Matthew López Wins Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical for “Some Like it Hot”

Matthew López is on a hot streak…

The 67th Annual Drama Desk Awards have been announced, with the 46-year-old Puerto Rican playwright and screenwriter taking home an award.

Matthew LopezLopez and Amber Ruffin took home the award for Outstanding Book of a Musical for Some Like it Hot, a musical based on the classic 1959 Billy Wilder film Some Like It Hot.

The show — for which Mariah Carey is one of the producers — won eight awards, including outstanding musical and outstanding lyrics for Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman.

Meanwhile, Kevin Del Aguila took home one of the two awards for Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical for Some Like it Hot.

The 2023 Drama Desk Awards will take place at Sardi’s Restaurant in New York on Tuesday, June 6, from 3 to 6 p.m. ET.

The Drama Desk Awards will be presented five days before the Tony Awards are broadcast on CBS. The Drama Desk Awards differ from the Tonys in several respects.

All four performance categories are “gender-free” – their term for “gender-neutral.” Each of these categories had twice as many nominees as the former gendered categories; each have two winners.

The Drama Desk Awards are the only major New York City theater awards for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off Broadway compete against each other in the same categories.

The Drama Desk Awards are bestowed by critics, journalists, editors and publishers covering theater.

Shows with 21 or more unique live performances were eligible.

The Drama Desk was founded in 1949 to bring together critics and writers in an organization to support the ongoing development of theater in New York. The organization began presenting awards in 1955.

Here are all the winners:

Outstanding musical: Some Like it Hot
Outstanding revival of a musical: Parade
Outstanding lead performance in a musical: Annaleigh Ashford, Sweeney Todd & J. Harrison Ghee, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding featured performance in a musical: Kevin Del Aguila, Some Like it Hot & Alex Newell, Shucked
Outstanding direction of a musical: Thomas Kail, Sweeney Todd
Outstanding choreography: Casey Nicholaw, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding music: Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, Shucked
Outstanding lyrics: Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding book of a musical: Matthew López and Amber Ruffin, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding orchestrations: Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding scenic design of a musical: Beowulf Boritt, New York, New York
Outstanding costume design of a musical: Gregg Barnes, Some Like it Hot
Outstanding lighting design of a musical: Natasha Katz, Sweeney Todd
Outstanding sound design of a musical: Scott Lehrer and Alex Neumann, Into the Woods
Outstanding music in a play: Suzan-Lori Parks, Plays for the Plague Year, The Public

Elena Martín Gimeno’s “Creaturas” Wins Europa Cinemas Best European Film at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight

Elena Martín Gimeno is celebrating a special recognition…

The Spanish director’s film Creatura won the Europa Cinemas prize as Best European Film at Directors’ Fortnight on Thursday.

Elena Martín GimenoThe prize was announced ahead of the evening closing ceremony for the non-competitive parallel Directors Fortnight section.

The Europa Cinema is one of the key collateral prizes awarded to films world premiering in the section.

Under the Europa Cinema prize, the release of Creatura will receive the support of cinemas belonging to the independent exhibitor network representing 3,060 screens in 38 countries.

The jury consists of four exhibitor members of the network.

Creatura centers on a seemingly perfect couple who no longer manage to have sex, prompting one partner to probe her past and her sexual awakening, from adolescence back to early childhood.

Directors Fortnights’ final day hosted a special event with Quentin Tarantino and closes with Hong Sangsoo’s In Our Day, in the presence of the Korean director.

“Elena Martin Gimeno’s Creatura is a really well-written and impressive portrayal of a woman as she tries to come to terms with her sexuality and intimacy while reflecting on her childhood and teenage experiences. This is a subject that has been covered before, but each character is so multi-layered and believable that the film is easy to relate to – both the female and the male characters,” the Europa Cinema Jury said in a statement.

“There are challenging moments but there is humor too. It is dynamic and beautifully shot. We are sure that this is a film that will touch people all around Europe, and we welcome the opportunity of encouraging the career of a very talented director, writer and actress.”

The cast includes Gimeno (Mila), Clàudia Dalmau (Mila), Clàudia Borràs (Mila), Oriol Pla (Marcel), Alex Brendemühl (Gerard), Clara Segura (Diana), Marc Cartanyà (Gerard) and Carla Linares (Diana).

Elena Martín is an actress, screenwriter and director from Barcelona. Her debut as a director for which she also took the leading role, Júlia ist, was praised by the festival circuit. As an actress, she starred in Watermelon JuiceFacing the Wind or Agatha’s Friends. On TV for HBO, she was in the writer’s room of Veneno, directed two episodes of Perfect Life and created an episode of En casa.

The Cannes Europa Cinemas Label Jury this year comprised Laurent Callonnec (Cinéma l’Ecran, Saint-Denis, France), Sofie Mercier (Sphinx Cinema, Ghent, Belgium), Viviane Thill (Ciné Starlight, Dudelange, Luxembourg) and Justė Vyšniauskaitė (Kaunas cinema centre Romuva, Kaunas, Lithuania).

Lindsay Mendez Wins Outer Critics Circle Awards Trophy for “Merrily We Roll Along” Performance

Lindsay Mendez is having an Outer this world moment…

The Outer Critics Circle has named announced its award winners, with the 40-year-old half-Mexican American Tony Award-winning actress coming away with one prize.

Mendez was named Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off Broadway Musical for her performance in Merrily We Roll Along.

The Circle is made up of writers on New York theater for out-of-town newspapers and national publication.

In all, Some Like It Hot topped the winners list with five, in all – with Leopoldstadt coming in second with three awards.

Winners of the 72nd Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards will be honored at a ceremony on Thursday, May 25 at the Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center’s New York Public Library for The Performing Arts.

Here’s the complete list of winners:

Outstanding New Broadway Musical
Some Like It Hot

Outstanding New Broadway Play
Leopoldstadt

Outstanding New Off Broadway Musical
The Harder They Come

Outstanding New Off Broadway Play
Downstate

John Gassner Award for New American Play (Preferably by a New Playwright)
Fat Ham by James Ijames

Outstanding Revival of a Play (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Topdog/Underdog

Outstanding Revival of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Parade

Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Musical
Harrison Ghee – Some Like It Hot

Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical
Alex Newell – Shucked

Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Play
Sean Hayes – Good Night, Oscar

Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Play
Brandon Uranowitz – Leopoldstadt

Outstanding Lead Performer in an Off Broadway Play
Bill Irwin – Endgame

Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off Broadway Play
Todd Freeman – Downstate

Outstanding Lead Performer in an Off Broadway Musical
Jonathan Groff – Merrily We Roll Along

Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off Broadway Musical
Lindsay Mendez – Merrily We Roll Along

Outstanding Solo Performance
Jodie Comer – Prima Facie

Outstanding New Score
Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman – Some Like It Hot

Outstanding Book of a Musical
Robert Horn – Shucked

Outstanding Scenic Design (Play or Musical)
Beowulf Boritt – New York, New York

Outstanding Costume Design (Play or Musical)
Gregg Barnes – Some Like it Hot

Outstanding Lighting Design (Play or Musical)
Tim Lutkin – Life of Pi

Outstanding Sound Design (Play or Musical)
Joshua D. Reid – A Christmas Carol

Outstanding Video or Projection Design (Play or Musical)
Andrzej Goulding – Life of Pi

Outstanding Orchestrations
Bryan Carter and Charlie Rosen – Some Like It Hot

Outstanding Director of a Musical
Michael Arden – Parade

Outstanding Choreography
Susan Stroman – New York, New York

Outstanding Director of a Play
Patrick Marber – Leopoldstadt

Special Achievement Award
B.H. Barry, one of the world’s foremost fight directors, in recognition of a distinguished six-decade career capped off with Camelot at Lincoln Center Theater.

Yahritza Martinez to Receive Special Recognition at SESAC Latina Awards

Yahritza Martinez is officially breaking through

The 16-year-old Mexican American Regional Mexican artist, the lead singer of Yahritza y Su Esencia, will receive a special honor at the upcoming SESAC Latina Awards 2023.

Yahritza MartinezSESAC will award Martinez with its breakthrough songwriter award.

Argentine producer Federico Vindver is set to receive special honors at the event. He has worked with artists such as Jennifer Lopez, Ricky MartinMarc Anthony and, most recently, Christina Aguilera for her Spanish-language album Aguilera, which was nominated for album of the year at the Latin Grammys 2022.

The ceremony, which will take place on June 27 in Los Angeles, where the song of the year, publisher of the year and songwriter of the year — for both regional Mexican and pop/Latin rhythm — winners will also be announced.

“We love every opportunity to recognize our talented affiliates within the Latin songwriting community and l look forward to bringing everyone together for a night of celebration,” said Sam Kling, chief creative officer, SESAC Performing Rights. “The songs and spirit at the SESAC Latina Music Awards always make it a wonderfully special and unique evening.

“Vindver is a one-of-a-kind versatile producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist that has worked with some of the biggest names in music,” said Celeste Zendejas, VP of SESAC Latina. “Additionally, we are recognizing all that Yahritza has done in her career at such a young age — she has broken several records not only as an artist but as a songwriter as well.”

With “Soy El Único,” Yahritza y Su Esencia’s debut single, Martinez made chart history as the youngest Latin performer to enter the Billboard Hot 100 when the track debuted at No. 20 last year. Subsequently, their seven-track debut EP, Obsessed, peaked at No. 1 on the Regional Mexican Albums chart (dated May 7, 2022). Martinez is just one of the two women (the other being Karol G) who have reached No. 1 on the Latin Songwriters chart.

Javier Bardem to Receive Donostia Award at San Sebastian Film Festival

Javier Bardem will be feted in Northern Spain…

The San Sebastian Film Festival will honor the 54-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actor with its prestigious Donostia Award at its 71st edition, running September 22 — 30.

Javier BardemBardem will receive the career achievement prize on Friday, September 22 at the Kursaal Auditorium, 30 years after his first visit to the Festival for the competition screening of Bigas Luna’s film Golden Balls in 1993.

An image of Bardem will also serve as the official poster of this year’s festival.

Bardem is one of Spain’s most prominent cinematic names, with over 70 screen credits. He picked up an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and a BAFTA for his turn in the Coen Brothers’ neo-western No Country for Old Men.

Bardem was last at San Sebastian in 2021 with the workplace comedy-drama The Good Boss from Fernando León de Aranoa. The film was Spain’s submission for the international Oscar race.

Later this year, Bardem returns for the second film in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune series, where he plays the character Stilgar alongside Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya.

Last year, the lifetime achievement award was handed to David Cronenberg and Juliette Binoche. Other previous filmmakers to have received the Donostia Award include Francis Ford Coppola, Woody Allen, Oliver Stone, Agnès Varda, Hirokazu Koreeda, and Costa-Gavras.

Colombian filmmaker Laura Mora clinched the Golden Shell in the main competition at last year’s San Sebastian Film Festival with her latest feature The Kings of the World (Los reyes del mundo).

Tommy Castro Named Entertainer of the Year for Second Consecutive Year at Blues Music Awards

Make that two in a row for Tommy Castro

The Latino blues, R&B and rock guitarist and singer has won the B.B. King entertainer of the year award for the second year in a row at the 44th Annual Blues Music Awards, which were held at the Renasant Convention Center in Memphis on Thursday May 11.

Tommy Castro,Other artists who held on to their crowns for a second year in a row were Castiglia – blues rock artist; Danielle Nicole – instrumentalist bass, Curtis Salgado – soul blues male artist; and Sue Foley – traditional blues female artist (Koko Taylor award).

Albert Castiglia took home the award for blues rock artist for the second year in a row. 

The 53-year-old half-Cuban American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist also won the award for Blues rock album for his album “I Got Love.”

Curtis Salgado also took home an award for the second year in a row.

The Latino blues, blues rock, and blue-eyed soul singer-songwriter was named Soul blues male artist.

Laura Chavez is a first-time Blues Music Awards winner.

The 41-year-old Latina blues, soul, and rhythm and blues guitarist, songwriter and record producer took home the award for instrumentalist guitar.

In a nice touch, three awards are named after late blues legends. The entertainer of the year award is named after B.B. King, who died in 2015. The award for traditional blues female artist is named after Koko Taylor, who died in 2009. The award for instrumentalist – piano is named after Pinetop Perkins, who died in 2011.

Here’s a complete list of winners for the 2023 Blues Music Awards. 

B.B. King entertainer of the year 
Tommy Castro 

Band of the year
Tedeschi Trucks Band 

Song of the year
Buddy Guy “The Blues Don’t Lie” (Tom Hambridge) 

Best emerging artist album
Dylan Triplett / Who Is He? 

Acoustic blues album
Charlie Musselwhite / Mississippi Son 

Blues rock album
Albert Castiglia / I Got Love 

Contemporary blues album
Buddy Guy / The Blues Don’t Lie 

Soul blues album
Sugaray Rayford / In Too Deep

Traditional blues album
John Németh / May Be the Last Time 

Acoustic blues artist
Doug MacLeod 

Blues rock artist
Albert Castiglia 

Contemporary blues female artist
Ruthie Foster 

Contemporary blues male artist
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram 

Soul blues female artist
Thornetta Davis 

Soul blues male artist
Curtis Salgado 

Traditional blues female artist (Koko Taylor award)
Sue Foley

Traditional blues male artist
John Primer 

Instrumentalist – bass
Danielle Nicole

Instrumentalist – drums
Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith

Instrumentalist – guitar
Laura Chavez

Instrumentalist – harmonica
John Németh 

Instrumentalist – horn
Deanna Bogart

Instrumentalist – piano (Pinetop Perkins piano player award)
Anthony Geraci 

Instrumentalist – vocals
Shemekia Copeland

Mariah Carey Among Inaugural BRIT Billion Award Honorees

It’s a BRIT-ish invasion for Mariah Carey. 

The 52-year-old half-Venezuelan American Grammy-winning singer is among the first recipients of the new BRIT Billion Award, denoting 1 billion career UK streams.

Mariah CareyCarey is among a list of honorees that includes Lewis Capaldi, Whitney Houston, Coldplay and Sam Smith.

The BRIT Billion award, which, like the existing BRIT Certified program and its platinum, silver and gold tiers, is verified using Official Charts data.

Other artists in the inaugural class of recipients are ABBA, AJ Tracey, Anne-Marie, Ellie Goulding, George Ezra, Headie One, RAYE and Rita Ora. More artists who have surpassed the threshold will be announced in due course.

“I’m really honored to be one of the recipients of the BRIT Billion Award,” Carey said in a statement. “I’m so grateful to my fans for their endless and enduring support. I love you UK lambily and cannot wait to come back to your side of the pond and create more magical moments together.”

This is the first time in its five-decade history that the BPI’s certifications program has recognized an artist’s combined success across multiple projects. The One Billion career total will include tracks an artist has appeared on either as the principal performer or as a featured artist, as credited by the Official Charts.

The introduction of BRIT Billion reflects the extent to which streaming has transformed the music landscape for artists and fans alike over the past decade. More than 85% of the UK’s recorded music consumption now takes place through streaming.

Sophie Jones, BPI chief strategy officer and interim chief executive, said in a statement: “For a recording artist, there can be few greater sources of pride than having a Platinum or Gold disc on their wall, but in an era when success in measured in the hundreds of millions and indeed billions of streams, it was clear that we needed a new and additional way to recognize and celebrate outstanding achievement in recorded music, and I feel certain that having a BRIT Billion Award will become equally prized.”

The BRIT Billion award represents the first significant upgrade to the certifications program since April 2018, when it was rebranded from the BPI Awards to the BRIT Certified Awards.

Keityn Named Songwriter of the Year at ASCAP Latin Music Awards

(Te) Felicito-ciones are in order for Keityn

The Colombian songwriter and musical artist who co-wrote Karol G’s “Provenza” and Shakira and Rauw Alejandro’s “Te Felicito,” was named songwriter of the year at the 2023 ASCAP Latin Music Awards.

Keityn

Me Porto Bonito” — performed by Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone and co-written by ASCAP songwriter Master Joe — won song of the year, while Universal Music Publishing Music Group took the publisher of the year honor.

Winners at the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers’ annual awards — which recognize the songwriters, producers and publishers behind Latin music’s biggest hits — where announced on May 3 at an invitation-only event in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

A first-time ASCAP winner, Keityn (real name: Kevyn Mauricio Cruz Moreno) has also been behind chart-topping hits such as “Tusa” by Karol G and Nicki Minaj, Maluma‘s “Hawái” and J Balvin and Tainy’s “Agua,” to name a few.

In October 2021, he signed an exclusive deal with Warner Music Latina, and since then, he has released songs as a performer like “El Egoísmo” with Mike Bahía and Dekko, “Anoche” and “Nueva Versión.”

Song of the year honoree “Me Porto Bonito” — a reggaetón track infused with Latin pop and sandungueo, in which two men promise to behave nicely if the woman they’re after asked them to — spent 20 weeks at the top of Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart. It also reached No. 1 on Latin Airplay, peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts, and hit the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100.

Universal Music Publishing Music Group was recognized as publisher of the year for hits including “Después de la Playa,” “Efecto,” “La Corriente,” “Me Porto Bonito,” “Moscow Mule,” “Neverita,” “Ojitos Lindos,” “Party,” “Tarot,” “Tití Me Preguntó” and “Un Ratito” — all part of Bad Bunny’s uber-successful Un Verano Sin Ti, the second album in Spanish to ever top the Billboard 200.

Other 2023 ASCAP Latin Music Award-winning songwriters include Daddy Yankee (“Remix”), Jhayco (“Sensual Bebé”), Marc Anthony (“Mala”), Marco Antonio Solís (“Si Te Pudiera Mentir”), GALE (her first ASCAP Latin Award for “Ley Seca”) and Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Dos Oruguitas”).

Zack de la Rocha & Rage Against the Machine Mates Voted Into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Zack de la Rocha is all the Rock and Roll rage…

The 53-year-old Mexican American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper and political activist and his fellow Rage Against the Machine band mates have made it onto the list of inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Zack de la Rocha x Rage Against the MachineIt took five tries, but the rebel rock fuse-lighters finally made it onto the inductee list.

The L.A. group whose incendiary sound mashed up the force of crunching hard rock with the social conscience and rhythms of hip-hop, the no f’s given attitude of punk and a topical lyrical attack indebted to 1950-60s folk songwriters reacted to the news that they’d gotten the nod in typically strident fashion.

In an Instagram message from the group on Wednesday morning (May 3), they wrote, “It is a surprising trajectory for us to be welcomed into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.”

The note from singer de la Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford then dipped into their biography as a band formed in 1991 by four people to “stand where sound and solidarity intersect.”

They described themselves as “a band who is as well known for our albums as we are for our fierce opposition to the U.S. war machine, white supremacy and exploitation. A band whose songs drive alternative radio to new heights while right wing media companies tried to purge every song we ever wrote from the airwaves.”

The multi-slide post went on to tick off some of Rage’s career high points: shutting down the New York Stock Exchange for the fist time in its 200-year history when they stormed it to shoot the 1999 video for “Sleep Now in the Fire”; as a group targeted by “police organizations who attempted to ban us from sold-out arenas for raising our voices to free Mumia Abu Jamal, Leonard Pelteir and other political prisoners; one that sued the U.S. government for their “fascist practice of using our music to torture innocent men at Guantanamo Bay”; funding and organizing delegations to stand with Mexican rebel Zapatista communities to expose the Mexican government’s war on indigenous people and the band that “wrote rebel songs in an abandoned, industrial warehouse in the Valley that would later dethrone Simon Cowell’s X Factor pop monopoly to occupy the No. 1 spot on the UK charts and have the most downloaded song in UK history (“Killing in the Name”).”

“A band whose experimentation in fusing punk, rock and hip-hop became a genre of its own,” they added. “Many thanks to the Hall of Fame for recognizing the music and the mission of Rage Against the Machine. We are grateful to all of the passionate fans, the many talented co-conspirators we’ve worked with and all the activists, organizers, rebels and revolutionaries past, present and future who have inspired our art.”

RATM released just four albums during their initial 1991-2000 run before reforming for live dates from 2007-2011 and against in 2019 for a series of shows that were first interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and then by singer de la Rocha’s leg injury.

This year’s other inductees include: Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, George Michael, Willie Nelson, The Spinners, DJ Kool Herc, Link Wray, Chaka Khan, Al Kooper, Bernie Taupin and Soul Train host Don Cornelius.

Shakira to Be Honored as Billboard’s ‘Woman of the Year’ at First-Ever Mujeres Latinas en la Música Gala

t’s a career-recognizing first for Shakira

The 46-year-old Colombian global superstar will be honored as Billboard’s Woman of the Year at the first-ever Mujeres Latinas en la Música gala.

ShakiraThe two-hour music special, hosted by Ivy Queen and Jacqueline Bracamontes and honoring Latin women in music, will be taped at the Watsco Center in Miami on May 6 and will air exclusively on Telemundo on May 7 at 9:00 pm ET/8:00 pm CT.

A first of its kind for Latin music, Mujeres Latinas en la Música celebrates Latin female artists, executives and creatives who are proactively working for positive change, inclusion and gender parity in the music industry.

Superstars Ana GabrielEmiliaEvalunaGoyo and Thalia will also receive special awards at the inaugural event presented by Billboard with Telemundo.

Shakira’s honor comes in the wake of an extraordinary year that has seen the superstar break records with the biggest Spanish-language debut of 2022 (“Monotonía” featuring Ozuna). Then, in January 2023, her “Shakira: BZRP Music Sessions #53” debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making her the first woman to reach the top 10 on the chart with a song in Spanish.

“Shakira: BZRP Music Sessions #53” also made history as the most-streamed Latin track in 24 hours in Spotify history and the most-viewed Latin track on YouTube in 24 hours with over 63 million views, and it broke 14 Guinness World Records.

“Shakira is the ultimate Woman in Music. Thanks to her, Latin women all over the world have been empowered to write and perform deeply personal music. She created a movement all on her own, and continues to be more relevant than ever today, with grace, a deep tradition of giving back, and enormous talent. She is the definition of a Woman in Music,” said Leila CoboBillboard’s chief content officer for Latin/Español.

“Shakira has been pivotal in shaping the vibrant and diverse landscape of Latin music and music in general throughout her career. Her passion, talent and creativity have broken barriers and empowered generations to embrace our identity through music, and we are incredibly proud to recognize her as Woman of the Year in the industry,” said Ronald Day, president of entertainment and content strategy for Telemundo.

Shakira has sold more than 95 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time and the top-selling female Latin artist of all time. Her global success as a crossover artist opened doors for other Latin artists to enter international markets. She is the most-viewed Latin female artist, and one of the top 10 artists overall of all time on YouTube with over 20 billion cumulative views, and the most-streamed female Latin artist of all time on Spotify.

Aside from her stellar industry accolades, at the age of 18, Shakira created the Pies Descalzos Foundation, which has built and adapted nine public schools in Cartagena, Barranquilla, Guajira and Quibdó, with six in construction. The foundation has raised over 40 million dollars since inception and impacted more than 150,000 children and nearly 900,000 families.