Tony Awards cut 2 trophies, beginning next year

The Tony Awards will have fewer trophies next year and Broadway’s sound designers are the ones being dropped.

The Tony Awards Administration Committee met Wednesday to determine the eligibility rules for the 2014-2015 season, and cut the categories of Best Sound Design of a Play and Best Sound Design of a Musical. That drops to 25 the number of competitive Tonys next year.

Tony-Nominated Sound Designer John Gromada Launches Online Petition to Reinstate Sound Design Tony Awards

The last winner of the musical sound design award was Brian Ronan of “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” and his counterpart in the play category was Steve Canyon Kennedy of “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill.”

The committee did keep a door open to honor sound designers, saying a Special Tony Award may be given “when it determines that extraordinary sound design has been achieved.”

Sound designer John Gromada, who was Tony-nominated for Best Sound Design of a Play in 2013 for the revival of The Trip to Bountiful, has started an online petition to reinstate the Tony Awards for Sound Design following the June 11 announcement that the categories of Best Sound Design of a Play and Best Sound Design of a Musical had both been eliminated.

The Tony Awards Administration Committee made two announcements June 11 concerning the 2014-15 season. One of the rulings stated, “The Best Sound Design of a Play and Best Sound Design of a Musical will be eliminated from the competitive categories in the 2014-2015 season; however, the Tony committee holds the right to determine a special Tony award for certain productions that have excelled in this particular design realm.”

In his petition on thepetitionsite.com, designer Gromada says, “Sound Design is a theatrical design art that is a critical part of the collaborative art of theatre. The American Theatre Wing should continue to honor excellence in sound design as it does for scenery, costume and lighting design, and as it has done since 2008. Sound designers are an important part of the theatrical community whose vital contributions cannot be ignored or dismissed. Reverse this decision now!”

The petition is aimed at the American Theatre Wing Tony Administration Committee. As of the morning of June 12, the petition has already received nearly 6,000 signatures.

The winners of the 2014 Tony Awards in the Sound Design categories were Steve Canyon Kennedy for Best Sound Design of a Play for Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill and Brian Ronan for Best Sound Design of a Musical for Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.

Reinstate the Tony Award Categories for Sound Design:

www.thepetitionsite.com/470/217/554/reinstate-the-tony-award-categories-for-sound-design-now/