Drama League names noms

The Drama League has announced its award nominations for the 2011-12 season and they are, as usual, legion, with 11 shows vying for the top play title and more than 50 thesps in the running for the org's sole acting kudo.

The league, a Gotham-based legit nonprofit focused on audience and artist development, considers both Broadway and Off Broadway productions for its annual round of awards. The free-for-all of the nominations list is balanced by a tight roster of just five actual awards (alongside the noncompetitive special honors).

The nominees for new play include eight Broadway offerings -- "Clybourne Park," "The Columnist," "The Lyons," "One Man, Two Guvnors," "Other Desert Cities," "Peter and the Starcatcher," "Seminar" and "Venus in Fur," which is close to every single title that could end up in one of the four Tony slots for the same category. Off Broadway's "Tribes," "Septimus and Clarissa" and "The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism With a Key to the Scriptures" also made the list; notable plays not to make the cut among Rialto candidates include "The Mountaintop," "Stick Fly" and "Chinglish."

The play revival category pits Broadway's two top-selling current revivals, "Death of a Salesman" and "Gore Vidal's The Best Man," against the Rialto staging of "Wit" and an Off Broadway roster that includes "And God Created Whales," "How I Learned to Drive," "Look Back in Anger" and "The Maids."

The new musical category encompasses Rialto tuners "Newsies," "Once," "Nice Work If You Can Get It," "Leap of Faith" and "Ghost" as well as "Queen of the Mist" and "Mission Drift," drawn from the Off Broadway pool. Revival sees four Main Stem contenders -- "Follies," "Evita," "Porgy and Bess" and "Jesus Christ Superstar" -- battle it out with Off Broadway's "Carrie."

The list of nominated actors stretches from Matthew Broderick ("Nice Work") to Kim Cattrall ("Private Lives"), James Corden ("One Man"), Andrew Garfield ("Salesman") and Kevin Spacey ("Richard III").

Noms were announced at Sardi's Tuesday by Megan Hilty ("Smash"), Justin Long ("Seminar") and Raven-Symone ("Sister Act"). Trophies will be handed out during a May 18 luncheon, along with the previously announced special honors for Alan Menken, Rosie O'Donnell and Diane Paulus.

Source: Variety