The 63rd edition of the Obie awards, hosted by John Leguizamo, were held last night at Terminal 5. Amy Herzog’s healthcare-themed drama Mary Jane and Aleshea Harris’s revenge story Is God Is were among the big winners, taking home three awards apiece. Before the ceremony, which kicked off shortly after 7 p.m., the evening’s presenters, organizers, and eventual winners strolled across the red carpet, where the Voice was stationed. Here are some of our best photographs from the pre-show display.
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Obies host John Leguizamo, who opened the show with an energetic monologue about his early attraction to theater
The playwright Abe Koogler, an Obie winner for “Fulfillment Center.” Voice critic Michael Feingold has termed Koogler’s dialogue style “terse” and “astutely turned.”
The playwright Aleshea Harris won an Obie for her revenge drama “Is God Is.”
Alfie Fuller split a performance Obie with her “Is God Is” co-star Dame-Jasmine Hughes. Voice critic Michael Feingold has called Fuller’s performance “particularly impressive.”
The Pan-Asian Repertory Theatre was one of two Obie Grant winners; the honor carries a $6,000 prize.
The actor Robert Sean Leonard won an Obie for Edward Albee’s “At Home at the Zoo.” For the Voice, Laura Collins-Hughes wrote that Leonard brought “surprising glimmers of poignancy” to his role.
Ralph B. Peña of the Ma-Yi Theater Company, winner of the $3,000 Ross Wetzsteon Award, named after the late Voice theater editor
Andrew Garfield presented the first Obie of the night, to Denise Gough, star of “People, Places & Things.”
Jessica Hecht (middle) and Ben Edelman (right) won Obies for their performances as mother and son, respectively, in Joshua Harmon’s “Admissions.”
Pixie Aventura made an appearance onstage for a drag act in which John Leguizamo dressed as Cardi B.
Beth Malone was one of three participants in Laura Benanti’s onstage “history lesson” of Off-Broadway musicals.
The actor Billy Crudup won an Obie for his shape-shifting performance in “Harry Clarke.”
Obies host John Leguizamo greets Voice CEO and president Peter Barbey.
Left to right: The playwright David Henry Hwang, chair of the American Theatre Wing; Heather Hitchens, president and CEO of the ATW; Obies host John Leguizamo; and Voice CEO Peter Barbey
The actor Chukwudi Iwuji (left) won an Obie for his work in “The Low Road.” Voice critic Michael Feingold has deemed his performance a “ferocious embodiment.”
Oliver Platt, who presented Jessica Hecht’s Obie, and Carrie Coon, who won an Obie as the star of “Mary Jane.”
The actor David Morse, an Obie winner two decades ago for Paula Vogel’s “How I Learned to Drive,” presented at Monday’s ceremony.
The Tony-winning designer David Zinn (“The Humans”) presented at the Obies on Monday night.
Left to right: Brie Cassil, RaeMe, and Yvette Rovira, who performed the evening’s opening and closing numbers
Denise Gough won an Obie for Performance in “People, Places & Things.” For the Voice, David Cote wrote that Gough turned in “a meticulously detailed portrait.”
The playwright Dominique Morisseau won an Obie for “Pipeline,” which Voice critic Michael Feingold has praised as “powerful, passionate, and intelligent.”
Laura Osnes sang “What Matters Most” during Monday night’s “In Memoriam” tribute to recently departed theater greats.
James Morgan, of the York Theatre Company, accepted the group’s $6,000 Obie Grant for its ‘Musicals in Mufti’ series.
The actress Kathleen Chalfant, the 2018 Obie winner for Lifetime Achievement. “You would never get home,” she said from the podium, describing how long it would take to thank everyone she’s worked with.
About halfway through the ceremony, John Leguizamo and Pixie Aventura broke into a drag act involving Trump jokes and Cardi B impersonations.
The Obie-winning “Mary Jane” team, from left to right: Actress Carrie Coon, playwright Amy Herzog, and director Anne Kauffman
The director Taibi Magar received an Obie for “Is God Is,” one of that production’s three awards on the night.
Itamar Moses, an Obie winner in 2017 for “The Band’s Visit,” returned this year as a presenter.