John is a play from Pulitzer Prize winning American playwright Annie Baker. The show premiered off-Broadway at New York's Signature Theatre Company in 2015, and was directed by Sam Gold.[1] Time ranked John as one of its top 10 plays and musicals of 2015, where it took the number four spot.[2] The play also reached number eight on the Hollywood Reporter's list of the "Best New York Theatre of 2015."[3]
The off-Broadway production was nominated for numerous awards, including five nods at the 2016 Lucille Lortel Awards: Outstanding Play; Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play (Georgia Engel); Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (Lois Smith); Outstanding Scenic Design (Mimi Lien); and Outstanding Lighting Design (Mark Barton).[4] John was also nominated for six Drama Desk Awards in 2016: Outstanding Play; Outstanding Actress in a Play (Georgia Engel); Outstanding Director of a Play; Outstanding Set Design for a Play (Mimi Lien); Outstanding Lighting Design for a Play (Mike Barton); and Outstanding Sound Design in a Play (Bray Poor).[5] At the 2016 Obie Awards, John Georgia Engel won in the performance category, while Annie Baker, Sam Gold and the design team won a Special Citation for Collaboration.[6]
The Company Theatre (TCT) brought the Canadian premiere of JohntoCanadian Stage's Berkeley Street Theatre in 2017.[7] Directed by Jonathan Goad, a member of TCT's ensemble, John starred TCT's co-Artistic Director Philip Riccio as Elias and Loretta Yu as Jenny. Nancy Beatty played Mertis, the owner of the B&B Elias and Jenny visit, while Nora McLellan took on the role of Genevieve, Mertis' Blind friend.[8] The critically acclaimed production[9] boasted a familiar creative team, with Kevin Lamotte (lighting design: Belleville, 2014; Domesticated, 2015), Michael Laird (sound design: Marion Bridge, 2007; Festen, 2008; Through the Leaves, 2010; Speaking in Tongues, 2012/13), and Michael Sinclair (stage management: Speaking in Tongues, 2012/13; Belleville, 2014; Domesticated, 2015) all returning to the TCT. Shannon Lea Doyle, a TCT newcomer, designed the production's set.[10]
The production was nominated for four 2017 Dora Mavor Moore Awards in the Independent Theatre category: Riccio received a nod for Outstanding Performance Male, both Beatty and McLellan were nominated for Outstanding Performance Female, and Doyle was nominated for Outstanding Set Design.[11] McLellan and Doyle won in their respective categories.[12] John was also picked up three awards at the 2017 Toronto Theatre Critics Awards: Best Supporting Actress (McLellan), Best International Play, and Best Production (John tied with Ex Machina/Canadian Stage's production of Robert LePage's 887 ).[13]
