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TDF, the not-for-profit service organization for the performing arts, is proud to announce that celebrated costume designer ANN HOULD-WARD and legendary scenic designer RICHARD HUDSON are among the 2024 TDF/Irene Sharaff Award recipients. Ms. Hould-Ward will be honored with the TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design while Mr. Hudson will receive The Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design. Additionally, costume designer MACHINE DAZZLE will receive the TDF/Kitty Leech Ascending Artist Award and TRICORNE, INC. will receive the TDF/Irene Sharaff Artisan Award.

The awards ceremony will be presented through the TDF Costume Collection on Friday, April 5 at 6:30 p.m. at The Edison Ballroom (240 West 47th Street). A pre-awards cocktail reception will begin at 5:30 p.m. For ticket information call 212-989-5855 ext. 219 or email tdfsharaffawards@gmail.com. The awards will be presented by ANNA DEAVERE SMITH to Ann Hould-Ward; THOMAS SCHUMACHER to Richard Hudson; JUSTIN VIVIAN BOND to Machine Dazzle and BERNADETTE PETERS to Tricorne, Inc. (Katherine Marshall).

“These 2024 awardees represent the very best of our design community in all of its glorious and varied forms,” said STEPHEN CABRAL, Director of the TDF Costume Collection. “We get to celebrate a designer who led the Beast to the dance, an artisan who helped Bob Mackie “Turn Back Time,” a scenic designer who showed us the “Circle of Life” and a multidisciplinary artist who constantly dazzles. I truly couldn’t be more excited about the TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards this year.”

“When the diverse communities we serve attend the theatre for the first time, they enter new worlds, transported by the magic created by the show’s designers. The TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards fete these makers and the worlds that they bring to life, sparking our collective imagination and allowing us to dream,” said DEEKSHA GAUR, TDF’s Executive Director. “We are grateful to Mel Weingart, Linda Hardberger and Robert Perdziola of the Tobin Theatre Arts Fund for their continued support of this joyful event.”

TDF/IRENE SHARAFF AWARDS VOTING COMMITTEE:

The awardees were selected by the TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards Voting Committee, which consists of leading members of the theatrical costume design community: Stephen Cabral (Chair), Dede Ayite, Gregg Barnes, Dean Brown, Linda Cho, Traci DiGesu, Lana Fritz, Jess Goldstein, Rodney Gordon, Brian Hemesath, Allen Lee Hughes, Holly Hynes, Dan Lawson, Anna Louizos, Katherine Marshall, Mimi Maxmen, David Murin, Sally Ann Parsons, Scott Pask, Robert Perdziola, Carrie Robbins, Alejo Vietti, Court Watson and David Zinn.

Throughout her long and distinguished career, costume designer IRENE SHARAFF was known for her elegance and attention to detail. Ms. Sharaff was revered as a designer of enormous depth and intelligence, equally secure with both contemporary and period costumes. Her work exemplified the best of costume design. Such excellence is demonstrated by the honorees of this year's TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards.

ABOUT THE AWARDS:

The TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design (formerly the Lifetime Achievement Award in Costume Design) was first presented to the legendary Ms. Sharaff in 1993. It is bestowed annually to a costume designer who has achieved great distinction. The award is presented to a designer whose work embodies the qualities of excellence represented in Ms. Sharaff's lifework: a keen sense of color, a feeling for material and texture, an eye for shape and form, and a sure command of the craft. The awardee's achievement may stem from work for the theatre, opera, dance, film or—as was true of Ms. Sharaff—from all of them together.

Previous winners of the TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design are Desmond Heeley (1994), Miles White (1996), Alvin Colt (1996), Patricia Zipprodt (1997), Jane Greenwood (1998), Willa Kim (1999), Ann Roth (2000), Freddy Wittop (2001), Theoni V. Aldredge (2002), Jose Varona (2003), Anthony Powell (2004), Florence Klotz (2005), Lester Polakov (2006), Bob Mackie (2007), Robert Fletcher (2008), William Ivey Long (2009), Albert Wolsky (2010), Lewis Brown (2011), Carrie Robbins (2012), David Toser (2013), Deborah M. Dryden (2014), Jess Goldstein (2015), Susan Tsu (2016), Catherine Zuber (2017), Holly Hynes (2018), Susan Hilferty (2019) and Fred Voelpel (2022).

The Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design (formerly the Lifetime Achievement Award in Theatrical Design) honors its namesake and symbolizes Tobin's passion, respect and esteem for the art of theatrical design. Recipients have achieved distinction in theatrical design and their work serves as an example of the beauty, feeling and empathy that's created through true mastery of this art. The Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design was first presented in 2004 to acclaimed set and costume designer Tony Walton. The award has since been presented to Robert O'Hearn (2005), Franco Zeffirelli (2006), Santo Loquasto (2007), John Conklin (2008), Bob Crowley (2009), Ming Cho Lee (2010), Robin Wagner (2011), Lloyd Burlingame (2012), Desmond Heeley (2013), Marjorie Bradley Kellogg (2014), Douglas W. Schmidt (2015), Michael Yeargan (2016), Tony Straiges (2017), Zack Brown (2018), John Lee Beatty (2019) and Eugene Lee (2022).

The TDF/Kitty Leech Ascending Artist Award (formerly the TDF/Irene Sharaff Young Master Award) was named in honor of the late designer and previous Sharaff Awards Voting Committee Chair Kitty Leech. This award is presented to a designer whose promising work has come to fruition. With this honor, we recognize Kitty Leech's and Irene Sharaff’s wish to see designers encouraged as they achieve success and excellence in the field.

The TDF/Kitty Leech Ascending Artist Award was previously bestowed upon Gregg Barnes (1994), Toni-Leslie James (1996), Paul Tazewell (1997), Martin Pakledinaz (1998), Suzy Benzinger (1999), Robert Perdziola (2000), Constance Hoffman (2001), Jonathan Bixby & Gregory Gale (2002), Anita Yavich (2003), Mirena Rada (2004), David Zinn (2005), Emilio Sosa (2006), Murell Horton (2007), Fabio Toblini (2008), Clint Ramos (2009), Alejo Vietti (2010), Olivera Gajic (2011), Mathew LeFebvre (2012), Daniel Lawson (2013), Linda Cho (2014), Brian Hemesath (2015), Suttirat Anne Larlarb (2016), Paloma Young (2017), Travis Halsey (2018), Miodrag Guberinic (2019) and Dede Ayite (2022).

The TDF/Irene Sharaff Artisan Award recognizes an individual or company that has made an outstanding supportive contribution in the field of costume technology. Honorees include assistant and associate costume designers, costume shops that transform into glorious and breathtaking realities, teachers who dedicate their lives to turning raw talent into professional accomplished designers, and authors who create essential texts and trade publications without which designers could not function.

The TDF/Irene Sharaff Artisan Award was previously given to Ray Diffen (1999), Woody Shelp (2000), Barbara Matera (2001), Paul Huntley (2002), Maria Brizzi/Grace Costumes, Inc. (2003), Nino Novellino (2004), Vincent Zullo (2005), Martin Izquierdo (2006), Kermit Love (2007), Bessie Nelson (2008), Sally Ann Parsons (2009), John David Ridge (2010), Michael-Jon Costumes (2011), Lynn Pecktal (2012), Lawrence Vrba (2013), Marianne Krostyne (2014), Gino Bifulco – T.O. Dey Shoes (2015), Liz Covey & Rosemary Ingham (2016), Ernest Smith (2017), Fritz Masten (2018), Rodney Gordon (2019) and Michael Curry (2022).

The TDF/Irene Sharaff Memorial Tribute was created to recognize, celebrate and remember the artists who pioneered the art of costume design, setting the standard for years to come. TDF believes that in reliving and reviewing the body of work of these artists, a new generation of designers can learn and grow, standing on the shoulders of the giants who came before. As has been a tradition since the awards were founded, the memorial tribute will feature a screening of a 15-minute film created by designer Suzy Benzinger.

The TDF/Irene Sharaff Memorial Tribute Award was previously bestowed upon Raoul Pene Du Bois (1999), Lucinda Ballard (2000), Aline Bernstein (2001), Cecil Beaton (2002), Ruth Morley (2003), Lemuel Ayers (2004), Oliver Messel (2005), Lila De Nobili (2006), Rouben Ter-Arutunian (2007), Tanya Moiseiwitsch (2008), Irene Sharaff (2009), Randy Barceló (2010), Charles LeMaire (2011), William and Jean Eckart (2012), Martin Pakledinaz (2013), Sam Kirkpatrick (2014), Raoul Pene Du Bois (2015), Dorothy Jeakins (2016) Motley – Margaret Harris, Sophie Harris and Elizabeth  Montgomery Wilmot (2017), Karinska (2018), Irene Sharaff (2019) and Caroline F. Siedle (2022).

ABOUT THE AWARDEES:

ANN HOULD-WARD’s (2024 TDF/Irene Sharaff Award for Sustained Excellence in Costume Design) Broadway credits include The Color Purple, The Visit, The People in the Picture, A Free Man of Color (Drama Desk nomination), A Catered Affair (Drama Desk nomination), Company, Beauty and the Beast (Tony Award; American Theatre Wing’s Design Award; Ovation Award; Oliver nomination, Best Costume Design), Into the Woods (Tony, Drama Desk nominations, Outer Critics Circle nomination, L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award), Falsettos and Sunday in the Park with George (Tony, Drama Desk nominations.)

She has designed costumes for numerous dances created by the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, including Elemental Brubeck, Jangle, the company’s co-production of Othello, A Dance in Three Acts and Lubovitch’s dance based on The Bronze Horseman at the Mikhailovsky Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia. Her costume designs can be seen at the following operas and ballet companies: Peter Grimes at The Metropolitan Opera, West Side Story at the Salzburg Festival in Austria, The Most Happy Fella at

New York City Opera, Mahagonny at Los Angeles Opera, Regina at Miami Opera, Amelia at Seattle Opera, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet and the Norwegian National Ballet.

Internationally, Ms. Hould-Ward has designed the costumes for The Prince of Egypt (West End), Dear World (West End), Schuh Des Mantu (Germany) and Imagine This (West End).

RICHARD HUDSON (2024 Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design) was born in Zimbabwe and trained at Wimbledon School of Art. He has designed operas for Glyndebourne in Covent Garden, The Metropolitan Opera in New York, Teatro alla Scala, Maggio Musicale Florence, English National Opera, Scottish Opera, Kent Opera, Opera North, Wiener Staatsoper, Munich, Chicago, Copenhagen, Athens, Bregenz, Amsterdam, Zurich, Barcelona, Madrid, Brussels, Houston, Washington, Venice, Pesaro and Rome. He has also designed for the Aldeburgh Festival, The Royal Ballet, Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, Royal Court, Almeida and the Young Vic. In 1988, Mr. Hudson won an Olivier Award for the Jonathan Miller season at the Old Vic. His set designs for Disney’s The Lion King have won him numerous awards including a Tony in 1998.

Mr. Hudson is a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI). In 2003, he won The Gold Medal for Set Design at the Prague Quadrennial and in 2005 he received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Surrey.

Recent work includes Leopoldstadt (West End and Broadway), La Bohème, Gianni Schicchi (Greek National Opera), The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty (American Ballet Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (Bolshoi Ballet), Four Seasons, La Bayadère Le Coq D’or and Raymonda (The Royal Danish Ballet), Das Rhinegold, Die Walküre, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung (Teatro Massimo, Palermo), Versailles (Donmar Warehouse), La Bohème (Bologna), Peter Gynt (National Theatre), Morgen und Abend (Royal Opera, Covent Garden and Deutsche Oper, Berlin) and Ballo in Maschera (Verdi Festival, Parma).

MACHINE DAZZLE (2024 TDF/Kitty Leech Ascending Artist Award): A beloved downtown bon vivant and all-around creative provocateur, Machine Dazzle has been dazzling stages via costumes, sets and performance since his arrival in New York in 1994. He designs intricate, unconventional wearable art pieces and bespoke installations. As a stage designer, Dazzle has collaborated with Julie Atlas Muz, Big Art Group, Mx. Justin Vivian Bond, Taylor Mac, Basil Twist, Godfrey Reggio, Jennifer Miller, The Dazzle Dancers, Big Art Group, Mike Albo, Stanley Love, Soomi Kim, Pig Iron Theatre Company, Opera Philadelphia, the Bearded Ladies Cabaret, the Curran Theatre and Spiegelworld. He has also created bespoke looks for fashion icons including designer Diane von Furstenberg and model Cara Delevingne for the 2019 Metropolitan Museum of Art Gala. Recent collaborations include Bassline Fabulous with the Catalyst Quartet (Metropolitan Museum of Art); Treasure, a rock-and-roll cabaret of original songs and accompanying fashion show; and the historic premiere of the never-before-seen Rameau comedic opera-ballet Io (Opera Lafayette). He was a co-recipient the 2017 Bessie Award for Outstanding Visual Design, the winner of a 2017 Henry Hewes Design Award and a 2022 United States Artists Fellow. Dazzle delivered a TED Talk at TED Vancouver in 2023. He has had solo exhibitions at NYC’s Museum of Arts and Design (“Queer Maximalism x Machine Dazzle”) and Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre (“Machine Dazzle: Art And Intention”). He recently designed the costumes and performed in Taylor Mac’s Bark of Millions at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

TRICORNE, Inc. (2024 TDF/Irene Sharaff Artisan Award) opened in 2000 and has created costumes for hundreds of productions, including more than 50 Broadway shows with Tony-nominated costume designs. Owner Katherine Marshall and the staff at Tricorne take pride in collaborating with designers to create their visions for Broadway, film, television, dance and other entertainments in the US and around the world. Stage highlights include Wicked; Hamilton; Mamma Mia; Aladdin; 42nd Street; The Producers; Monty Python’s Spamalot; The Color Purple; Nine; Tarzan; Legally Blonde; Gypsy; In the Heights; Exit the King; A Free Man of Color; Shrek the Musical; Billy Elliot the Musical; The Pirate Queen; How the Grinch Stole Christmas; In the Next Room (or the Vibrator Play); The Importance of Being Earnest; A Christmas Carol; Fela!; Memphis; Priscilla, Queen of the Desert; Anything Goes; Porgy and Bess; Kinky Boots; Matilda the Musical; Beautiful; Motown; On the Town; After Midnight; Hedwig and the Angry Inch; Something Rotten!; Sunset Boulevard; Hello, Dolly!; Once on This Island; The Cher Show; Mean Girls; Hadestown; Caroline, or Change; The Music Man; The Piano Lesson; New York, New York; Shucked; Some Like It Hot; Here Lies Love; Here We Are; The Notebook; Lempicka; Cabaret; Suffs and Boop!

Film and television credits include Mirror, Mirror; West Side Story; The Knick; The Gilded Age; The Greatest Showman; Smash; Maleficent 2; Respect; Wonder Wheel; I Wanna Dance with Somebody and The Wiz Live. Dance credits include productions with American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Australian Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, Alberta Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Orlando Ballet and Milwaukee Ballet.

Tricorne’s work has also been featured at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, The Metropolitan Opera, the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, Disney on Ice, Wynn Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood Las Vegas and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Tricorne has been honored to create concert performance gowns and wedding dresses for many of Broadway’s leading ladies, directors and producers, including Eartha Kitt, Diana Ross, Cher and Bernadette Peters.

Tricorne has grown to be a shop that regularly employs more than 30 artisans and makers. Kathy Marshall continues the traditions she learned from Annette Garceau, Barbara Matera and the many artists she has collaborated with for over 45 years. Tricorne can be found @tricorneinc on Instagram.

THE TDF COSTUME COLLECTION consists of the TDF Costume Collection Rental Program and the TDF Costume Collection Research Program. The Rental Program maintains an extensive inventory of more than 100,000 costumes and accessories for rent at discount prices by any not-for-profit theatre company, opera company, university, high school, religious group, etc. Commercial projects are also welcome. The Collection resides in a 16,000 square-foot home at Kaufman Astoria Studios. This past year, the Collection served organizations that produced more than 500 productions and mail orders in 21 states. It stocks all periods and accepts donations from productions, institutions and individuals. These donations are tax deductible to the degree allowed by law. The Research Program provides resources for those looking to study the art of theatrical costume design.

THE TOBIN THEATRE ARTS FUND (formerly The Tobin Foundation for Theatre Arts) was founded by the late Robert L. B. Tobin, who was heir to one of the largest family fortunes in Texas. Robert Tobin admitted to being a frustrated theatre designer with a need to be creative. All through his academic years and early adulthood, he collected rare theatrical volumes, etchings, engravings and drawings. At the time of his 50th birthday in 1984, The Tobin Wing of the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas, was constructed specifically to provide a museum setting for the theatre arts. As such, the wing houses Robert Tobin's extensive collection of more than 20,000 original models, scenic and costume designs, as well as some 8,000 rare and illustrated books. This unprecedented collection of preliminary sketches, final renderings, maquettes, engravings and illustrated texts provides a visual history of theatre art from the Renaissance to the present. The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund has underwritten the publication of the book Making the Scene: A History of Stage Design and Technology in Europe and the United States, co-authored by Dr. Oscar G. Brockett, Margaret Mitchell and Linda Hardberger. This work is a lively, beautifully illustrated history of theatrical stage design from ancient Greek times to the present.

The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund exists to stimulate public interest in the art of the theatre designer through a far-reaching program of exhibitions, lectures, and expansion of and broad-based access to the collection at the McNay.

ABOUT TDF 

Founded in 1968, TDF (formerly known as Theatre Development Fund) is a not-for-profit service organization dedicated to sharing the power of the performing arts with everyone. TDF’s mission is to sustain live theatre and dance by engaging a broad and diverse audience and eliminating barriers to attendance. We fulfill our mission with a variety of programs that expand access, cultivate communities and support the makers of the performing arts.

We are known for our theatregoing programs, including the TKTS by TDF Discount Booths (which celebrated 50 years in Times Square in 2023) and the TDF Membership Program; TDF Accessibility Programs (including open captioning, audio description, Autism Friendly Performances and the Veterans Theatregoing Program); School programs (serving more than 10,000 New York City students annually) and Community programs (serving 18,000 people in the tristate area); as well as the TDF Costume Collection Rental and Research Programs. TDF envisions a world where the transformative experience of attending live theatre and dance is essential, relevant, accessible and inspirational. To learn more about TDF, go to tdf.org; Facebook/Instagram/Threads: @tdfnyc.

This year's TDF/Irene Sharaff Awards ceremony is being generously supported by The Tobin Theatre Arts Fund.