Theatre Memphis racked up a whopping 41 Ostrander Award nominations in this year’s competition to crown the best in Memphis theater for the 2007-08 season.

The city’s oldest community theater made a big dent in the production and design categories, with three nominations each for sound designer David Newsome and set designer Christopher McCollum. (The latter earned a total of six Ostrander nominations in various categories.)

Meanwhile, Circuit Playhouse, with 20 nominations, led in the dramatic categories.

The ceremony — the local equivalent of the Tony Awards — takes place Aug. 24 at the Memphis Botanic Garden. It will be hosted by Memphis native and tough-guy character actor Chris Ellis, who has been seen in films including “Catch Me If You Can” and “Transformers.”

The nine judges in the community theater division made the glitzy “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” at Theatre Memphis, the year’s most nominated production, with a total of 12 nods.

It is followed by the theater’s smaller dramatic productions of Edward Albee’s “Seascape” (with 8) and “Pride and Prejudice” (with 7), which both ran on the Next Stage.

Judges attended a total of 36 productions in the community theater division this year. Awards are also given for college productions, which are determined by a separate panel of six judges.

The Ostrander Awards hit the quarter-century mark this year, and are organized by Memphis magazine and ArtsMemphis.

For the second time ever, the Eugart Yerian Award for Lifetime Achievement will go to a longtime patron of the arts rather than a performer or director.

Dorothy Orgill Kirsch not only attends nearly every show on local stages, she has also donated hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years to the Memphis arts community.

“I just really like live theater,” she said. “We have so much media to choose from these days, but the theater is a really important dimension because it is always changing. No performance is ever the same.”

Kirsch sponsors entire productions and has been a cheerleader for various theaters. She is as likely to attend a production of “West Side Story,” as “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

“When they told me I got this award, I was astounded,” she said. “So many people go to the theater and support the arts. I feel like I’m being honored for what I like to do.”

The last arts patron to receive the award was Walter Armstrong, an avid theatergoer and founding member of ArtsMemphis. He died in 1996.

List of Ostrander Award nominees in community theater

Key to abbreviations:

CP: Circuit Playhouse

GCT: Germantown Community Theatre

HT: Harrell Theatre

PS: Playhouse on the Square

TM: Theatre Memphis

TM/Next: Next Stage at Theatre Memphis

Dramatic production:

“Orson’s Shadow,” CP

“Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next

“Seascape,” TM/Next

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

Direction of a drama:

Andy Saunders, “The Comedy of Errors,” GCT

Pamela Poletti, “Orson’s Shadow,” CP

John Rone, “Pride and Prejudice,” TM/NEXT

Kyle Hatley, “Seascape,” TM/Next

Leading actor in a drama:

Jerre Dye, “Compleat Female Stage Beauty,” CP

Tony Isbell, “Orson’s Shadow,” CP

Dave Landis, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

Keith Patrick McCoy, “A Lesson Before Dying,” CP

Justin Willingham, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” GCT

Leading actress in a drama:

Irene Crist, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

Jade Hobbs, “Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next

Aliza Moran, “The Underpants,” GCT

Sheana Tobey, “And Baby Makes Seven,” PS

Christina Wellford Scott, “The Night of the Iguana,” TM

Supporting actor in a drama:

Kent Mathis, “The Underpants,” GCT

Jim Palmer, “Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next

Matt Reed (3) for “Scapin,” PS; “Compleat Female Stage Beauty,” CP; and “Seascape,” TM/Next

Supporting actress in a drama:

Irene Crist, “Orson’s Shadow,” CP

Tara Lawton, “Compleat Female Stage Beauty,” CP

Erin McGhee, “Seascape,” TM/Next

Jo Lynne Palmer, “Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next

Sheana Tobey, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

Musical production:

“The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” CP

“Purlie,” PS

“Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

“West Side Story,” TM

Direction of a musical:

Mitzi Hamilton, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Amy Hanford, “High School Musical 2,” HT

Thomas Jones, “Purlie,” PS

Courtney Oliver, “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” CP

Music direction:

Gary Beard, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Renee Kemper, “The Producers,” PS

Angelo Rapan (2) for “West Side Story,” TM; and “High School Musical 2,” HT

Dennis Whitehead, “Jerry Springer the Opera,” PS

Leading actor in a musical:

Alvaro Francisco Barned, “The Pirates of Penzance,” PS

Kent Fleshman, “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” CP

Jim Hopkins, “Jerry Springer the Opera,” PS

Leading actress in a musical:

Lydia Hart, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Cheyenne Nelson, “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” CP

Supporting actor in a musical:

Bentley Black, “High School Musical 2,” HT

Kent Fleshman, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

David Foster, “The Producers,” PS

Jesus Manuel Pacheco, “West Side Story,” TM

Ken Zimmerman, “The Producers,” PS

Supporting actress in a musical:

Meg Geer, “Anything Goes,” HT

Jude Knight, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Anita Jo Lenhart, “Jerry Springer the Opera,” PS

Cheyenne Nelson, “The Pirates of Penzance,” PS

Sheana Tobey, “The Producers,” PS

Choreography:

Thomas Jones and Keith Patrick McCoy, “Purlie,” PS

Mitzi Hamilton and Kathy Caradine, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Amy Hanford, “High School Musical 2,” HT

Ensemble acting:

“And Baby Makes Seven,” PS

“Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next

Cameo:

Corey Cochran, “A Year With Frog and Toad,” CP

Bill Short, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” GCT

Behind the scenes award:

Gene Cochran, TM

Sue Binnie, PS

Alvin Miller, GCT

Jack Page, HT

Sound design:

Rory Dale, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

David Newsome (3) for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” TM; “Pride and Prejudice,” TM/Next; and “Pavilion,” TM/Next

Eric Sefton, “Seascape,” TM/Next

Makeup and wigs

Barbara Sanders, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

David Shane Yelverton (2) for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” TM; and “Seascape,” TM/Next

Set dressing:

Melinda Bott and Jimmy Humphries, “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” CP

Christopher McCollum, “Well,” TM/Next

Bill Short, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” CP

Kerry Strahm, “Crimes of the Heart,” GCT

Props:

Robin Black, “High School Musical 2,” HT

Betty Dilley, “Crimes of the Heart,” GCT

Christopher McCollum, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Bill Short, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” GCT

Lighting design:

Michael Compton and Chris Swanson, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Matthew Strampe (2) for “West Side Story,” TM; and “High School Musical 2,” HT

Chris Swanson, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” TM

Ben Wheeler, “Purlie,” PS

Costume design:

Luke Hall, “Seascape,” TM/Next, TM

Andre Bruce Ward (2) for “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM; and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” TM

Ashley Whitten-Kopera, “High School Musical 2,” HT

Set design:

Christopher McCollum (3) for “Seascape,” TM/Next; “Night of the Iguana,” TM; and “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” TM

Tim McMath, “Scapin,” PS

Dave Nofsinger, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” TM

Best original script:

Carol Galligan, “Killing Louise,” Playwrights’ Forum

Rebecca Fisher, “The Magnificence of the Disaster”

Best production of original script:

“Killing Louise,” Playwrights’ Forum

“The Magnificence of the Disaster,” Voices of the South and PS

List of Ostrander Award nominees in College theater

Key:

RC: Rhodes College

UM: University of Memphis

Dramatic production:

“Animal Farm,” UM

“How I Learned to Drive,” RC

Direction of a drama:

Gloria Baxter, “Animal Farm,” UM

Wes Meador, “How I Learned to Drive,” RC

Ensemble acting:

Cast of “Animal Farm,” UM

Cast of “Assassins,” UM

Leading actor in a drama:

Reginald C. Brown, “Animal Farm,” UM

Greg Krosnes: How I Learned to Drive,” RC

Leading actress in a drama:/p>

Shannon King, “How I Learned to Drive,” RC

Katie Preston, “Lysistrata and the Death of Cupid,” RC

Supporting actor in a drama:

Matthew Crewse, “Animal Farm”

Jason Gerhard, “Animal Farm”

Jared Graham, “Animal Farm”

Supporting actress in a drama:

Katie Preston, “How I Learned to Drive,” RC

Shannon King, “Lysistrata and the Death of Cupid,” RC

Liz Sharpe, “Hedda Gabler,” UM

Musical production:

“Assassins,” and “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” both at UM

Direction of a musical:

Stephen Hancock, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

David Shouse, “Assassins,” UM

Music direction:

Renee Kemper, “Assassins,” UM

Mark Ensley, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Leading actor in a musical:

Jared Graham, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Dylan Hunter, “The Rocky Horror Show,” RC

Christopher McCollum, “Assassins,” UM

Leading actress in a musical:

Trisha Phillips, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Kirie Walz, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Annie Freres, “Assassins,” UM

Supporting actor in a musical:

Jason Hansen, “Assassins,” UM

Ryan Scott, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Joe Watts, Jr., “ Assassins,” UM

Supporting actress in a musical:

Shaheerah Farrakhan, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Claire Hayner, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Katie Preston, “The Rocky Horror Show,” RC

Set design:

Craig Lewis, “Assassins,” UM

Dave Nofsinger, “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” UM

Costumes:

Joyce Bamman, “Assassins,” UM

Janice Lacek (2) for “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” and “ Hedda Gabler,” UM

Lighting design:

Ken Friedhoff (2) for “Assassins” and “Animal Farm,” UM

Ben Wheeler, “Lysistrata and the Death of Cupid,” RC

Props:

Emily Wells (2) for “Animal Farm” and “Assassins,” UM

Sound design:

Eric Sefton (2) for “How I Learned to Drive,” and “Lysistrata and the Death of Cupid,” RC

— Christopher Blank: 529-2305