Iceman Cometh, Turn of the Screw Win Big at 2012 Jeff Awards

The Goodman Theatre's production of Eugene O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh and First Folio Theater's Turn of the Screw each took two Joseph Jefferson Awards at the Oct. 15 Jeff Awards.

The Iceman Cometh, a hit that starred Nathan Lane as Hickey, won twice in the large productions categories. Kevin Depinet's scenic design and Natasha Katz's lighting design were recognized for their excellence.

The Turn of the Screw production team took home two awards for its lighting design by Michael McNamara and sound design by Christopher Kriz. Both winners from the Folio's production were in the midsize category.

Virgil C. Johnson, the costume designer for Follies at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Branimira Ivanova, the costume designer for Cloud 9 at The Gift Theatre, were lauded for their work in the large and midsize categories respectively.

Other winners included Mikhail Fiksel for his sound design of Oedipus el Rey at Victory Gardens Theater and Brian Prather's scenic design of Freud's Last Session.

The judges also included the interesting artistic specialization of magic design by Dennis Watkins of Death and Harry Houdini at The House Theatre of Chicago. They also recognized Maya Ciarrocchi for her projection and media design of Crowns at Goodman Theatre.

A special award was presented to Actors' Equity Association in celebration of their century of service to actors and stage managers in Chicago and across America.

The 44th Annual Equity Jeff Awards ceremony was held at Drury Lane Oakbrook in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois.