Theater awards are not why actors, directors and other artists take part in the craft of theater - but awards can be nice, just the same. For decades, the San Francisco Bay Area Theater Critics Circle has given out awards to the finest Bay Area practitioners of the art of stagecraft, and for years (and years, and years) the awards have almost completely ignored the contributions of Sonoma County theater companies. It’s been a simple matter of mathematics. Too few critics from the southern parts of the Bay Area willing or able to travel north + too few critics circle members who live and see theater in Sonoma County = an unfortunate imbalance when the awards are announced, giving the impression that the best theater is being done primarily in San Francisco, Berkeley, and certain parts of Marin.

Well . . . times they are a changin’.

The mathematics have shifted a bit, due to a recent increase in Sonoma County theater bloggers joining the circle, and a recent fall-off of centrally-located critics from the circle. The result is a rather spectacular change of fortune which, as of last Monday night - at the fancy annual critics circle awards ceremony in Oakland - led to dozens of Bay Area theater people sitting around their tables saying, over and over, Sonoma County? There’s theater in Sonoma County? Why are so Sonoma County theater people getting so many awards?

The answer, of course, is: because they deserve it. Because they have deserved it for years, and never received it. And, by the way, it’s about freaking time.

It wasn’t exactly lopsided or anything. Out of fifty-two awards handed out, exactly eleven honored work done at Sonoma County theater companies, not counting the lifetime achievement award given to Elly Lichenstein of Cinnabar Theater in Petaluma. Congratulations to Elly. But eleven out of fifty-two feels about right, even if there were still glaring omissions, including the fact that Main Stage West in Sebastopol was not nominated once, despite having presented some of the best theater in the Bay Area for the last several years.

And of course, even when nominated, as in the case of Michael Van Why and Stephen Walsh, both so brilliant in last year’s "La Cage Aux Folles" at Cinnabar, it’s no guarantee of a win. The award for best Principal actor in a musical went to an actor appearing in San Francisco.

So there is work to be done.

But for now, I am thrilled to be able to announce the following awards given this week to deserving Sonoma County theater artists, theater companies, and shows.

6th Street Playhouse won best ensemble for its production of "Red," featuring Charles Siebert and Ryan Schabach, and also took acting awards for Rob Broadhurst and Julianne Lorenszen, both for "The Rocky Horror Show."

"Young Frankenstein," presented last year by Spreckels Theater Company, took acting awards for Mary Gannon-Graham and Denise Elia-Yen, and was also given the award for best ensemble in a musical and best overall production of a musical. Michella Snyder took the award for best choreography, and Sandy and Richard Riccardi took the award for Best Musical Direction.

And "La Cage Aux Folles," at Cinnabar Theater, took the best featured actress in a musical award for Valentina Osinsky, and two awards for Sheri Lee Miller, one fore her costume work with Clay David, and the other for best stage direction.

My warm, slightly giddy congratulations to all of you.

You made heads turn in Oakland this week. And now the Bay Area theater community knows what we’ve known for years: there IS theater in Sonoma County, and more often than not, it’s worth taking a drive for.