In the making since 2021, The Theatre Bloomies are finally upon us!
What is a Theatre Bloomie, you ask?
It’s an award designed to celebrate an outstanding overall production, conceptualized by TheatreBloom Founder Amanda Gunther. It has been cooking in her mind since the Pandemic shut things down back in March of 2020 with the notion of “…if live theatre ever comes back this would be a great thing to do…”
In November of 2022, it was ‘soft-announced’ that it would be rolling out in the 2023 calendar year. And halfway into the 2023 calendar year- it’s here!
What Is A Bloomie?
A Bloomie is an award that recognizes and celebrates theatrical excellence on the whole. A full-stage production where the performance, the execution of the show, the design and creative elements, and the overall experience is outstanding is what The Bloomies are aiming to recognize.
Who Is Eligible?
At this time any non-equity house or community theatre producing full-staged productions are eligible to receive a Bloomie Award. This includes community theatres, small-independent-DIY-theatres where artists are paid a stipend but not beholden to equity contracts, collegiate theatres, dinner theatres, summer theatres, and small professional theatres not beholden to equity contracts.
Touring houses, large professional theatres, equity houses, and pop-up/one-off companies designed specifically and solely for Fringe Festivals or specific events where there is no production outside of said specific event are ineligible at this time.
Theatres and their productions must be located in the following geographical areas:
- Baltimore
- Washington D.C.
- Northern Virginia
- Surrounding Maryland Areas
We’d love to include theatre everywhere, of course, but as TheatreBloom’s primary coverage area includes the above four geographical regions, and one of the criteria is ‘must have been reviewed by TheatreBloom’, that’s the area where your production must take place. Not sure if your location qualifies you for a Bloomie? Shoot us a quick email! (If you’ve ever been reviewed before by a member of TheatreBloom, that means you’re in the qualifying geographical area!)
What Criteria Is Looked For In A Bloomie Recipiant?
Theatres are eligible to receive a Bloomie Award if the following criteria (updated April 2025) are met:
- A full-length, fully staged theatrical engagement that runs for more than one performance, with a minimum of three performances in the duration of its run.
- Legal production rights must be procured for the production (if it’s in public domain, like Shakespeare, that’s great! If it’s a licensed show, the appropriate license must be obtained for production rights in order to be considered for a Bloomie Award. No ‘unauthorized productions’ please!)
- Stellar, exceptional, high-quality performances from all performers in the production (this includes appropriate casting choices, as defined and regulated by the licensure and rights’ holding corporation.)
- The production must make use of a set (unless a specific and intentional concept of ‘no-set-minimalism’ is explicitly expressed.)
- Exceptional, high-quality production values including Lights, Set, Costume, Props, and Sound. (meaning no microphone issues or feedback, sound system malfunctions, etc.)
- Exceptional design and execution of Choreography*
- Exceptional design and execution of Musical Numbers/Live Orchestrations
- Must use a live orchestra*** for musical productions
- Be free from instances of Nepotism**
- Must have an overall feeling of “that perfect production”
- Must have been reviewed by the TheatreBloom publication prior to the production’s closing
- All performances must be open to the public once the production is open
*if applicable (as not all productions eligible will be musical productions or musical productions that necessitate choreography.)
**Nepotism is defined as any actor/actress in a leading/principal role in a musical or non-musical play having a direct relation (parental/child/sibling) or a romantic relationship (married/dating/civil-union) to the director of the show or the director and/or music director of a musical. This ensures fair casting practices for all theater companies in consideration for an award. If a leading/principal actor/actress has a direct relation or relationship to the director and/or musical director, the show is not eligible for a Bloomie Award. Nepotism is also defined as any leading/principal role self-filled by the director and/or musical director- with certain exceptions due to emergency (emergency is defined as ‘the director and/or musical director had to step into the role, unplanned, during tech week as the original person cast had to leave the show due to illness, injury, emergency, or other unforeseen circumstances.) If a leading/principal role is cast and filled by the director and/or musical director, aforementioned emergency exceptions notwithstanding, the production cannot be considered for a Bloomie Award.
*** a live orchestra is defined as two more more live musicians, accompanying the performance. Tracks and pre-recorded music can be included but cannot be the sole resource for music in a production if it is to be considered for a Bloomie Award.
What about Jr. Productions and Children’s Theatre?
Children’s Theatres are in consideration for a Bloomie Jr. if the following criteria (updated May 2025) can be met:
- Production must be a full-length production (not ‘junior’) High school/school/teen editions are acceptable.
- Production must run at minimum two performances
- Production must have consistent casting (while we appreciate many TYA programs have the A-Cast/B-Cast mentality, this would become an impossible situation to take into consideration for a Bloomie Jr. Award.)
- If the production is a musical, there must be a live orchestra* accompanying the performance
- Legal production rights must be procured for the production (if it’s in public domain, like Shakespeare, that’s great! If it’s a licensed show, the appropriate license must be obtained for production rights in order to be considered for a Bloomie Award. No ‘unauthorized productions’ please!)
- Production Company must have been in existence for at least one full-calendar year, wherein they have produced a minimum of two full-length TYA shows.
- Have stellar production values
- Have stellar performances from all members of the cast
When Will The Bloomies Be Announced
As The Bloomies are not a given, annual award where everyone gets nominated/recognized and everyone is going to receive a nod, they will be announced at the time of presentation. This is a rare award for theatrical excellence and is expected to be awarded approximately 1-4 times over the course of a calendar year.
THE FIRST EVER BLOOMIE AWARD
It is with great pride and deepest pleasure that TheatreBloom is announcing the first-ever Bloomie Award! It is being awarded this August of 2023! Keep your eyes on this spot to see which theatrical production is the first-ever recipient. 
On August 6th 2023, the first-ever Bloomie Award was presented to Cockpit in Court for their production of The Prom. At the closing matinee performance of the show’s run, the official award and trophy were presented during the curtain call to Director Roger Schulman on behalf of the cast, company, and crew.
To read the review of Cockpit in Court’s The Prom, click here.
THEATRE BLOOMIE AWARDS
- Cockpit in Court- The Prom (July 21st through August 6th 2023)
- Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church- The Secret Garden (March 8th through March 17th 2024)
- Maryland Theatre Collective- Spring Awakening (July 12th through July 28th 2024)
- The Colonial Players of Annapolis- Working: A Musical (February 28th through March 29th 2025)
Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church became the second theatre company to receive a TheatreBloom Bloomie Award for their production of The Secret Garden, awarded at the closing night performance on March 17th 2024. The production included over 125 people working on it- with 53 main-stage performers, a 17-person orchestra, and dozens of others lending their hands both in the choir, production, and tech team.
To read the TheatreBloom review of The Secret Garden, click here.
Maryland Theatre Collective, four short months later, became the third-ever recipient of a Theatre Bloomie Award for achieving theatrical excellence with their production of Spring Awakening.
Official Bloomie Award Recipients
- Cockpit in Court: The Prom (August 2023)
- Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church: The Secret Garden (March 2024)
- Maryland Theatre Collective: Spring Awakening (July 2024)
- The Colonial Players of Annapolis: Working: A Musical (March 2025)
Official Bloomie Jr. Award Recipients