The Clarence Derwent Awards are theatre awards given annually by the Actors' Equity Association on Broadway in the United States and by Equity, the performers' union, in the West End in the United Kingdom.
Clarence Derwent (23 March 1884 – 6 August 1959) was an English actor, director, and manager. He was educated at St Paul's School, London and the Birkbeck Institute. He joined Sir Frank Benson's stage company, with whom he stayed for five years. He then joined Annie Horniman's repertory company in Manchester. He was seen in a great variety of roles, both in London and New York. He made his last appearance on stage in 1948 in The Madwoman of Chaillot. He died in New York at the age of 75.[1]
From 1946 to 1952 Derwent was President of America's Actors' Equity. His will stipulated that two $500 prizes were to be given out annually to the best individual male and female supporting performances on Broadway and a £100 prize to the best supporting performances in the West End. So that Derwent could have the gratification of seeing the awards given out, they were started in America in 1945 and in the UK in 1948.[2] The prizes in the US are now $2,000 and an engraved crystal trophy.[3]
Equity introduced Student awards in 2006.[4]
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | Frederick O'Neal | Anna Lucasta | Frank |
| 1946 | Paul Douglas | Born Yesterday | Herry Brock |
| 1947 | Tom Ewell | John Loves Mary | Fred Taylor |
| 1948 | Lou Gilbert | Hope Is the Thing with Feathers | Charlie |
| 1949 | Ray Walston | Summer and Smoke | Traveling Salesman |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Douglass Watson | Wisteria Trees | Peter Whitfield |
| 1951 | Frederic Warriner | Getting Married | Reverend De Soames |
| Logan Ramsey | High Ground | Willie Pentridge | |
| 1952 | Iggie Wolfington | Mrs. McThing | Chef |
| 1953 | David J. Stewart | Camino Real | The Baron |
| 1954 | David Lewis | King of Hearts | Joe Wicks |
| 1955 | Fritz Weaver | The White Devil | Flaminero |
| 1956 | Gerald Hiken | Uncle Vanya | Telegen |
| 1957 | Ellis Rabb | The Misanthrope | Alceste |
| 1958 | George C. Scott | Richard III | Richard III |
| 1959 | David Hurst | Look After Lulu! | Police Inspector |
| Year | Actor | Show( | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | William Daniels | The Zoo Story | Peter |
| 1961 | Eric Christmas | Little Moon of Alba | Rector Olive |
| 1962 | Gene Wilder | The Complaisant Lover | Hotel Valet |
| 1963 | Gene Hackman | Children from Their Games | Charles Widgin Rochambeau |
| 1964 | Richard McMurray | A Case of Libel | Fred Alston |
| 1965 | Jaime Sánchez | Conerico Was Here to Stay | Jesus |
| 1966 | Christopher Walken | The Lion in Winter | Philip II of France |
| Tom Ahearne (special citation) | Hogan's Goat | Edward Quinn | |
| 1967 | Austin Pendleton | Hail Scrawdyke! | Irwin Ingham |
| Philip Bosco (special citation) | The Alchemist | Lincoln Center Rep | |
| 1968 | David Birney | Summertree | Troubled Youth |
| 1969 | Ron O'Neal | No Place to Be Somebody | Gabe Gabriel |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Jeremiah Sullivan | A Scent of Flowers | Gravedigger |
| 1971 | James Woods | Saved | Lenny |
| 1972 | Richard Backus | Promenade, All! | Willie/Wesley/Walter/Wendall |
| 1973 | Christopher Murney | Tricks | Sylvestre |
| 1974 | Thom Christopher | Noël Coward in Two Keys | Felix |
| 1975 | Reyno | The First Breeze of Summer | Lou Edwards |
| 1976 | Peter Evans | Streamers | Richie |
| 1977 | Barry Preston | Bubbling Brown Sugar | Charlie/Count |
| 1978 | Morgan Freeman | The Mighty Gents | Zeke |
| 1979 | Richard Cox | Platinum | Dan Danger |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Eric Peterson | Billy Bishop Goes to War | Billy Bishop |
| 1981 | Bob Gunton | How I Got That Story | The Historical Event |
| 1982 | Larry Riley | A Soldier's Play | Pvt. C.J. Memphis |
| 1983 | John Malkovich | True West | Lee |
| 1984 | Peter Gallagher | The Real Thing | Billy |
| 1985 | Bill Sadler | Biloxi Blues | Sgt. Merwin J. Toomey |
| 1986 | John Mahoney | The House of Blue Leaves | Artie Shaughnessy |
| 1987 | Courtney B. Vance | Fences | Cory Maxson |
| 1988 | BD Wong | M. Butterfly | Song Liling |
| 1989 | John Pankow | Aristocrats | Eamon |
| Year | Actor(s) | Show(s) | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Michael Jeter | Grand Hotel | Otto Kringelein |
| 1991 | Danny Gerard | Lost in Yonkers | Arty |
| James McDaniel | Six Degrees of Separation | Paul Poitier | |
| 1992 | Patrick Fitzgerald | Grandchild of Kings | Sean O'Casey |
| 1993 | Joe Mantello | Angels in America | Louis Ironson |
| 1994 | Robert Stanton | All in the Timing | Various roles |
| 1995 | Billy Crudup | Arcadia | Septimus Hodge |
| 1996 | Ruben Santiago-Hudson | Seven Guitars | Canewell |
| 1997 | Alan Tudyk | Bunny Bunny | Various roles |
| 1998 | Sam Trammell | Ah, Wilderness! | Richard Miller |
| 1999 | Robert Sella | Side Man | Clifford |
| Year | Actor(s) | Show(s) | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Derek Smith | The Green Bird | Tartaglia |
| King John | Philip Faulconbridge | ||
| 2001 | David Burtka | The Play About the Baby | The Boy |
| 2002 | Sam Robards | The Man Who Had All the Luck | Gustav Eberson |
| 2003 | Denis O'Hare | Take Me Out | Mason Marzac |
| 2004 | John Tartaglia | Avenue Q | Princeton/Rod |
| 2005 | Christian Borle | Spamalot | Historian/Not Dead Fred/French Guard/Minstrel/Prince Herbert |
| 2006 | Jason Ritter | Third | Woodson Bull III |
| 2007 | Lin-Manuel Miranda | In the Heights | Usnavi de la Vega |
| 2008 | Michael Esper | Crazy Mary | Skip |
| 2009 | Aaron Tveit | Next to Normal | Gabe Goodman |
| Year | Actor(s) | Show(s) | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Bill Heck | The Orphans' Home Cycle | Horace Robedaux/Paul Horace Robedaux |
| 2011 | Santino Fontana | The Importance of Being Earnest | Algernon Moncrieff |
| 2012 | Finn Wittrock | Death of a Salesman | Happy Loman |
| 2013 | Michael Urie | Buyer & Cellar | Alex More |
| 2014 | Steven Boyer | Hand to God | Jason/Tyrone |
| 2015 | Josh Grisetti | It Shoulda Been You | Marty Kaufman |
| 2016 | Ben Platt | Dear Evan Hansen | Evan Hansen |
| 2017 | Will Pullen | Sweat | Jason |
| 2018 | Sean Carvajal | Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train | Angel Cruz |
| 2019 | Ephraim Sykes | Ain't Too Proud | David Ruffin |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | Judy Holliday | Kiss Them for Me | Alice |
| 1946 | Barbara Bel Geddes | Deep Are the Roots | Genevra Langdon |
| 1947 | Margaret Phillips | Another Part of the Forest | Birdie Bagtry |
| 1948 | Catherine Ayers | Moon of the Caribbean | Susie |
| 1949 | Leora Dana | The Madwoman of Chaillot | Irma |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Gloria Lane | The Consul | Secretary to the consulate |
| 1951 | Phyllis Love | The Rose Tattoo | Rose Delle Rose |
| 1952 | Anne Meacham | The Long Watch | Ensign Jane Hilton |
| 1953 | Jenny Egan | The Crucible | Mary Warren |
| 1954 | Vilma Kurer | The Winner | Hilde Kranzbeck |
| 1955 | Vivian Nathan | Anastasia | Charwoman |
| 1956 | Frances Sternhagen | The Admiral Bashville | Shavian Heroine |
| 1957 | Joan Croydon | The Potting Shed | Miss Connolly |
| 1958 | Collin Wilcox | The Day the Money Stopped | Ellen Wells |
| 1959 | Lois Nettleton | God and Kate Murphy | Shelagh O'Conner |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Rochelle Oliver | Toys in the Attic | Lily Berniers |
| 1961 | Rosemary Murphy | Period of Adjustment | Dorothea Bates |
| 1962 | Rebecca Drake | Who'll Save the Plowboy? | Helen Cobb |
| 1963 | Jessica Walter | Photo Finish | Clarice/Ada Cooney |
| 1964 | Joyce Ebert | The Trojan Women | Andromache |
| 1965 | Elizabeth Hubbard | The Physicists | Monika Stettler |
| 1966 | Jean Hepple | Serjeant Musgrave's Dance | Annie |
| 1967 | Reva Rose | You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown | Lucy van Pelt |
| 1968 | Catherine Burns | The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie | Monica |
| 1969 | Marlene Warfield | The Great White Hope | Clara |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Pamela Payton-Wright | The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds | Tillie |
| 1971 | Katherine Helmond | The House of Blue Leaves | Bananas |
| 1972 | Pamela Bellwood | Butterflies Are Free | Jill Tanner |
| 1973 | Mari Gorman | The Hot l Baltimore | Jackie |
| 1974 | Ann Reinking | Over Here! | Maggie |
| 1975 | Mary Beth Hurt | Love for Love | Miss Prue |
| 1976 | Nancy Snyder | Knock Knock | Joan of Arc |
| 1977 | Rose Gregorio | The Shadow Box | Agnes |
| 1978 | Margaret Hilton | Molly | Eve |
| 1979 | Laurie Kennedy | Man and Superman | Violet Robinson |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Dianne Wiest | On the Art of Dining | Elizabeth Barrow |
| 1981 | Mia Dillon | Crimes of the Heart | Babe Botrelle |
| 1982 | Joann Camp | Geniuses | Skye Bullene |
| 1983 | Dana Ivey | Present Laughter | Monica Reed |
| Quartermaine's Terms | Melanie Garth | ||
| 1984 | Joan Allen | And a Nightingale Sang | Hellen Stott |
| 1985 | Joanna Gleason | A Day in the Death of Joe Egg | Pam |
| 1986 | Patti Cohenour | The Mystery of Edwin Drood | Rosa Bud |
| 1987 | Annette Bening | Coastal Disturbances | Holly Dancer |
| 1988 | Christine Estabrook | The Boys Next Door | Sheila |
| 1989 | Mercedes Ruehl | Other People's Money | Kate Sullivan |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Mary-Louise Parker | Prelude to a Kiss | Rita Boyle |
| 1991 | Jane Adams | I Hate Hamlet | Deirdre McDavey |
| 1992 | Tonya Pinkins | Jelly's Last Jam | Anita |
| 1993 | Ann Dowd | Candida | Miss Proserpine Garnett |
| 1994 | Jeanne Paulsen | The Kentucky Cycle | Joleen Rowen |
| 1995 | Calista Flockhart | The Glass Menagerie | Laura Wingfield |
| 1996 | LisaGay Hamilton | Valley Song | Veronica |
| 1997 | Allison Janney | Present Laughter | Liz Essendine |
| 1998 | Julyana Soelistyo | Golden Child | Eng Ahn |
| 1999 | Kristin Chenoweth | You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown | Sally Brown |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Sherie Rene Scott | Aida | Amneris |
| 2001 | Spencer Kayden | Urinetown | Little Sally |
| 2002 | Anne Hathaway | Carnival! | Lili |
| 2003 | Kerry Butler | Hairspray | Penny Pingleton |
| 2004 | Anika Noni Rose | Caroline, or Change | Emmie Thibodeaux |
| 2005 | Ari Graynor | Brooklyn Boy | Alison |
| 2006 | Felicia P. Fields | The Color Purple | Sofia |
| 2007 | Leslie Kritzer | Legally Blonde | Serena |
| 2008 | Zoe Kazan | Come Back, Little Sheba | Marie |
| Things We Want | Stella | ||
| 100 Saints You Should Know | Abby | ||
| 2009 | Quincy Tyler Bernstine | Ruined | Salima |
| Year | Actor | Show | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Nina Arianda | Venus in Fur | Vanda Jordan |
| 2011 | Tracee Chimo | Bachelorette | Regan |
| 2012 | Susan Pourfar | Tribes | Sylvia |
| 2013 | Annaleigh Ashford | Kinky Boots | Lauren |
| 2014 | Whitney Bashor | The Bridges of Madison County | Marian/Chiara |
| 2015 | Phillipa Soo | Hamilton | Eliza Schuyler Hamilton |
| 2016 | Alana Arenas | Head of Passes | Cookie |
| 2017 | Katrina Lenk | The Band's Visit | Dina |
| 2018 | Ashley Park | KPOP | MwE |
| Mean Girls | Gretchen Wieners | ||
| 2019 | Sarah Stiles | Tootsie | Sandy Lester |