Lawrence Griffin, Stephanie Morelli, Karen Grim, and Pat Reynolds star in Colonial Players’ “The Shape of Things,” nominated for Outstanding Play. Photo by David Colburn.

As the film industry heads into its awards season (how about those Golden Globes last night?), community members will want to enjoy the honors and awards bestowed upon live theatre right here in our own neighborhoods. Nominations for the Washington Area Theatre Community Honors (WATCH) were announced yesterday, and local Annapolitan community theatre troupe Colonial Players was nominated in four categories. Richard Koster was nominated for Outstanding Stage Combat Choreography for his work on the musical “Company” (Mar-Apr 2011), Pat Reynolds was nominated for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play for his performance as Paul Gauguin in “Inventing Van Gogh” (Feb 2011) Wes Bedsworth was nominated for Outstanding Sound Design in a Play for his work on “The Diviners” (Jan 2011) and “The Shape of Things” (June 2011) was nominated for Outstanding Play.

The WATCH awards recognize community theatres throughout the metropolitan D.C. area for excellence in artistic and technical theatrical achievement. Annapolis-based companies Colonial Players and 2nd Star Productions are among the thirty-two community theatres participating.

Colonial Players of Annapolis has been providing quality theatre productions to the downtown Annapolis area since 1949. Season after season, the company stages a variety of productions including comedies, dramas, musicals, one-acts, and workshops. Colonial Players’ current production of “Cinderella Waltz” runs through Jan 21, and its season will continue with Neil Simon’s “Chapter Two” in February. For a complete the 2011-2012 season, visit www.thecolonialplayers.org.

Check out our review of Colonial Players’ nominated productions of “Company” and “The Shape Of Things.”

Learn more about the WATCH awards at their website and stayed tuned when winners are announced in March.