GUTS wins big at Cardozo Awards

Theater troupe GUTS was the big winner at the Cardozo Awards, the 'Oscars ceremony' for cultural centre Usva.

GUTS won the most coveted prize for Best Play for their production of ‘Clammed Up’, a comedy directed by Femke Nagelhout about two friends, one of whom gradually turns into a woman, who live together

The lead actor and GUTS board member James Lyon won the award for Best Actor. ‘It was such a fast paced and exciting night. I was totally caught up in a whirlwind of adrenaline that it wasn’t until afterwards when I had a beer that I thought ‘wow, this is amazing!’’, he says.

‘We were really good friends’

According to Lyon, ‘Clammed Up’ did well at the awards ceremony because the actors got along well with each other. ‘I could have a lot of fun with the role. You can act in crazy, funny ways and get away with it because you are ‘acting’. The other cast members were great fun to work with. We were really good friends, which I think helped the comedy flow so well. We also had a great director with a great sense of humor.’

In addition to Best Actor and Best Play, GUTS also won the award for Best Promotion for the play ‘The Breakfast Club’. ‘I think it reflects what GUTS stands for,’ Lyon says. ‘All our members are interested and enthusiastic about theatre and, fundamentally, we all want to work together to make a good show. However, we are all students, so of course we want to have some fun on the way.’

‘Plus, we are the only English speaking theatre society in Groningen for students, which means we can attract all the international talent to our society’, Lyon continues. ‘That creates a really cool vibe for internationals and Dutch members.’

Other winners

The Cardozo Awards are organized annually for Usva-subsidized student productions. Michael Bot of Groningen Student Theatre (GST) won the award for Best Director this year. Niké Wentholt of Theatre group De Bank was chosen as Best Actress. Karl van Stiphout of Idiomotor was awarded the prize for Best Supporting Actor. Idiomotor was also awarded the Best Design prize for their play, ‘Risjaar Modderfokker den Derde.’

06-10-2015