Dora Awards 2025 nominations: snubs and surprises

The two-part epic Mahabharata, Life After, Last Landscape and FLEX are among the most-nominated shows at this year’s Dora Mavor Moore Awards, announced at a live press conference this morning at the Four Seasons Centre.

The ceremony, recognizing a full year of fall-to-spring productions, will take place on June 30 at Meridian Hall, hosted by actor Peter Fernandes who, in a nice bit of kismet, received his second Dora nomination as the lead in Canadian Stage’s production of Fat Ham.

While the awards, administered by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, or TAPA, are voted on by various Dora juries, the general public can vote on Jon Kaplan Audience Choice Award for their favourite production, named after the late great theatre writer and my much-missed colleague and friend at NOW Magazine. You can vote here until June 23 at 11:59 am EST. The winner will be announced at the awards ceremony.

In all, the jurors selected some fine shows this year. And keep in mind that Mirvish Productions is not part of the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, which explains why productions like Life of Pi, Titanique and Moulin Rouge are not on this list, which you can find at the end of the article.

That said, here, with a focus on theatre, are some Dora nomination surprises and snubs:

Surprise: Mahabharata takes up two slots with its two parts

It happened last year with The Inheritance: Parts 1 and 2, and the year before with Fall On Your Knees. Why can’t two-part shows be assessed as one show? Other awards bodies, like the Tony Awards and the Oliviers, recognized The Inheritance as a single work. Why can’t the Doras?

(The recent Toronto Theatre Critics Awards, of which I’m a member, considered Mahabharata one show and awarded it as such.)

For big categories like “outstanding new play” and “outstanding production,” among worthy contenders like, respectively, There is Violence, Trident Moon and Table for Two and FLEX, Rosmersholm and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Mahabharata took up two slots. Which meant some other worthy contenders missed out, including...

Snub: Wonderful Joe

Written and performed by Ronnie Burkett, this play could have been included in both “outstanding new play” and “outstanding production” categories. Sure, Burkett got a well-deserved nomination for his intricate costume design for his puppets, but this excellent show deserved more, including new play, performance, score (by John Alcorn) and production.

Surprise: Coal Mine killing it in the Independent Theatre division

The tiny east-end theatre regularly punches above its weight, and this year earned some big nominations for all four of its productions (surely, this is some sort of a record for a company): A Case for the Existence of God (production, performance nods for stars Mazin Elsadig and Noah Reid); People, Places and Things (production, direction by Diana Bentley and Alyssa Martin, and performances by Louise Lambert and the overall ensemble); Job (performance by Charlotte Dennis); and Infinite Life (Jackie Maxwell’s direction).

About that last nomination, however: if the show was so well-directed (and it was), why didn’t it get recognized for production? Or for the excellent ensemble work, or Christine Horne’s finely honed central performance? Just askin’.

Snubs: Maev Beaty, Ari Cohen, Jan Alexandra Smith, Seven Methods

Maev Beaty failed to score a nomination for her raw and truthful performance in My Name is Lucy Barton, which felt so full (under Maxwell’s direction) that it didn't seem like a solo show at all.

Ari Cohen, always a reliable presence in his rare theatre performances, dug deeper in a role full of fascinating contradictions in Wights than I’ve ever seen him, or others, go.

Jan Alexandra Smith, rarely seen on Toronto stages, made her star turn in Dinner with the Duchess (also: why no new play nomination here?) a master class in acting.

And while Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner got a single nomination for its excellent scenic and projection design (by Nick Blais and Laura Warren, respectively), it’s pretty head-scratching how neither its director (Jay Northcott) nor its ensemble (Déjah Dixon-Green and Jasmine Case) got recognized.

Surprises: The 25th Annual Putnum County Spelling Bee and The Wizard of Oz

While shows like A Strange Loop, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Life After got multiple nominations in the Musical Category (I’m assuming The Last Timbit producing team isn’t a member of TAPA), it’s really nice to see Shifting Ground Collective’s utterly charming production of The 25th Annual Putnum County Spelling Bee and the Canadian Stage-produced The Wizard of Oz both recognized.

The former got nods for production, ensemble performance and creative direction, while the latter got recognized for new musical/opera, performances by the ensemble and (individually) Dan Chameroy, Julia Pulo and Vanessa Sears, creative direction and design. Speaking of which...

Surprises: double nominees Julia Pulo and Vanessa Sears

It’s always exciting to see performers recognized for more than one show, and this year the Dora jurors got it right by singling out Julia Pulo for Life After and The Wizard of Oz and Vanessa Sears for Oz and Shedding a Skin.

In a couple of years, Pulo (Six) has emerged as an essential part of the city’s musical scene, while Sears (Is God Is, for which she was Dora-nominated, Passing Strange) continues to astonish with her versatility, shifting between musicals and straight plays with impressive ease.

Snubs: The Merchant of Venice, Girls Unwanted, Age is a Feeling, Cock

I'm not sure if it’s a matter of producers Shakespeare BASH’d and the King Black Box being a part of TAPA or not, but the absence of their excellent productions of The Merchant of Venice and Girls Unwanted is unfortunate. If they qualified in the Indie Theatre Division, they would be deserving in multiple categories, including direction, acting and production.

And while Haley McGee, who recently won a Toronto Theatre Critics Award in the inaugural Solo Performance category, got recognized for her performance in Age is a Feeling, it’s a shame her script, Mitchell Cushman’s direction, the production and design weren’t singled out as well.

Talk is Free’s production of Cock, meanwhile, was recognized for Jakob Ehman’s nuanced performance, but nothing else: not production, not Dylan Trowbridge’s bold direction nor the design team’s deceptively simple choices.

Complete list of Dora nominees

GENERAL THEATRE DIVISION

Outstanding Production

FLEX (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)
Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Rosmersholm (Crow's Theatre)

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Canadian Stage)

Outstanding New Play

Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit by Miriam Fernandes and Ravi Jain (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose by Miriam Fernandes and Ravi Jain (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

Table for Two by Akosua Amo-Adem (Soulpepper Theatre Company and Obsidian Theatre)

There is Violence and There is Righteous Violence and There is Death, or The Born-Again Crow by Caleigh Crow (Native Earth Performing Arts and Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)

Trident Moon by Anusree Roy (Crow’s Theatre and National Arts Centre English Theatre)

Outstanding Direction

Brendan Healy, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Canadian Stage)
Djanet Sears, Table for Two (Soulpepper Theatre Company and Obsidian Theatre Company)
Mumbi Tindyebwa Otu, FLEX (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)
Ravi Jain, Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Akosua Amo-Adem in Table for Two (Soulpepper Theatre Company and Obsidian Theatre)
Ins Choi in Kim’s Convenience (Soulpepper Theatre Company, in association with Adam Blanshay Productions and American Conservatory Theatre)
Kevin Matthew Wong in Benevolence (Tarragon Theatre in association with Why Not Theatre and Broadleaf Creative)
Martha Burns in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Canadian Stage)
Miriam Fernandes in Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Peter Fernandes in Fat Ham (Canadian Stage)
Vanessa Sears in Shedding a Skin (Nightwood Theatre in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
Virgilia Griffith in Rosmersholm (Crow’s Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

FLEX: Jewell Bowry, Jasmine Case, Asha James, Trinity Lloyd, Shauna Thompson, Sophia Walker (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)

Interior Design: Sara Farb, Meghan Swaby, Rong Fu, Anita Majumdar (Tarragon Theatre)

Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit: Shawn Ahmed, Neil D'Souza, Jay Emmanuel, Ravin J. Ganatra, Darren Kuppan, Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu, Goldy Notay, Ellora Patnaik, Sakuntala Ramanee, Ronica Sajnani, Ishan Sandhu, Navtej Sandhu, Munish Sharma, Arun Varma, Sukania Venugopal, John Gzowski, Suba Sankaran, Hasheel Lodhia, Abbas Janmohammed, Gurtej Singh Hunjan, Dylan Bell (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose The Ensemble of Shawn Ahmed, Neil D'Souza, Jay Emmanuel, Ravin J. Ganatra, Darren Kuppan, Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu, Goldy Notay, Ellora Patnaik, Sakuntala Ramanee, Ronica Sajnani, Ishan Sandhu, Navtej Sandhu, Munish Sharma, Arun Varma, Sukania Venugopal, Meher Pavri (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)

The Wolf in the Voice: Neema Bickersteth, Jane Miller, Taurian Teelucksingh (Tarragon Theatre in association with Nightswimming)

Outstanding Scenic/Projection Design

Ken MacKenzie (Scenic) for FLEX (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)
Lorenzo Savoini (Scenic); Hana S. Kim (Projection) for Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Lorenzo Savoini (Scenic); Hana S. Kim (Projection) for Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose
Nick Blais (Scenic) for Erased (Open Heart Surgery Theatre in partnership with Theatre Passe Muraille)
Nick Blais (Scenic) and Laura Warren (Projection) for seven methods of killing kylie jenner (Obsidian Theatre in association with Crow’s Theatre)

Outstanding Costume Design

Christos Darlasis for Oraculum (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Denim & Pythia)
Gillian Gallow for Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Julie Fox for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Canadian Stage)
Jung A Im for Erased (Open Heart Surgery Theatre in partnership with Theatre Passe Muraille)
Ronnie Burkett for Wonderful Joe (TO Live)

Outstanding Lighting Design

Kevin Lamotte for Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Kevin Lamotte for Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Kimberly Purtell and Imogen Wilson for Rosmersholm (Crow’s Theatre)
Nick Blais for Erased (Open Heart Surgery Theatre in partnership with Theatre Passe Muraille)
Raha Javanfar for FLEX (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)

Outstanding Sound Design/Composition

Debashis Sinha, Mike Ross, Kaleb Horn, SATE, Divine Brown for A Streetcar Named Desire (Soulpepper Theatre Company)
Dasha Plett for Roberto Zucco (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran for Mahabharata: Part One: Karma: The Life We Inherit (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran for Mahabharata: Part Two: Dharma: The Life We Choose (Why Not Theatre presented by Canadian Stage)
Thomas Ryder Payne for FLEX (Crow’s Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company)

INDEPENDENT THEATRE DIVISION

Outstanding Production

A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine Theatre)

Big Stuff (Baram and Snieckus Productions)

Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)

Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)

People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)

Outstanding New Play

Last Landscape by Adam Paolozza with The Company (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)

MONKS by Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján (Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján presented by The Theatre Centre)

Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) by David Danzon (CORPUS)

Performance Review by Rosamund Small (Outside the March)

The Tempest: A Witch in Algiers by Makram Ayache (Shakespeare in the Ruff)

Outstanding Direction

Adam Paolozza, Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)
David Danzon, Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)
Diana Bentley and Alyssa Martin, People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)
Jackie Maxwell, Infinite Life (Coal Mine Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Charlotte Dennis in Job (Coal Mine Theatre)
Haley McGee in Age is a Feeling (Haley McGee, Soho Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre Company)
Jakob Ehman in Cock (Talk Is Free Theatre)
Louise Lambert in People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)
​​Mazin Elsadig in A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine Theatre)
Naomi Snieckus in Big Stuff (Baram and Snieckus Productions)
Noah Reid in A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

INSERT CLOWN HERE: Ella Berger, Kole Durnford, Atlin Hofer, Margot Greve, Nicole Kleiman (Parlous Theatre)

Last Landscape: Nada Abusaleh, Nicholas Eddie, Gibum Dante Lim, Annie Luján, Adam Paolozza, Kari Pederson, SlowPitchSound (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)
MONKS: Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján (Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján presented by The Theatre Centre)
Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time): Kaitlin Torrance, Takako Segawa, Sakura Korin, Kohey Nakadachi (CORPUS)
People, Places and Things: Oliver Dennis, Nickeshia Garrick, Farhang Ghajar, Matthew Gouveia, Sam Grist, Sarah Murphy-Dyson, Kwaku Okyere, Fiona Reid, Kaleb Tekeste (Coal Mine Theatre)

Outstanding Scenic/Projection Design

Adam Paolozza and Ken MacKenzie (Scenic), and Roxanne Ignatius (Scenic Marionettes); Graeme Black Robinson, Clelia Scala, and Puppetmongers Theatre (Additional Puppets) for Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)

Kenzia Dalie (Scenic) for RED (Riot King)

Maryam Hafizirad (Scenic) and Laura Warren (Projection) for Qalb - A Journey of the Ego (1s1 Theatre co-presented by Why Not Theatre)

Ting - Huan 挺歡 Christine Urquhart (Scenic) and William Yong (Projection) for Carried by the River (Red Snow Collective)

Yann Becker (Scenic) for Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)

Outstanding Costume Design
Atsuko Kiyokawa for Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)
Justin Miller for Pochsy IV: Unplugged (VideoCabaret)
Laura Delchiaro for People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)
Ting - Huan 挺歡 Christine Urquhart for Carried by the River (Red Snow Collective)
Valerie Calam for Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)

Outstanding Lighting Design

André du Toit, Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)
André du Toit, Takwahiminana (Punctuate! Theatre, presented by Soulpepper Theatre Company)
Bonnie Beecher and Jeff Pybus, People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)
Nick Blais, A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine Theatre)
Yann Becker, Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)

Outstanding Sound Design/Composition

Anika Johnson, Mukashi, Mukashi (Once Upon a Time) (CORPUS)
Cheldon Paterson (SlowPitchSound), Last Landscape (Bad New Days in partnership with Common Boots Theatre)
Kenzia Dalie, RED (Riot King)
Siavash Sadrmahdavi, Qalb - A Journey of the Ego (1s1 Theatre co-presented by Why Not Theatre)
Thomas Ryder Payne, People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)

MUSICAL THEATRE DIVISION

Outstanding Production

A Strange Loop (The Musical Stage Company, Soulpepper Theatre Company, Crow's Theatre, and TO Live)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Young People's Theatre)

Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, David Barnett, Cynthia Stroum, Grove Entertainment, Thomas Swayne, Jake Epstein, Chilina Kennedy, and Goodman Theatre)

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Shifting Ground Collective)

The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)

Outstanding New Musical/New Opera (shared by the two divisions)

La Reine-garçon by Julien Bilodeau (Composer) and Michel Marc Bouchard (Librettist) (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)
I Was Unbecoming Then by Lyndsey Bourne (Book and Lyrics) and Sam Kaseta (Music) (Downtown Theatre presented by the Next Stage Theatre Festival)
The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical by Matt Murray (New Book and Original Song Contributions) (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)
Aportia Chryptych: A Black Opera for Portia White by Sean Mayes (Composer); HAUI (Librettist) (Canadian Opera Company, in association with the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and Ontario Arts Council)
Sankofa: The Soldier's Tale Retold by Titilope Sonuga (new Libretto), based on the original music by Igor Stravinsky (Art of Time Ensemble)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Dan Chameroy in The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)
Isabella Esler in Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, David Barnett, Cynthia Stroum, Grove Entertainment, Thomas Swayne, Jake Epstein, Chilina Kennedy, and Goodman Theatre)
Jake Epstein in Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, etc.)
Julia Pulo in The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)
Julia Pulo in Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, etc.)
Malachi McCaskill in A Strange Loop (The Musical Stage Company, Soulpepper Theatre Company, Crow’s Theatre, and TO Live)
Mariand Torres in Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, etc.)
Vanessa Sears in The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

A Strange Loop: Sierra Holder, Amaka Umeh, Matt Nethersole, David Andrew Reid, Nathanael Judah, Marcus Nance, Charlie Clark, David Lopez (The Musical Stage Company, Soulpepper Theatre Company, Crow's Theatre, and TO Live)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Ruth Acheampong, Nick Boegel, DeAnn deGruijter, Tiffany Deriveau, Breton Lalama, David Lopez, Caitlyn MacInnis, Jacob MacInnis, Larry Mannell, Zorana Sadiq, Michael Therriault, David Webb (Young People’s Theatre)

Life After: Kaylee Harwood, Arinea Hermans, Zoë O’Connor (Yonge Street Theatricals, David Barnett, Cynthia Stroum, Grove Entertainment, Thomas Swayne, Jake Epstein, Chilina Kennedy, and Goodman Theatre)

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee: Olivia Daniels, Nam Nguyen, Diana Del Rosario, Berkley Silverman, Jameson Mosher, Lauren Taylor Scott, Zoe Virola, Ben Ridd, Misha Sharivker, Joey Harvey, Marie Raferty (Shifting Ground Collective)

The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical: Jordan Bell, Andrew Broderick, Sierra Holder, Kirstyn Russelle (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)

Outstanding Creative Direction

Annie Tippe (Director), Ann Yee (Choreographer), Lynne Shankel (Music Supervisor, Orchestrator, Arranger); and Chris Kong (Music Director) for Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, David Barnett, Cynthia Stroum, Grove Entertainment, Thomas Swayne, Jake Epstein, Chilina Kennedy, and Goodman Theatre)

Jennifer Walls (Director), Nicholas Rocque (Choreographer), and Michael Ippolito (Musical Director), for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Shifting Ground Collective)

Ray Hogg (Director); Rodney Diverlus (Choreographer); Chris Tsujiuchi (Music Director) for A Strange Loop (The Musical Stage Company, Soulpepper Theatre Company, Crow’s Theatre, and TO Live)

Ted Dykstra (Director), Jennifer Mote (Choreographer), and Mark Camilleri (Musical Director) for The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)

Thom Allison (Director), Allison Plamondon (Choreographer); Jeannie Wyse (Musical Director) for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Young People's Theatre)

Outstanding Achievement in Design

Brian Dudkiewicz (Scenic), A Strange Loop (The Musical Stage Company, Soulpepper Theatre Company, Crow's Theatre, and TO Live)
Holly Meyer-Dymny (Scenic), In My Own Little Corner (EveryBODY on Stage)
Kai Harada and Haley Parcher (Sound), Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals, David Barnett, Cynthia Stroum, Grove Entertainment, Thomas Swayne, Jake Epstein, Chilina Kennedy, and Goodman Theatre)
Ming Wong (Costume), The Wizard of Oz: The Toto-ly Awesome Family Musical (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)
Todd Rosenthal (Scenic), Life After (Yonge Street Theatricals)

OPERA DIVISION

Outstanding Production

Aportia Chryptych: A Black Opera for Portia White (Canadian Opera Company, in association with the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and Ontario Arts Council)
Eugene Onegin (Canadian Opera Company production with all scenery, properties, and costumes constructed by the Metropolitan Opera Shops)
La Reine-garçon (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)
Madama Butterfly (Canadian Opera Company presents the Houston Grand Opera production)
Wozzeck (Canadian Opera Company co-production with The Salzburg Festival, The Metropolitan Opera, and Opera Australia)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Eri Nakamura in Madama Butterfly (Canadian Opera Company presents the Houston Grand Opera production)
Evan LeRoy Johnson in Eugene Onegin (Canadian Opera Company production with all scenery, properties, and costumes constructed by the Metropolitan Opera Shops)
Kang Wang in Madama Butterfly (Canadian Opera Company presents the Houston Grand Opera production)
Kirsten MacKinnon in La Reine-garçon (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)
Long Long in Faust (Canadian Opera Company co-production with Malmö Opera)
Marnie Breckenridge in Jacqueline (Tapestry Opera)
Mary Elizabeth Williams in Nabucco (Canadian Opera Company presents the Lyric Opera of Chicago production)
Michael Schade in Wozzeck (Canadian Opera Company co-production with The Salzburg Festival, The Metropolitan Opera, and Opera Australia)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

Aportia Chryptych: A Black Opera for Portia White: Neema Bickersteth, Adrienne Danrich, SATE (Canadian Opera Company, in association with the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and Ontario Arts Council)

Eugene Onegin: Canadian Opera Company Chorus (Canadian Opera Company production with all scenery, properties, and costumes constructed by the Metropolitan Opera Shops)

La Reine-garçon: Canadian Opera Company Chorus (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)

Madama Butterfly: Canadian Opera Company Chorus (Canadian Opera Company presents the Houston Grand Opera production)

Nabucco: Canadian Opera Company Chorus (Canadian Opera Company presents the Lyric Opera of Chicago production)

Outstanding Creative Direction
Angela Konrad (Director) and Johannes Debus (Musical Director) for La Reine-garçon (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)

HAUI (Director); Aria Evans (Choreographer) and Sean Mayes (Musical Director) for Aportia Chryptych: A Black Opera for Portia White (Canadian Opera Company, in association with the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and Ontario Arts Council)

Jordan Lee Braun (Revival Director) based on original direction by Michael Grandage and Keri-Lynn Wilson (Musical Director) for Madama Butterfly (Canadian Opera Company presents the Houston Grand Opera production)

Peter McClintock (Revival Director based on Original Direction by Robert Carsen), Serge Bennathan (Choreographer), and Speranza Scappucci (Musical Director) for Eugene Onegin (Canadian Opera Company production with all scenery, properties, and costumes constructed by the Metropolitan Opera Shops)

William Kentridge and Luc De Wit (Director), and Johannes Debus (Musical Director) for Wozzeck (Canadian Opera Company co-production with The Salzburg Festival, The Metropolitan Opera, and Opera Australia)

Outstanding Achievement in Design

Alexandre Desjardins (Projection), La Reine-garçon (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)
Anick La Bissonnière (Scenic), La Reine-garçon (A Canadian Opera Company co-production with Opéra de Montréal)
Catherine Meyburgh (Projection), Wozzeck (Canadian Opera Company co-production with The Salzburg Festival, The Metropolitan Opera, and Opera Australia)
Diseiye Thompson (Costume), Aportia Chryptych: A Black Opera for Portia White (Canadian Opera Company, in association with the National Arts Centre's National Creation Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and Ontario Arts Council)
Sabine Theunissen (Scenic), Wozzeck (Canadian Opera Company co-production with The Salzburg Festival, The Metropolitan Opera, and Opera Australia)

THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES DIVISION

Outstanding Production

Alligator Pie (Soulpepper Theatre Company)The Assembly (Crossroads Theatre and Colouring Book Theatre)Patty Picker (One Four One Collective in association with The Assembly Theatre)Wicked Nix (Young People’s Theatre)
Les Zinspiré·e·s : le nombre sublime (Théâtre français de Toronto)

Outstanding New Play
The Assembly by Deivan Steele and Breanne Tice (Crossroads Theatre and Colouring Book Theatre)
Patty Picker by Evan Bawtinheimer (One Four One Collective in association with The Assembly Theatre)
Taking Care of Maman by Djennie Laguerre (Roseneath Theatre and Black Theatre Workshop)
Wicked Nix by Paula Wing (Young People's Theatre)
Les Zinspiré·e·s : le nombre sublime by Sara Bulz, Ella Jade de Boer-Eldelekli, Rachel Darroch, Cindy Mujangi, Mohammad Elnakoury, Mia Liang, Angelina Trejos Castillo, Lara Arabian, Carolyn Fe, François Macdonald, and Merlin Simard (Théâtre français de Toronto)

Outstanding Direction

Severn Thompson (Director) and James Smith (Music Supervisor), Alligator Pie (Soulpepper Theatre Company)Cameron Grant, The Assembly (Crossroads Theatre and Colouring Book Theatre)
Cass Van Wyck, Patty Picker (One Four One Collective in association with The Assembly Theatre)
Stephen Colella, Wicked Nix (Young People's Theatre)
Vincent Leblanc-Beaudoin and Hannah Forest Briand, Les Zinspiré·e·s : le nombre sublime (Théâtre français de Toronto)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Alexandra Laferrière in Taking Care of Maman (Roseneath Theatre and Black Theatre Workshop)
Egor Yasau in Pettson and Findus at Christmas (Sparrow House Children's Theatre and Humpty Dumpty Puppet Theatre)
Landon Krentz in The Little Prince (Landon Krentz, Theatre Passe Muraille and Inside Out Theatre)
Lua Shayenne in Yassama and the Beaded Calabash // Yassama et la Calebasse aux Cauris (Lua Shayenne, presented by the Harbourfront Junior Festival)
Olga Petrashkevich in Pettson and Findus at Christmas (Sparrow House Children's Theatre and Humpty Dumpty Puppet Theatre)
Seeara Lindsay in Taking Care of Maman (Roseneath Theatre and Black Theatre Workshop)
Sergei Kupriianov in Pettson and Findus at Christmas (Sparrow House Children’s Theatre and Humpty Dumpty Puppet Theatre)
Sophie St. Jean in Unbelievably Believable (Twisted Dog Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

Alligator Pie: Alicia Barban, Belinda Corpuz, Ben Kopp, Ruaridh MacDonald and Haneul Yi (Soulpepper Theatre Company)The Assembly: Deivan Steele, Breanne Tice (Crossroads Theatre and Colouring Book Theatre)Patty Picker: Anne van Leeuwen and Kaitlin Race (One Four One Collective in association with The Assembly Theatre)Wicked Nix: Christine Horne, Qianna MacGilchrist, Davinder Malhi, James Dallas Smith, Michael Spencer Davis (Young People’s Theatre)
Les Zinspiré·e·s : le nombre sublime: Meryl Mourey, Kiana Woo, Eudes Laroche-Francoeur, Danik McAfee, Rowe Demers (Théâtre français de Toronto)

Outstanding Achievement in Design

Logan Raju Cracknell (Lighting), Alligator Pie (Soulpepper Theatre Company)Joe Pagnan (Scenic), The Assembly (Crossroads Theatre and Colouring Book Theatre)
Natalia Dlugosz (Scenic), Les Zinspiré·e·s : le nombre sublime (Théâtre français de Toronto)
Slava Yasov (Scenic), Pettson and Findus at Christmas (Sparrow House Children's Theatre and Humpty Dumpty Puppet Theatre)
Ting - Huan 挺歡 Christine Urquhart (Scenic), Wicked Nix (Young People's Theatre)

DANCE DIVISION

Outstanding Production

Big Time Miss (Rock Bottom Movement presented by Fall For Dance North)
Contes pour la fin du temps (Citadel + Compagnie)
everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Ophis (TRANSCEN|DANCE PROJECT)
একসঙ - Akshongay (Citadel + Compagnie)

Outstanding Original Choreography

Alyssa Martin, Big Time Miss (Rock Bottom Movement presented by Fall For Dance North)
Jessie Garon, everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Lina Cruz, Tomato Blues (Older & Reckless) (Moonhorse Dance Theatre)
Lucy Rupert, heartless (Citadel + Compagnie)
yvonne ng, All that is between (Tiger Princess Dance Projects)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual

Jarrett Siddall, everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Joey Arrigo, Ophis (TRANSCEN|DANCE PROJECT)
Johanna Bergfelt, My House (Older & Reckless) (Moonhorse Dance Theatre)
Lina Cruz, Tomato Blues (Older & Reckless) (Moonhorse Dance Theatre)
Lucy Rupert, heartless (Citadel + Compagnie)
Pulga Muchochoma, Ngoma (Don’t Worry About It) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Sully Malaeb Proulx, everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Travis Knights, Jam Session (dance Immersion in association with Canadian Stage)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble

All that is between: Morgyn Aronyk-Schell, Johanna Bergfelt, Sierra Chin Sawdy, Amelia Brown, Charlotte Cain (Tiger Princess Dance Projects)Big Time Miss: Drew Berry, Brayden Jamil Cairns, Sam Grist, Steph Harkness, Natasha Poon Woo (Rock Bottom Movement presented by Fall For Dance North)
Contes pour la fin du temps: Morgyn Aronyk-Schell, Sierra Chin Sawdy, Miyeko Ferguson, Sully Malaeb Proulx, Claire Whitaker, Alexander Bozinoff, Jeanie Chung, Joseph Johnson, Juan Gabriel Olivares, Aaron Schwebel (Citadel + Compagnie)
MOEM - BODY: Rumi Jeraj, Kelly Shaw, Ryan Lee, Clara Isgro, Jeffrey James Lapira, Minyoung Kim (김민영), Young-Ju Kwon (권영주), Hyoshin Kim (김효신), Esl Kim (김이슬), Sarang Lee (이사랑) (Human Body Expression)
একসঙ - Akshongay: Nova Bhattacharya, Louis Laberge-Côté (Citadel + Compagnie)

Outstanding Original Sound Composition

Adam Campbell for MOEM - BODY (Human Body Expression)
Dwight Jones for The Mars Project  (Tap Love Tour and Greg 'Krypto' Selinger with presenting partner Fall for Dance North)
Semiah and Jacob Vanderham for Big Time Miss (Rock Bottom Movement presented by Fall For Dance North)
Stephen Joffe for everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)
Stephen Joffe and Laurel McDonald for Ngoma (Don’t Worry About It) (Citadel + Compagnie)

Outstanding Achievement in Design

Donny Milwalkee (Sound), Jam Session (dance Immersion in association with Canadian Stage)
Gabriel Cropley (Lighting), heartless (Citadel + Compagnie)
Hoax Couture (Costume), Contes pour la fin du temps (Citadel + Compagnie)
Noah Feaver (Lighting), Big Time Miss (Rock Bottom Movement presented by Fall For Dance North)
Simon Rossiter (Lighting), everything i wanted to tell you (but couldn’t, so here it is now) (Citadel + Compagnie)

Outstanding Touring Production

BOW'T TRAIL Retrospek (RD Créations presented by dance Immersion, in association with DanceWorks)
GOBLIN: MACBETH (Spontaneous Theatre presented by Tarragon Theatre)
HOME (Luminato Festival Toronto presents Geoff Sobelle)
Wilma (Porta Teatro presented by Aluna Theatre’s RUTAS International Performing Arts Festival)

Outstanding Innovative Experience

The recipient of the Outstanding Innovative Experience award has been acclaimed and will be presented at the Dora Awards Ceremony on June 30.