The 2024 Michael Merritt Awards for Excellence in Design and Collaboration will be held, in person, from 5:00pm - 10:00pm, Monday, May 13th at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre at 800 E Grand Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
Tickets:
Student - $ 5.00
General Admission - $ 20.00
Book tickets online through The Michael Merritt Awards Website
General Public is welcome and encouraged to come, tickets can be purchased at the door.
Food, wine and beer are included in the ticket price for those of legal age. Funds go to support the awards endowment fund.
Schedule:
5pm Exhibition opens, entrance at 800 E Grand Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
6:30pm House Opens
7pm - 8pm Dialogue with the Designers
8:15 - 9:15 Awards Ceremony
9:15 - 10pm Exhibit continues
10pm Event Ends.
Awards and Recipients:
There will be several awards presented to individuals during the award ceremony. The awards are below:
- The Michael Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration
- Robert Christen Technical Collaborator
- Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award
- The Emerging Technical Collaborator Award
- 5 Academic Prize Recipients
The Michael Merritt Award Recipient -
Mikhail Fiksel, Sound Designer and Composer
Mikhail Fiksel is an award-winning designer, composer, dj and audio producer working in theater, film, dance, and audio-forward media. Originally hailing from the frozen steppes of Siberia, he is currently based in Chicago and NYC. Recent and upcoming collaborations include UNCLE VANYA (Lincoln Center Theatre), CAMBODIAN ROCK BAND (Regional Tour), I LOVE YOU SO MUCH I COULD DIE and HOW TO DEFEND YOURSELF (New York Theater Workshop), MEXODUS (Baltimore Center Stage, Mosaic Theater, Berkeley Rep); LITTLE BEAR RIDGE ROAD, SANCTUARY CITY, NO MAN’S LAND, 1919 (Steppenwolf), MR K AND THE FLOWERS, GOOD ENEMY, THE PODCASTER and MASSIVE (Audible Originals), and various projects with Albany Park Theater Projects (where he is a Resident Artist) and Make Believe Association (where he is Head of Audio Production). Recent awards include the 2023 Signal Award for Original Music, the 2022 Tony Award for Sound Design, and multiple Lucille Lortel Awards and Jeff Awards. He is a partner at a recording studio and collaboration space “TIGHTROPE”, a Practioner-In-Residence at Columbia College Chicago, and a proud member of USA and TSDCA.
The Robert Christen Technical Collaborator Award Recipient -
Maggie Fullilove-Nugent, Director of Production
MAGGIE FULLILOVE-NUGENT (Director of Production, TimeLine Theatre, she/her) has been working as a production manager, designer, and technician in Chicago for two decades. Her home theatres include TimeLine Theatre, The Ruffians, The Neo-Futurists, Playmakers Laboratory Theatre, The Hypocrites, Theo Ubique, Akvavit Theatre, and North Park University Theatre. Maggie’s true passion is inspiring students and young professionals in the theatre industry. She has been teaching since this start of her career at dozens of schools including North Park University, The Theatre School at DePaul, and Columbia College. In 2017, Maggie became a leader of the Chicago Green Theatre Alliance, a group of artists that encourages, educates, and motivates the performing arts community to adopt more environmentally friendly practices throughout the industry. Her current goal is to help guide the Chicago Theatre Community to safer, more sustainable, and equitable practices for all practitioners. She believes that sharing resources and transparency are the keys to our success as an industry. When not working with the theatre community she enjoys sipping wine on her porch, hosting parties and cuddling with her cat, Makita.
The Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Award Recipients -
Lauren M. Nichols, Scenic Designer
Lauren is a freelance designer, CAD drafter, and scale model builder native to Chicago. Design credits include Flood (Shattered Globe); A Home What Howls (Steppenwolf YA); Blues for Alabama Sky and Anna in the Tropics (Jeff Nominated - Remy Bumppo ); Mothers (Gift); Motherhouse (Rivendell); Tiger Style (Writers); and Cinderella (Village Theatre- Seattle). She has also designed for UIC, Lifeline, DePaul Opera, North Central College, Jackalope, First Floor, Harper College, Glass Apple, Young People's Theatre, Renaissance Theatreworks, Teatro Vista, Firebrand, Hell In a Handbag, and BoHo. As an assistant she has worked with Julliard, NY Theatre Workshop, Court, Drury Lane, St. Louis Opera, Curtis Institute of Music, Goodman, Milwaukee Rep, The Alliance, and Oregon Shakes among many others. She currently teaches drafting and digital design as an adjunct professor at The Theatre School DePaul University. Upcoming shows include Hot Wing King with Writers and projects with Raven, Marriott and Paramount.
MFA Northwestern. www.laurenangeldesigns.com
The Emerging Technical Designer Award Recipient -
Emmanuel Jimenez, Scenic Supervisor
Emmanuel is a freelance Scenic Supervisor for Chicago Theatres, originally from Sacramento, California. He started with a love of theatre in College, and was interdisciplinary across departments. Taping a ground plan was a special skill. After college, Emmanuel did a nine month intensive Stage Management Internship for B St. Theatre in 2017. The internship required ten to twelve hour work days, six days a week, and included stage managing equity contract rehearsals. After his internship, and with some metal shop experience from high school, he started as a scenic carpenter for B St. Theatre. In 2020, Emmanuel moved to Chicago where his first job in the city was as a swing technician for Columbia College Dance Center. He worked as an overhire electrician and carpenter for places like Porchlight Music Theatre, Windy City Playhouse, Teatro Vista, and Northlight Theatre Company. In the spring of 2022, He became the scenic supervisor for Timeline Theatre Company. After a successful season of Scenic Supervisor and overhire carpentry, Emmanuel took on a second Scenic Supervisor role at Mercury Theatre in spring of 2023. Thank you to the support of the community!
Academic Prize Recipients -
The John Murbach Columbia College Chicago Prize:
Elly Burke, Scenic and Costume Designer
The Theatre School at DePaul University Prize:
Andres Fiz, Projection Designer
Andres Fiz is a Chicago based projection designer and video artist. Their projection design credits include WIPEOUT (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble), THE MOLE HILL STORIES, and LAS WAVYS (DePaul University). Their associate projection design credits include HOW I LEARNED WHAT I LEARNED (Congo Square Theatre Company), NOTES FROM THE FIELD (Time Line Theatre), THE LIFE AND DEATHS OF ALAN TURING (Chicago Opera Theater), CINDERELLA (Drury Lane Theatre), KING CHARLES III (Colorado Shakespeare Festival), and THE WIZARD OF OZ (Music Theatre Wichita, content animator). Andres is a recent graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University, where they earned a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Projection Design.
The Loyola University Chicago Prize:
Hannah Kwak, Sound Design, Audio Engineering, Production Management
Originally from Columbus, OH, Hannah just graduated from Loyola University Chicago with bachelor’sdegrees in Theatre and History. At Loyola,sheworked on sound for Radium Girls, Everybody, Somewhere, and Coming of Stars. Closing out her senior year, she sound designedFairview and served as the head electrician on Once. She also works in the LUC Department of Fine and Performing Arts Production Office. Hannah spentsummer 2023 with Peninsula Players Theatre as their lighting and sound intern. Sherecently assistant sound designedNight Watch(Raven Theatre) and The Brightest Thing in the World(About Face Theatre). Hannah will be spending part of her summer as the Sound Tech for the NHSI Cherubs Program.
The Northwestern University Prize:
Lia Wallfish, Costume Designer and Visual Artist
Lia Wallfish (She/Her/Hers) is a costume designer and visual artist based in Chicago. She was born in Israel and moved to the United States in 2015 to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Theater at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Lia has worked professionally in costume design and costume departments in various fields, including theater, opera, dance, television, and film. Some of the notable productions she has worked on include The Metropolitan Opera, American Horror Story, and The Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Currently, Lia is completing her Master of Fine Arts in Stage Design at Northwestern University. She hopes to use her art to challenge the conventions she experienced growing up in Israel and is dedicated to telling stories that inspire inclusion and healing. Her credits at Northwestern include Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy, Working: The Musical (Localized) Indecent, The Revolutionists, and Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. Outside of Northwestern, she has worked on productions such as Julius Caesar (The Independent Shakespeare Company, Los Angeles), Twelfth Night (The Independent Shakespeare Company, Los Angeles), and American Portrait (Evanston Dance Ensemble)
The University of Illinois at Chicago Prize:
Anna Marek, Sound Designer/Audio Engineer
Anna Marek is a Sound Designer/Audio Engineer who has just recently graduated from University of Illinois at Chicago with a BA in Design, Production, and Technology. Their passion for music and live audio engineering brought them to UIC to pursue the sound design program. However, they do not just limit themselves to sound design, their excitement for all things audio led them to join UIC Radio and DJing on the side. Music has always been a driving force for Anna’s career and being able to bring plays to life with it has been important in their sound design. Their most recent sound design was Not About Nightingales Directed by Eddie Torres at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Anna Marek used music as a way to bring the audience back in time and really submerge themselves into the 1930’s.