal
Jennifer Who Is Leaving at Round House Theatre featuring Kimberly Gilbert as Jennifer and Nancy Robinette as Nan
one in two at Mosaic Theater Company featuring Michael Kevin Darnall, Ryan Jamaal Swain, and Justin Weaks
POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive at Arena Stage: Felicia Curry as Margaret and Sarah-Anne Martinez as Dusty
SHOUT SISTER SHOUT! at Ford’s Theatre: Carrie Compere as Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Kelli Blackwell as Mahalia Jackson
This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl Does Nothing at Theater Alliance: full cast (Ezinne Elele as Beatrix, Natalia Fyfe as Albienne, Anna Shafer as Carmen, DeJeanette Horne as the Father and others, Lolita Marie as the Mother and others)
SEE ALSO:
DCTA 2023 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Professional Productions
DCTA 2023 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Creative Components (Professional)
Seriously no one from Hurricane Diane, one of the funniest and most pertinent shows of the year and full of amazing, committed performances? Wow.
Ditto on Hurricane Diane. Fab ensemble and all outstanding authentic performances.
Hello. Thank you so much for including our Ride the Cyclone cast in your Best Ensemble section. I just wanted to point out that you misspelled my name. It’s Marc Geller. I’d love it if you could update it so I can post it on my social media. Thank you!
Marc
Fixed. Thanks for catching that.
Also… Ashlyn Maddox was also a member of our ensemble. Hopefully you will also include her. Thank you.
Fixed. Thanks for catching that.