Although many award shows have their accolades presented on stage, few other award shows also invite their audiences so intimately into that space.

But for the Betty Mitchell Awards, recognizing the excellence of Calgary’s theatre community means bringing together artists back on stage both literally and figuratively.

The 26th annual awards presentation captured the inclusivity of the theatre experience, with a trio of shows about finding representation and being authentic garnering a trio of awards each during the evening of June 23.

Theatre Calgary’s Awoowaakii and Legally Blonde, along with Handsome Alice Theatre with Tarragon Theatre and Verb Theatre’s Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers each won three awards during the evening.

Sable Sweetgrass, who took home the award for Outstanding New Play for Awoowaakii, said she wasn’t surprised by the win for her work given the talented team that brought it to life at Theatre Calgary.

“I was hoping they wouldn’t call my name because I was so scared. But to be honoured in my hometown, it means everything to me. This is where Indigenous stories, Blackfoot stories, have been told for thousands of years, and they’re being told today,” Sweetgrass said.

She said that after the closing of the production, which had been more than a decade in the making, she expected people to move on from it.

“I thought, ‘OK, well, I guess that’s that.’ Especially with the way things are happening in the world around us right now, and especially for transgender people, it just kind of feels like there’s other forces at play here too, and things happen for a reason,” Sweetgrass said.

Sweetgrass said the awards win was an important recognition for both Indigenous and transgender people having a space on the stage—but also for other community groups as well.

“It’s important to make space, whether it’s for transgender, Indigenous, immigrants, for people who are from the disability community, we have to make space for new stories,” she said.

Recognizing new works, and new companies

Recognizing new works, especially in the Opera world, was Ammolite Opera, which was itself recognized by the Betty Mitchell Awards in a tie with Theatre Calgary for Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Musical between Geoffrey Schellenberg for Proving Up and Patricia Zentilli for Legally Blonde.

Tayte Mitchell, CEO and Artistic Director for Ammolite Opera, said that the award was a big one for the company, which began its first season in 2024.

“It started out as a need to elevate a younger generation that is looking to see new opera, especially in Canada. We’re trying to fill that void, and give new composers or prospective composers, a place to probably debut their opera or or have a repeat, second performance of their opera,” Mitchell said.

“The fact that we have been blessed and celebrated by the theatre community means a lot, not just for locally, but nationally.”

He said that opera has gained a reputation as being archaic and boring, but it is an art form that is meant to be experienced by everyone.

“We’re doing it intimate, up close, personal. It’s all about being bold, taking risks, and being a totally unapologetic about it. So I think that’s what people in my generation look for in theatre experiences,” Mitchell said.

He said that when Ammolite Opera performed Proving Up in the 2024–25 season, it would have been one of the first productions that Betty Mitchell judges would have seen.

“I feel like we stuck in their memory last August. So it’s a pleasure to be recognized,” Mitchell said.

“I think what’s interesting is nobody knows who we are. When I reached out to the committee and said, ‘hey, we have a show, we’re paying them professional wages, everybody here is professional,’ whether it’s in the orchestra or whether it’s an actor, or whether it’s in crew, or anything like that, they didn’t know what they were walking into.”

But he said that experience of having an opera with a Canadian liberttist and playwright from Grande Prairie, Royce Vavrek, which had initially debuted at the Kennedy Centre, made a full circle back to Alberta with their company.

“The Bettys and the greater theatre community really have said that they’re curious and they want to see something new, they want to see risk, and we’re into that,” Mitchell said.

“So, we hope that this is a statement, not only locally but to all of our generation, for opera singers and and opera creators and things like that across the country, to say, ‘wow, I can actually, I should make my own thing’ especially in places where you’re not seeing it.”

Winners from the 2025 Betty Mitchell Awards

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE
The Play That Goes Wrong – Theatre Calgary in Partnership with The Citadel Theatre and The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A DRAMA
Makambe K. Simamba – Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers – Handsome Alice Theatre with Tarragon Theatre and Verb Theatre

OUTSTANDING PROJECTION OR VIDEO DESIGN
Andy Moro – The Da Vinci Code – Vertigo Theatre

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
Narda McCarroll – The Woman in Black – Vertigo Theatre

OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
John Doucet – Awoowaakii- Theatre Calgary

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
Ralamy Kneeshaw – Charlotte’s Web – Alberta Theatre Projects

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY
Marshall Vielle – Awoowaakii- Theatre Calgary

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL
Kelsey Verzotti – Legally Blonde – Theatre Calgary, in Partnership with the Citadel Theatre

OUTSTANDING NEW PLAY
Sable Sweetgrass – Awoowaakii- Theatre Calgary

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY OR FIGHT DIRECTION
Makambe K. Simamba with consulting by Shakeil Rollock – Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers – Handsome Alice Theatre with Tarragon Theatre and Verb Theatre

OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN OR COMPOSITION
Sonia Deleo – Two Moons: A Folk Lullaby – Handsome Alice Theatre

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A DRAMA
Christopher Hunt – The Seafarer – Alberta Theatre Projects

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY
Jaime Cesar – Static: A Party Girl’s Memoir – Inside Out and Chromatic Theatre

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (TIE – 2 winners)
Geoffrey Schellenberg – Proving Up – Ammolite Opera
Patricia Zentilli – Legally Blonde – Theatre Calgary, in Partnership with the Citadel Theatre

OUTSTANDING MUSICAL DIRECTION
Clarence Wolfleg, Skip Wolfleg, Eric Rose, Kris Demeanor, Jennie Esdale, Cedric Lightning, Alanna Bluebird, Kenna Burima, Tauran – Echoes of the Land – Ghost River Theatre

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION
Javier Vilalta – Mary Stuart – Sage Theatre

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
Legally Blonde – Theatre Calgary, in Partnership with the Citadel Theatre

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers – Handsome Alice Theatre with Tarragon Theatre and Verb Theatre