The Butaca Theater Awards of Catalonia (full Catalan name: Premis Butaca de teatre de Catalunya, short form: Butaca Awards, i.e. Premis Butaca) are annual theater awards judged by popular vote existing since 1995 in Catalonia to reward those who have made valuable contributions to Catalan theater.

Spirit, Aims and Inner Workings

They were designed as the first awards granted by popular vote and as such, are exclusively the product of audience votes. The idea was to create awards that were direct and honest, unfettered by manipulation by interested parties. They also aimed to legitimate the audience's opinion. Any productions (in any language) debuting in Catalonia are eligible. These awards are considered very prestigious in Catalonia.

There are currently (in 2016) 19 categories for the award.

The nominations are done by a committee of people who have neither direct nor indirect connections to the world of theater and have to have attended at least 36 productions during the season.

History

The Butaca Awards were created by initiative of the Radio program called "Des de la butaca" (From the butaca, where butaca refers to a seat in a theater), on Ràdio Premià de Mar, a radio station from the coastal town of Premià de Mar. Every three years, the awards ceremony takes place in Premià de Mar, but is otherwise itinerant.

Until 2010, they were called Premis Butaca de teatre i cinema de Catalunya (Butaca Theater and Film Awards of Catalonia) and, though they were mainly for theater, included awards for cinema as well (three categories, plus an honor award). They have since exclusively focused on theater. Also in 2010, two new categories emerged: Best Theater Production made in Spain and Best Foreign Production (performed in Catalonia during the season) but were merged into one (Best Spanish or Foreign Production) in the 2012 edition.

Past Ceremonies

The following is a listing of a few editions of the Butaca Awards, though only indicating the winner of the Best Theater Production.

EditionAwards Ceremony DateBest Theater Production laureateHost(s)Venue
1st Butaca Awards1995Sweeney Todd
2nd Butaca Awards1996Pel davant i pel darrere
3rd Butaca Awards1997Àngels a Amèrica
4th Butaca Awards1998Paraules encadenades
5th Butaca Awards1999La reina de bellesa de Leenane
6th Butaca Awards2000La vida es sueño
7th Butaca Awards2001Titus AndrònicPremià de Mar
8th Butaca Awards2002Escenes d'una execucióPremià de Mar
9th Butaca Awards2003Dissabte, diumenge i dillunsPavelló d'Esports Premià de Mar
10th Butaca Awards2004El mestre i MargaritaPavelló d'Esports Premià de Mar
11th Butaca Awards2005ForastersPavelló d'Esports Premià de Mar
12th Butaca Awards2006AntígonaViladecans
13th Butaca Awards2007PlataformaPavelló d'Esports Teresa Maria Roca, Mataró
14th Butaca AwardsNovember 24, 2008GermanesPremià de Mar
15th Butaca AwardsNovember 2, 2009La casa de Bernarda AlbaMuseu Marítim (Barcelona)
16th Butaca AwardsNovember 30, 2010El BallGlòria Cid, Toni MartinArtèria Paral·lel (Barcelona)
17th Butaca AwardsNovember 22, 2011AgostTeatre Lliure (Barcelona)
18th Butaca Awards2012IncendisMercat de les Flors (Barcelona)
19th Butaca Awards2013Els feréstecsSala Tallers, Teatre Nacional de Catalunya (Barcelona)
20th Butaca Awards2014L’Orfe del clan dels ZhaoTeatre Principal (Barcelona)
21st Butaca Awards2015El Rei LearEspai Lliure, Teatre Lliure (Barcelona)
22nd Butaca Awards2016Dansa d’agostTeatre Apol·lo (Barcelona)
23rd Butaca Awards2017Mercat de les Flors (Barcelona)

External links

  • (in Catalan)