Wheelock Family Theatre’s SpongeBob The Musical receives four Elliot Norton Award nominations in design
The biggest night for Boston theater, the 42nd Elliot Norton Awards Ceremony is set for June 2 at The Huntington Theatre
Wheelock Family Theatre’s SpongeBob, The Musical receives four Elliot Norton Award nominations in design
The biggest night for Boston theater, the 42nd Elliot Norton Awards Ceremony is set for Monday, June 2nd at The Huntington Theatre
More than 140 nominations in over two dozen categories of outstanding actors, directors, designers, choreographers, musicians, and productions were announced this month by the Boston Theater Critics Association (BTCA) for The 42nd Annual Elliot Norton Awards, the biggest night for Boston theater. Boston University College of Fine Arts is thrilled to see Wheelock Family Theatre among the list of nominees for their design work in The Spongebob Musical. Four of the five recognized designers are CFA alums!
Wheelock Family Theatre kicked off its 2024-2025 season on October 5 with The SpongeBob Musical, an exuberant adaptation of the TV series, featuring original music by such legendary songwriters as Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Lady A, and Sara Bareilles.
In the show, SpongeBob and his best friends—starfish Patrick Star and squirrel and brilliant scientist Sandy Cheeks—must save Bikini Bottom from an imminent underwater volcano. WFT executive director Nick Vargas, and director of the show, said, “It’s a story about three friends overcoming the odds to save the world at all costs. At the end of the day, SpongeBob, Sandy, and Patrick save the day.”
MEET THE NOMINEES
Outstanding Scenic Design, Midsize or Small
SASKIA MARTINEZ (CFA’20), BFA Scene Design
Saskia Martinez (they/them) is a Boston-based scene designer and scenic artist. In addition to teaching at Wheelock Fanily Theatre, their WFT credits include The SpongeBob Musical, A Wrinkle in Time, The Addams Family, and Little Women: The Musical. Boston area credits: Emma, Romeo and Juliet, King Hedley II, Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, Coriolanus (Actors’ Shakespeare Project), Twelfth Night (Brandeis University), HER|alive.un.dead (Guerilla Opera). Regional scenic artist credits include the Huntington Theatre and South Coast Repertory Theatre. They are a graduate of Boston University. See their work at saskiamartinez.com.
Outstanding Sound Design, Midsize or Small
GAGE BAKER (CFA’24), MFA Sound Design
Gage Baker is a Boston-based sound designer. Credits include SpeakEasy (The Museum of Broken Relationships), Catastrophic Theatre (The Turn of the Screw, Innominate), Rec Room (The Children, The Moonlit Princess, Dance Nation), Boston Playwright’s Theatre (Driving in Circles), and Moonbox Productions (Legally Blonde). Upcoming sound designs include A Man of No Importance for SpeakEasy, Pru Payne at the BCA Plaza (associate design), Everybody for Babson College, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels for Moonbox. He is an alum of the University of Houston (BFA) and Boston University (MFA). When not designing plays and musicals, he mixes over 100 performances annually for Blue Man Group. Read more on Gage at gagebaker.com.
PETER DIMAGGIO (CFA’24), BFA Acting
Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, Peter DiMaggio (he/him) is a passionate actor and multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter/composer. A self-taught musician from a young age, Peter has acquired comprehensive skill and experience on piano, acoustic and electric guitar, bass, ukulele, harmonica, and even the cowbell. Peter began his acting training at Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, Michigan and then went on to receive his BFA in Acting from Boston University. He has also received a Certificate in Classical Acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts.
Favorite credits include: Paris/Sampson (Romeo and Juliet) Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Guy (Once), and Henslowe (Shakespeare in Love). See more of their work at peterdimaggio.com.
Outstanding Costume Design, Midsize or Small
CHLOE MOORE (CFA’21), MFA Costume Design
Chloe Moore is a Boston-based Designer and Educator for Opera, Theatre and Dance. Recent design credits include Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 and Cabaret with Emerson Stage, L’Etoile, Voir Dire, L’ile de Tulipatan and As One with Boston Conservatory at Berklee Opera, and (OTP) at Boston Playwrights Theatre. Her work has been seen in productions with the American Repertory Theatre, Central Square Theater, Boston Early Music Festival, BU’s School of Theatre & Opera Institute, Boston Opera Collaborative, and as a part of the Berkshire Fringe Festival. Since earning her MFA in Costume Design from Boston University in 2020, she has served as Faculty at Emerson College, Boston University and Shenandoah University, and as Costume Staff at American Players Theatre in Spring Green, WI. See more of Chloe’s work at ChloeMooreDesigns.com.
Outstanding Lighting Design, Midsize or Small
LAWRENCE A. WARE
Lawrence Ware (he/him) is an MFA candidate at The University of South Carolina in Theatre with an emphasis in Lighting Design. He holds a degree from The University of Arizona in Theatre Production; Design and Technology with an emphasis in Lighting Design. Recently he was credited as the Lighting Designer for Bud Not Buddy (Wheelock Family Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (University of South Carolina), and Asst Lighting Designer for Ragtime the Musical (Baystreet Theatre). Visit his website at lawlightingdesigns.myportfolio.com.