The Fools Awards 2003, an opportunity for the public to vote for their favourite movers and shakers in the KZN arts community, took place at The Cellar in Durban after last night’s performance of Double Take, starring Anthony Stonier and Stephan Marneweck.

Awards for Best Actress and Best Actor went to Kate Bruce (Steel Magnolias) and Michael Gritten (King Kong). Greg King received the Best Director award for Keely & Du, Private Lives, Steel Magnolias and Best Set Design for the latter two productions. Steel Magnolias won the award for Best Theatre Production

Other winners in the Theatre category were Olivia Borgen (Best New Actress for Keely & Du) and Rowan Bartlett (Best New Actor for Izinganekwane Story Theatre). Best Script went to John van de Ruit & Ben Voss for Green Mamba and Andrew Verster won Best Costume Design for Private Lives and Sinderella Comes Again. Best Lighting Design went to Michael Broderick for It’s Not Where You Start and Macbeth.

In the Dance category, the Best Male Dancer and Best Female Dancer awards went to Ebrahim Medell and Mary-Anne de Wet with David Gouldie winning Best Choreographer. The award for Best Dance Company went to Fantastic Flying Fish Dance Company and the award for Best Dance Production went to Jay Pather for Cityscapes.

In the Music category, the awards for best classical musician and best contemporary musician were awarded to Christopher Duigan and Evan Roberts respectively. Karen van Pletsen and Anthony Stonier won Best Female and Best Male Singer awards. The Kerimov Trio was awarded the Best Classical Music Group with Landscape Prayers winning the honours for Best Contemporary Music Group.

Best Music Production was Bloody Mary with the Aquarian Quartet winning Best Album.

In the General Category, artSMart Editor Caroline Smart won Best Arts Journalist. Other awards went to Amanda Laird-Cherry (Best Fashion Designer), Nicky du Plessis (Best Dressed Female), Peter Machen (Best Dressed Male). The award for Best Radio Personality went collectively to the SAFM Arts Team – Dianne Kohler- Barnard , Alan Swerdlow, Bruce Millar, Fiona Ramsay and Gary Oberholzer.

A posthumous award for Best Visual Artist paid tribute to the late Trevor Makhoba.

Outstanding Achievement and contribution were recognised in the Impact Awards. These went to The Actors Co-operative (Youth Audiences); Jerry Pooe of Eager Artists (Cultural Theatre); Peter Court (Theatre Industry); Juan Burgers (Vocal Training); Gisele Turner (Music Journalism); John Edwards (Café Jazz) and Illa Thompson (Arts community).

Each recipient received a beautiful, hand-crafted ceramic and wood ‘ninny-stick’, or jester’s stick, sculpted by Durban artist Wendy Nell.

Full details at www.artslink/copydog.co.za