The Killen Award

Goodspeed’s Michael O’Flaherty To Receive Critics Award

 

Michael O’Flaherty, Goodspeed Musical’s longtime musical director, will be the 2018 recipient of the Connecticut Critics Circle’s annual Tom Killen Award, recognizing his long service and achievement to theater in the state.

The award will be presented June 11 at the Westport Country Playhouse at the 28th annual event celebrating and honoring the state’s outstanding professional theater. The event, scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m., is free and open to the public.

O'Flaherty has been the man behind the music -- and baton, too. Entering his 27th season as Goodspeed's resident music director, O'Flaherty has guided more than 100 shows at the East Haddam and Chester theaters, several of them ("By Jeeves," "Gentleman Prefer Blondes") to Broadway.

He’s also a key figure behind the Festival of New Musicals, as well as the composer for a new locally-rooted show: "A Connecticut Christmas Carol.”

 His expertise also goes well beyond Goodspeed being the musical supervisor for productions at Paper Mill Playhouse, North Shore Music Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, Ford's Theatre, the Kennedy Center,  and the Williamstown Theatre Festival, among others.

He's guided first class revivals, overseen new orchestrations and nurtured brand new work and young artists.

Previous Killen winners include Lloyd Richards, Michael Price, Michael Wilson, Lucille Lortel, Anne Keefe and Carmen de Lavallade. Last year’s winner was Paulette  Haupt, founding artistic director of the O’Neill Theater Center’s National Music Theater Conference.

Nominees for 2017-18 Connecticut Critics Circle Awards will be made public in early June. Winners in each category will be announced at the awards ceremony.

Information: www.ctcritics.org.

DIRECTIONS: Westport Country Playhouse is at 25 Powers Court in Westport, just off Route  (Exits 17 or 18 off I-91 brings you to Rt. 1.) www.westportplayhouse.org.

PRESS CONTACT: CCC president, Geary Danihy -- gearydanihy@aol.com