Singer Barry Manilow, top center, is joined by the talented brothers all actors from Ghana Kwame Boakye, left, Kofi Boakye, right and Kwesi Boakye at the 18th Annual NAACP Theatre Awards on Monday, June 30, 2008 in Los Angeles, Calif.
(AP Photo/Earl Gibson III)
Theatre Actors Honored with NAACP Awards
July 01, 2008
By Halley Bondy
The Beverly Hills/Hollywood chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People hosted the 18th annual NAACP Annual Theatre Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood June 30. The ceremony honored balanced, unstereotypical portrayals of African Americans in local and Equity Los Angeles theatres.
Jeanette Bayardelle (The Color Purple) and Cedric Sanders (A Matter of Honor) took home awards for best leads in an Equity production. Nia Orms (Please Take A Number) and Dominic Hoffman (Last Fare) garnered wins for best leads in a local production. Earnestine Phillips (The Tempest) and Rufus Bonds Jr. (The Color Purple) collected awards for best supporting performance in an Equity production; Wynter Daggs (Meet Me at the Oak) and Jeff Branion (Drums in the Night) won for best supporting acting in a local production.
The event was hosted by actors Kimberly Elise (The Great Debaters) and Anthony Anderson (Law & Order, Transformers). Presenters included actors Eva Marcelle and Denzel Whitaker (The Great Debaters) with special guests Jason Alexander (Seinfeld), Vanessa Williams (Ugly Betty), Tichina Arnold (Martin), and singer Barry Manilow.
