Chris Durang launched a comic nightclub act in 1989 called CHRIS DURANG & DAWNE (John Augustine and Sherry Anderson) that came back to play clubs all over the New York area for the next eight years until they made their last public performance in January of 1996. Now, sixteen years later, Nightlife Awards creator/producer Scott Siegel is re-uniting Chris Durang & Dawne (all of the originals) for the first time since this musical comedy revue disappeared from New York nightclub stages.
Chris Durang & Dawne will receive a Special Nightlife Award for their legendary nightclub act. The group will also perform again at the world's only All-Performance award show.
MONDAY, JANUARY 30th at 7 PM at The Town Hall
In a statement, Scott Siegel said, "I have been trying to bring Chris Durang & Dawne together again for almost the entire ten years that the Nightlife Awards has been in existence. I'm thrilled that I am finally succeeding because my wife and I happened to be at The Criterion Center in Times Square when Chris Durang & Dawne premiered in 1986 at a 10:30 PM show. We laughed our heads off and never forgot this extraordinary act. It was actually easier for me to re-unite Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner for their concert together at Town Hall a few years ago than it was to get the elusive Durang & Dawne back together. It was also easier for me to re-unite the stars of Jekyll & Hyde, Linda Eder, Robert Cuccioli, and Christiane Noll for the first time since they were on Broadway together than getting Durang & Dawne on the Town Hall stage. But finally it is about to happen and I can't wait!"
Chris Durang & Dawne are the first winners to be announced for this year's 10th Anniversary Nightlife Awards celebration. More winners and guest performers in this special edition of the Nightlife Awards will be announced almost daily as we run up to the event on January 30th.
As previously announced, Lucie Arnaz & Bill Irwin will co-host the show (and also perform).
This Awards show "honors the best in cabaret, comedy & jazz burst upon the scene ten years ago as the only awards show in the world with NO ACCEPTANCE SPEECHES! Instead, of making speeches, the winners perform to show why they were chosen! As an All-Performance Awards Show, The Nightlife Awards gained immediate prominence and has featured world class entertainers every single year including Alan King, Robert Klein, Elaine Stritch, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Kristin Chenoweth, Donna Murphy, Raul Esparza, Keely Smith, Eartha Kitt, Paula West, Bill Charlap, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Lea DeLaria, Demetri Martin, Mark Murphy, Betty Buckley, Karen Akers, Bruce Vilanch, Andrea Marcovicci, Stephen Schwartz, Patti LuPone, Liza Minnelli, etc."
