Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design (Drama Desk Award)

Drama Desk Award

The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. In the 2009 ceremony, the category was separated to honor both plays and musicals, but was reinstated as a singular category the following year. † - indicates the performance won the Tony Award ‡ - indicates the performance was also nominated for the Tony Award

Check all the winners of Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design presented under Drama Desk Award since 1975 .

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Drama Desk Awards 2014

Christopher Akerlind

Honored for : Rocky

Nominations 2014 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Christopher Akerlind	Rocky
Jane Cox	Machinal
David Lander	Theatreworks USA: The Civil War
Peter Mumford	Chichester Festival Theatre: King Lear
Brian Tovar	Tamar of the River
Japhy Weideman	Macbeth

Justin Townsend

Honored for : Here Lies Love

Nominations 2013 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jane Cox	Passion
Justin Townsend	Here Lies Love
Daniel Winters	The Man Who Laughs
Scott Zielinski	A Civil War Christmas
Ken Billington	Chaplin: The Musical
Kenneth Posner	Pippin

Brian MacDevitt

Honored for : Death of a Salesman

Nominations 2012 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Brian MacDevitt	Death of a Salesman
Kevin Adams	Carrie
David Lander	One Arm
Kenneth Posner	Death Takes a Holiday
Paul Pyant	Richard III
Neil Austin	Evita

David Lander

Honored for : Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo

Nominations 2011 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
David Lander	Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
Ben Stanton	The Whipping Man
David Weiner	A Small Fire
Jean Kalman	John Gabriel Borkman
Laura Mroczkowski	Spy Garbo
R. Lee Kennedy	See Rock City & Other Destinations

Neil Austin

Honored for : Red

Nominations 2010 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Neil Austin	Red
Christian DeAngelis	Lizzie Borden
Maruti Evans	John Ball's In the Heat of the Night
Dane Laffrey	The Boys in the Band
Neil Austin	Hamlet
Natasha Katz	The Addams Family

David Hersey

Honored for : Equus

(Lighting Design in a Play)

Nominations 2009 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
David Hersey	Equus Lighting Design in a Play
Marcus Doshi	Hamlet Lighting Design in a Play
Ben Kato	Washing Machine Lighting Design in a Play
R. Lee Kennedy	Bury the Dead Lighting Design in a Play
Paul Pyant	The Winter's Tale Lighting Design in a Play
Hugh Vanstone	Mary Stuart Lighting Design in a Play
Rick Fisher	Billy Elliot: The Musical Lighting Design in a Musical
Jason Lyons	Clay Lighting Design in a Musical
Sinéad McKenna	Improbable Frequency Lighting Design in a Musical
Jules Fisher	9 to 5 Lighting Design in a Musical
Kenneth Posner	9 to 5 Lighting Design in a Musical
Richard Pilbrow	A Tale of Two Cities Lighting Design in a Musical
Kevin Adams	Hair Lighting Design in a Musical

Rick Fisher

Honored for : Billy Elliot: The Musical

(Lighting Design in a Musical)

Nominations 2009 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
David Hersey	Equus Lighting Design in a Play
Marcus Doshi	Hamlet Lighting Design in a Play
Ben Kato	Washing Machine Lighting Design in a Play
R. Lee Kennedy	Bury the Dead Lighting Design in a Play
Paul Pyant	The Winter's Tale Lighting Design in a Play
Hugh Vanstone	Mary Stuart Lighting Design in a Play
Rick Fisher	Billy Elliot: The Musical Lighting Design in a Musical
Jason Lyons	Clay Lighting Design in a Musical
Sinéad McKenna	Improbable Frequency Lighting Design in a Musical
Jules Fisher	9 to 5 Lighting Design in a Musical
Kenneth Posner	9 to 5 Lighting Design in a Musical
Richard Pilbrow	A Tale of Two Cities Lighting Design in a Musical
Kevin Adams	Hair Lighting Design in a Musical

Kevin Adams

Honored for : The 39 Steps

Nominations 2008 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Maruti Evans	Slaughterhouse-Five
Keith Parham	Adding Machine
Kevin Adams	The 39 Steps
Donald Holder	South Pacific
Ken Billington	Sunday in the Park with George
Natasha Katz	The Little Mermaid

Brian MacDevitt

Honored for : The Coast of Utopia: Voyage

Nominations 2007 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Brian MacDevitt	The Coast of Utopia: Voyage
Kenneth Posner	The Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck
Natasha Katz	The Coast of Utopia: Salvage
Paul Gallo	Blackbird
Mark Jonathan	Prometheus Bound
Japhy Weideman	Jack Goes Boating
Howell Binkley	LoveMusik

Kenneth Posner

Honored for : The Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck

Nominations 2007 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Brian MacDevitt	The Coast of Utopia: Voyage
Kenneth Posner	The Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck
Natasha Katz	The Coast of Utopia: Salvage
Paul Gallo	Blackbird
Mark Jonathan	Prometheus Bound
Japhy Weideman	Jack Goes Boating
Howell Binkley	LoveMusik

Natasha Katz

Honored for : The Coast of Utopia: Salvage

Nominations 2007 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Brian MacDevitt	The Coast of Utopia: Voyage
Kenneth Posner	The Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck
Natasha Katz	The Coast of Utopia: Salvage
Paul Gallo	Blackbird
Mark Jonathan	Prometheus Bound
Japhy Weideman	Jack Goes Boating
Howell Binkley	LoveMusik

Richard G. Jones

Honored for : Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Nominations 2006 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Richard G. Jones	Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Traci Klainer Polimeni	The Asphalt Kiss
Martin Labrecque	Rain
John McKernon	The Trip to Bountiful
Robert J. Wilson	Peer Gynt
Christopher Akerlind	Awake and Sing!

Christopher Akerlind

Honored for : The Light in the Piazza

Nominations 2005 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Christopher Akerlind	Belle Epoque
Christopher Akerlind	The Light in the Piazza
R. Lee Kennedy	The Audience
Japhy Weideman	Frankenstein
Mark Henderson	Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Donald Holder	Gem of the Ocean

Peggy Eisenhauer, Jules Fisher

Honored for : Assassins

Nominations 2004 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Peggy Eisenhauer	Assassins
Jules Fisher	Assassins
T.J. Gerckens	The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci
Brian MacDevitt	Henry IV
David Lander	I Am My Own Wife
Donald Holder	The Violet Hour
Kenneth Posner	Wicked

Nigel Levings

Honored for : La Bohème

Nominations 2003 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Russell H. Champa	Yellowman
Donald Holder	Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme
Nigel Levings	La Bohème
Donald Holder	Movin' Out
Kevin Adams	Take Me Out
Peter Mumford	Vincent in Brixton

T.J. Gerckens

Honored for : Metamorphoses

Nominations 2002 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Frances Aronson	Psych
Kenneth Posner	Monster
T.J. Gerckens	Metamorphoses
David Hersey	Oklahoma!
Peter Mumford	Private Lives
Natasha Katz	Sweet Smell of Success

Paul Anderson

Honored for : Mnemonic

Nominations 2001 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Paul Anderson	Mnemonic
Hugh Vanstone	The Unexpected Man
Kenneth Posner	The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Howell Binkley	The Full Monty
Brian MacDevitt	The Invention of Love
Peter Kaczorowski	The Producers

Peter Kaczorowski

Honored for : Contact

Nominations 2000 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Brian MacDevitt	An Experiment with an Air Pump
Scott Zielinski	Space
Robert Perry	The Water Engine
Kenneth Posner	The Wild Party
Peter Kaczorowski	Contact
David Lander	Dirty Blonde

Chris Parry

Honored for : Not About Nightingales

Nominations 1999 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Chris Parry	Not About Nightingales
Michael Chybowski	Wit
Mimi Jordan Sherin	Bob
Howell Binkley	Parade
Paul Gallo	The Civil War
Natasha Katz	Twelfth Night

Donald Holder

Honored for : The Lion King

Nominations 1998 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Peter Maradudin	Ballad of Yachiyo
Kenneth Posner	Pride's Crossing","A View from the Bridge
Donald Holder	The Lion King
Mike Baldassari	Cabaret
Peggy Eisenhauer	Cabaret
Jules Fisher	Ragtime
Peggy Eisenhauer	Ragtime
Paul Anderson	The Chairs

Ken Billington

Honored for : Chicago

Nominations 1997 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Ken Billington	Chicago
Kevin Adams	Henry VI
Jean Kalman	The Waste Land
Donald Holder	Juan Darien
Richard Pilbrow	The Life

Peggy Eisenhauer, Jules Fisher

Honored for : Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk

Nominations 1996 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Peggy Eisenhauer	Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk
Jules Fisher	Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk
Chris Parry	A Midsummer Night's Dream
Beverly Emmons	Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Jules Fisher	Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Nigel Levings	The King and I

Richard Pilbrow

Honored for : Show Boat

Nominations 1995 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Richard Pilbrow	Show Boat
Paul Gallo	Blade to the Heart
Mark Henderson	Indiscretions
Brian MacDevitt	Love! Valour! Compassion!
Beverly Emmons	The Heiress

Rick Fisher

Honored for : An Inspector Calls

Nominations 1994 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Rick Fisher	An Inspector Calls
Christopher Akerlind	The Lights
Mimi Jordan Sherin	All's Well That Ends Well
Paul Pyant	Carousel
Beverly Emmons	Passion

Chris Parry

Honored for : The Who's Tommy

Nominations 1993 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Chris Parry	The Who's Tommy
Robert Christen	Wings
Brian MacDevitt	Three Hotels
Mimi Jordan Sherin	Woyzeck
Jules Fisher	Angels in America: Millennium Approaches

Paul Gallo

Honored for : Guys and Dolls

Nominations 1992 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Paul Gallo	Guys and Dolls
Jules Fisher	Jelly's Last Jam
Christopher Akerlind	Mad Forest
Mimi Jordan Sherin	Tis Pity She's a Whore
Trevor Dawson	Dancing at Lughnasa

Jules Fisher

Honored for : Jelly's Last Jam

Nominations 1992 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Paul Gallo	Guys and Dolls
Jules Fisher	Jelly's Last Jam
Christopher Akerlind	Mad Forest
Mimi Jordan Sherin	Tis Pity She's a Whore
Trevor Dawson	Dancing at Lughnasa

David Hersey

Honored for : Miss Saigon

Nominations 1991 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
David Hersey	Miss Saigon
Jules Fisher	Hamlet
Donald Holder	Caucasian Chalk Circle
Kenneth Posner	Machinal
Tharon Musser	The Secret Garden

Jules Fisher

Honored for : Grand Hotel

Nominations 1990 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jules Fisher	Grand Hotel
Tharon Musser	Artist Descending a Staircase
Andrew Bridge	Aspects of Love
Paul Gallo	City of Angels
Kevin Rigdon	The Grapes of Wrath

Andrew Bridge

Honored for : The Phantom of the Opera

Nominations 1988 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Pat Collins	Woman in Mind
Paul Gallo	Anything Goes
Andrew Bridge	The Phantom of the Opera
David Hersey	Chess
Richard Nelson	Into the Woods
Paul Gallo	Wenceslas Square

Chris Parry

Honored for : Les Liaisons Dangereuses

Nominations 1987 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jennifer Tipton	Worstward Ho
Chris Parry	Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Dennis Parichy	Coastal Disturbances
David Hersey	Les Misérables
Martin Aronstein	Wild Honey

Pat Collins

Honored for : Execution of Justice

Nominations 1986 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Paul Gallo	The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Pat Collins	Execution of Justice
Jennifer Tipton	Hamlet
Phil Monat	Goblin Market
Kevin Rigdon	Prairie du Chien/The Shawl

Richard Riddell

Honored for : Big River

Nominations 1985 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Kevin Rigdon	Balm in Gilead
Terry Wuthrich	Tracers
Richard Riddell	Big River
Jennifer Tipton	Whoopi Goldberg
Ken Billington	Grind
Ronald Wallace	Requiem for a Heavyweight

Richard Nelson

Honored for : Sunday in the Park with George

Nominations 1984 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Richard Nelson	Sunday in the Park with George
John Gisondi	Sound and Beauty
Frances Aronson	Painting Churches
Jules Fisher	La Cage aux Folles
Tharon Musser	The Real Thing
Marc B. Weiss	The Rink

David Hersey

Honored for : Cats

Nominations 1983 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
David Hersey	Cats
Richard Nelson	The Death of Von Richtofen as Witnessed From Earth
Mal Sturchio	Johnny Got His Gun
Ken Billington	Foxfire
Allen Lee Hughes	K2

Tharon Musser

Honored for : Dreamgirls

Nominations 1982 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Marcia Madeira	Nine
Tharon Musser	Dreamgirls
Beverly Emmons	The Dresser
Eugene Lee	The Hothouse
Marc B. Weiss	The First

Marcia Madeira

Honored for : Nine

Nominations 1982 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Marcia Madeira	Nine
Tharon Musser	Dreamgirls
Beverly Emmons	The Dresser
Eugene Lee	The Hothouse
Marc B. Weiss	The First

Jules Fisher, Robby Monk

Honored for : Frankenstein

Nominations 1981 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jules Fisher	Frankenstein
Robby Monk	Frankenstein
Pat Collins	Penguin Touquet
John Bury	Amadeus
Dennis Parichy	Fifth of July
Thomas R. Skelton	Lena Horne: \"The Lady and Her Music\"
Jennifer Tipton	Lunch Hour

Dennis Parichy

Honored for : Talley's Folly

Nominations 1980 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Duane Schuler	Teibele And Her Demon
David Hersey	Evita
Richard Nelson	Morning's at Seven
Tharon Musser	Children of a Lesser God
Dennis Parichy	Talley's Folly
John McLain	Émigrés

Roger Morgan

Honored for : The Crucifer of Blood

Nominations 1979 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Roger Morgan	The Crucifer of Blood
Tharon Musser	Ballroom
Ken Billington	Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Beverly Emmons	The Elephant Man
Tharon Musser	They're Playing Our Song

Jules Fisher

Honored for : Dancin'

Nominations 1978 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jules Fisher	Dancin'
Marc B. Weiss	Deathtrap
Roger Morgan	Dracula
Ronald Wallace	The Gin Game
Gilbert Vaughn Hemsley, Jr.	The Mighty Gents
John Arnone	K
Garland Wright	K

Jennifer Tipton

Honored for : For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf

Nominations 1977 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jennifer Tipton	For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf
Jennifer Tipton	The Cherry Orchard
Ronald Wallace	Comedians
John Bury	No Man's Land
Gilbert Vaughn Hemsley, Jr.	Porgy and Bess
Burl Hash	The Crazy Locomotive

Jennifer Tipton

Honored for : The Cherry Orchard

Nominations 1977 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jennifer Tipton	For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf
Jennifer Tipton	The Cherry Orchard
Ronald Wallace	Comedians
John Bury	No Man's Land
Gilbert Vaughn Hemsley, Jr.	Porgy and Bess
Burl Hash	The Crazy Locomotive

Jules Fisher

Honored for : Chicago

Nominations 1976 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Jules Fisher	Chicago
James Tilton	A Memory of Two Mondays / 27 Wagons Full of Cotton
Leon DiLeone	Angel Street
Thomas R. Skelton	Legend
James Tilton	They Knew What They Wanted
Robert Ornbo	Travesties
Ian Calderon	Trelawny of the Wells

Neil Peter Jampolis

Honored for : Sherlock Holmes

Nominations 1975 »

Nominee	Nominated Work
Neil Peter Jampolis	Sherlock Holmes
Julia Trevelyan Oman	Brief Lives
Andy Phillips	Equus
Abe Feder	Goodtime Charley
Roger Morgan	Saturday Sunday Monday