Drama Desk Awards.

53RD ANNUAL DRAMA DESK AWARDS CEREMONY
TO BE HELD SUNDAY, MAY 18, 2008, AT 9 PM AT
F.H. LaGUARDIA CONCERT HALL AT LINCOLN CENTER

Nominations To Be Announced Monday, April 28, at NY Friars Club

New York, NY, January 21, 2008 -- The 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards will take place on Sunday, May 18, 2008, at 9 PM at the F.H. LaGuardia Concert Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City, it was announced by Robert R. Blume, Executive Producer of the annual Drama Desk Awards ceremony and telecast, and William Wolf, President of the Drama Desk, an organization of theater critics, writers and editors that honors excellence in all areas of New York theater, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway and not-for-profit theater.
The nominations will be announced at a news conference on Monday, April 28, at 9:00 AM at the New York Friars Club, 57 East 55th Street.
Plans for televising, web casting and radio broadcasting the awards ceremony will be announced shortly.
“The 2007-2008 theater season in New York City is projected to be one of the strongest in years with many new plays and musicals scheduled to open on and Off-Broadway,” said Mr. Blume, who has served as Executive Producer of the Drama Desk Awards ceremony and telecast for the past ten years. “We believe the high quality of these new productions will provide a great deal of additional excitement to our awards ceremony.”
“In spite of the labor dispute that closed many Broadway shows for three weeks at the end of 2007, the new theater season has already provided much quality both on and Off-Broadway,” said Mr. Wolf. “By the time our nominations are announced near the end –of April, the Drama Desk Awards nominating committee will have evaluated more than 400 Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway productions.”
The Drama Desk is unique in that Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway shows compete equally in the same categories. In its ongoing effort to honor excellence in the New York theater, the Drama Desk deems a seventeen-performance minimum necessary to qualify for award eligibility, barring any extraordinary circumstances, as may be determined by the Drama Desk Board or by the Nominating Committee.
The nominee’s cocktail reception, where they receive their nomination certificates, will be held Thursday, May 1, 4 to 7 PM at Arte Café, 106 West 73rd Street.
The VIP reception immediately prior to the start of the awards ceremony on Sunday, May 18, from 5 to 7:30 PM will be hosted by Hawaiian Tropic Zone, 729 Seventh Avenue (at 49th Street).
The 2007/2008 Nominating Committee for the Drama Desk Awards is composed of: Barbara Siegel (TalkinBroadway.com, TheaterMania.com), Chairperson; Dan Bacalzo (TheaterMania.com); Robert Cashill New York Theater News and Live Design); Celia Ipiotis (Eye on the Arts); Tony Phillips (Edge New York); Gerard Raymond (Back Stage and The Advocate), and Richard Ridge (broadwaybeat.com).

Robert R. Blume is Executive Producer of the 53rd Annual Drama Desk Awards and Blume Media Group Ltd is the producing company. Lauren Class Schneider is Producer and Jeff Kalpak is Director of the Awards ceremony. For the production, the Associate Producers are Jacki Barlia Florin, Corine Dana Cohen, Margot Astrachan, Steve Garrin and Les Schecter, who is also Director of Publicity and Promotions. Elias EL-Hage is the General Manager and Felicia M. Lopes is National Development Director. Roy A. Somlyo serves as Consulting Producer for the TV production. Randie Levine-Miller is Special Events Director for the Drama Desk organization.
Take a look at some coverage at last years nomination party at ARTE CAFE:
http://timessquare.com/mambots/content/mgmediabot/flvplayer.swf?autoStart=0&file=http://guey.el.net/joomla_ts103/media/uploads/Drama_Desk_2007.flv