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Best Denver film festival movie

Nic (Nothing), Poland

Audiences at last October's Denver International Film Festival were tremendously moved by the work of Polish director Dorota Kedzierzawska, particularly by Nic (Nothing), an intense, visually fluent drama about children trying to cope with the thoughtless cruelty of their elders. The festival honored Kedzierzawska with a special tribute, and she captivated her listeners with behind-the-camera stories about making films in Poland and working with the extraordinary children who inhabit her world.

Best Denver film festival movie

Nic (Nothing), Poland

Audiences at last October's Denver International Film Festival were tremendously moved by the work of Polish director Dorota Kedzierzawska, particularly by Nic (Nothing), an intense, visually fluent drama about children trying to cope with the thoughtless cruelty of their elders. The festival honored Kedzierzawska with a special tribute, and she captivated her listeners with behind-the-camera stories about making films in Poland and working with the extraordinary children who inhabit her world.

Best ensemble

Street Scene

In an age when musical blockbusters are marked by star-studded casts, syrupy story lines and truckloads of scenery, Kurt Weill's Street Scene seems destined to remain mothballed under layers of critical and scholarly acclaim. But on the strength of director Michael Ehrman's character-driven approach, a jazzy score and an exquisite set, the Central City Opera's production breathed vibrant life into Weill's 1947 Broadway show. And even though there aren't any Pepsodent-smile kick-line numbers in the eclectic score, the story's shifting tides of passion were given full expression by the comings and goings of a 35-member ensemble, evoking the allure and magic of old Broadway without using a simulated natural disaster or a slew of puppets.

Best ensemble

Street Scene

In an age when musical blockbusters are marked by star-studded casts, syrupy story lines and truckloads of scenery, Kurt Weill's Street Scene seems destined to remain mothballed under layers of critical and scholarly acclaim. But on the strength of director Michael Ehrman's character-driven approach, a jazzy score and an exquisite set, the Central City Opera's production breathed vibrant life into Weill's 1947 Broadway show. And even though there aren't any Pepsodent-smile kick-line numbers in the eclectic score, the story's shifting tides of passion were given full expression by the comings and goings of a 35-member ensemble, evoking the allure and magic of old Broadway without using a simulated natural disaster or a slew of puppets.

Best supporting actor

John Hutton, Denver Center Theatre Company

Following a season in which he played a series of demanding leading roles, John Hutton took a backseat to his fellow Denver Center Theatre Company actors and, in the process, introduced audiences to his performing persona's seldom-seen byways. The lanky leading man rendered an authoritative portrait of a browbeaten bliss juggler in the world premiere of A Hotel on Marvin Gardens, and although The Winter's Tale provided him with precious few scenes in which to project Leontes's tragic depths, Hutton perfectly captured the "diseased mind" of a character often referred to by critics as an Othello who is his own Iago. In Side Man, he veered through the part of a trombone-playing heroin addict with cooler-than-hep fluidity. As Hutton himself has often done in the past, his multifaceted creations intrigued without casting a harsh glare on peripheral concerns.

Best supporting actor

John Hutton, Denver Center Theatre Company

Following a season in which he played a series of demanding leading roles, John Hutton took a backseat to his fellow Denver Center Theatre Company actors and, in the process, introduced audiences to his performing persona's seldom-seen byways. The lanky leading man rendered an authoritative portrait of a browbeaten bliss juggler in the world premiere of A Hotel on Marvin Gardens, and although The Winter's Tale provided him with precious few scenes in which to project Leontes's tragic depths, Hutton perfectly captured the "diseased mind" of a character often referred to by critics as an Othello who is his own Iago. In Side Man, he veered through the part of a trombone-playing heroin addict with cooler-than-hep fluidity. As Hutton himself has often done in the past, his multifaceted creations intrigued without casting a harsh glare on peripheral concerns.

Best supporting actress

Mercedes Perez

For the past several seasons, Mercedes Perez has deftly portrayed supporting parts while maintaining each role's proper place in a play's grand scheme, showing her ability to be an artful team player in a business that increasingly

values novelty over craft. And this past year saw her unique talents showcased as never before. She lit up the stage as Anita in the Arvada Center's exuberant production of West Side Story and was a divine presence as a thrice-appearing choric figure that replaced the stodgy role of Father Time in the Denver Center's lavish Winter's Tale. Although she's since relocated to Aspen (where her husband is the new artistic director of Theatre-in-the-Park), Perez will, we hope, migrate periodically from the land of pointy-headed stars to play an even more supportive role in Denver's burgeoning professional scene.

Best supporting actress

Mercedes Perez

For the past several seasons, Mercedes Perez has deftly portrayed supporting parts while maintaining each role's proper place in a play's grand scheme, showing her ability to be an artful team player in a business that increasingly

values novelty over craft. And this past year saw her unique talents showcased as never before. She lit up the stage as Anita in the Arvada Center's exuberant production of West Side Story and was a divine presence as a thrice-appearing choric figure that replaced the stodgy role of Father Time in the Denver Center's lavish Winter's Tale. Although she's since relocated to Aspen (where her husband is the new artistic director of Theatre-in-the-Park), Perez will, we hope, migrate periodically from the land of pointy-headed stars to play an even more supportive role in Denver's burgeoning professional scene.

Best actor

Tony Church, Denver Center Theatre Company

It's one thing to give a sentimental nod to an esteemed veteran who for nearly fifty years has earned his living as an actor while instructing generations of up-and-comers. More than a first-rate performer and teacher, however, Tony Church consistently tries to embrace each new role as an opportunity to further his command of the craft. And throughout his nine years with the Denver Center Theatre Company, he's triumphed in

that pursuit. This past season, the former Royal Shakespearean lent insight to the role of Camillo in The Winter's Tale and delightfully ambled through the part of Johnnypateenmike in The Cripple of Inishmaan. But it was his tour de force in Give 'em a Bit of Mystery: Shakespeare and the Old Tradition that epitomized his uncanny ability to forge new magic out of old. The one-man show reawakened the ghosts of Shakespearean acting while fixing Church's place in a proud tradition of consummate -- and always gracious -- skill.

Best actor

Tony Church, Denver Center Theatre Company

It's one thing to give a sentimental nod to an esteemed veteran who for nearly fifty years has earned his living as an actor while instructing generations of up-and-comers. More than a first-rate performer and teacher, however, Tony Church consistently tries to embrace each new role as an opportunity to further his command of the craft. And throughout his nine years with the Denver Center Theatre Company, he's triumphed in

that pursuit. This past season, the former Royal Shakespearean lent insight to the role of Camillo in The Winter's Tale and delightfully ambled through the part of Johnnypateenmike in The Cripple of Inishmaan. But it was his tour de force in Give 'em a Bit of Mystery: Shakespeare and the Old Tradition that epitomized his uncanny ability to forge new magic out of old. The one-man show reawakened the ghosts of Shakespearean acting while fixing Church's place in a proud tradition of consummate -- and always gracious -- skill.

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