Obie awards announced

The Obie awards, given by The Village Voice to honor off-Broadway theater, were given out Monday night at New Yorks Webster Hall. A big winner was Elis Coming, the musical revue based upon the work of the late lesbian singer Laura Nyro; actresses Ronnell Bey, Mandy Gonzalez, Judy Kuhn, and Anika Noni Rose all won for their performances, as did Diedre Murray for vocal and instrumental arrangements. A performance award also went to Jackie Hoffman for her work in The Book of Liz, the comedy by gay humorist David Sedaris.