Dublin Fringe Festival 2013 – Awards

The Dublin Fringe Festival 2013 has come and gone, leaving us with bundles of ticket receipts and great memories.

With over 70 performances in Project Arts Centre alone during the festival, we were overwhelmed by the audiences’ enthusiasm for the shows presented and by the hardwork and dedication of the many artists and companies involved.

This year’s festival set out to actively encourage audiences to engage in a state of the nation debate through the work presented. Róise Goan and the whole Dublin Fringe team successfully achieved this, in their signature bold, innovative and daring style.

On Sunday 22nd, artists came together to celebrate this year’s Fringe Awards and the end of a fantastic festival, with Way Back Home by Louise White winning this year’s Spirit of the Fringe Award.

On announcing the award, Cian O’Brien, Artistic Director,  said “I am thrilled that we will be developing our relationship with the brilliant Louise White through the Spirit of the Fringe co-commission. This is a wonderful opportunity to support the work of an artist with talent, integrity and vision.”

Here’s a full list of all winners and nominees:

Best Production – €750

Presented by the Dublin Fringe Festival to the show or event that displays excellence in every area of production.

Winner: Lippy (Dead Centre)Other Nominees: Thirteen, Dolls, Sanctuary

First Fortnight Award

This award is given to a show that challenges stigma prejudice about mental-health issues. The winner is given a run at the First Fortnight Mental Health Arts Festival in January 2014.

Winner: Dolls (Sorcha Kenny)

Other Nominees: Small Plastic Wars, David O’Doherty Will Try to Fix Everything, Confusion Boats, Record (Remix)

Spirit of the Fringe Commissioning Award – €5,000

This award combines a commission to present work in Project Arts Centre in next year’s  Fringe, along with €5,000 for production/development costs.

Winner: Way Back Home (Louise White)

Other Nominees: Boys and Girls, Sanctuary, Rites of Passage, Deep

Best Design – €500

This award is for outstanding lighting, set, sound, costume and/or graphic design.

Winner: Lippy (Overall design)

Other Nominees: Briefs (costume design); Thirteen (site-specific design); Chaosmos (mask and costume design); Landscape II (sound and video)

Little Gem Award – €2,000

The prize is a two-week run at Bewley’s Café Theatre in the following year with €2,000 for remount production costs.

Winner: Swing (Janet Moran and Steve Blount)

Other Nominees: Small Plastic Wars, Postscript, Beowulf: The Blockbuster, Lambo

Best Male Performer – €500

Winner: Ray Scannell (Deep)Other Nominees: Thomas Reilly (Thirteen), Steve Blount (Swing), Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh (Rites of Passage), Rex Ryan (The Birthday Man), Taylor Mac (A 20th-Century Concert: Abridged)

Best Female Performer – €500

Winner: Genevieve Hulme-Beaman (Pondling)Other nominees: Caitriona Ennis (Thirteen), Janet Moran (Swing), Nic Green (Fatherland), Rosanna Purcell (War of Attrition)

Fishamble New Writing Award

Presented to the best play by a new or emerging Irish (or Irish-based) playwright premiered during Dublin Fringe Festival. This award includes a scholarship place on one of Fishamble’s playwriting courses, dramaturgical support and a stipend towards the playwright’s next play.

Winner: Boys and Girls (Dylan Coburn Gray)

Other Nominees: Lippy, Pondling, Postscript

The Next Stage Wild Card

An award for one artist to take up a place on The Next Stage, an artist development programme run by Theatre Forum in association with Dublin Theatre Festival.

Winner: Aisling Murray (Fair Balls T’Yis)

Congratulations to everyone involved in this year’s festival from all of us at Project Arts Centre. Roll on 2014!