Jayne Houdyshell and Jim Dale Win Equity's Richard Seff Awards

Jayne Houdyshell and Jim Dale have been selected to receive the annual Richard Seff Awards, presented by the Actors' Equity Foundation. The awards honor a female and male character actor, 50 years of age or older, for the best performance in a supporting role in a Broadway or off-Broadway production.

Houdyshell was recognized for her performance as Lisa Kron's ill mother Ann in the now-shuttered Well, which she had been attached to for years. She earned great acclaimed and is up for a 2006 Tony for her performance. Other New York credits include Much Ado About Nothing at the New York Shakespeare Festival, Fighting Words at Playwrights Horizons, True Love at the Zipper Theatre and Attempts on Her Life at SoHo Rep.

Dale was honored for his performance as Tony-nominated Mr. Peachum in the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of The Threepenny Opera. Dale, who began his career as a professional comedian, earned Tony and Drama Desk Awards for creating the title role in Barnum. He also earned Tony nominations for his work in Scapino, A Day in the Death of Joe Egg and Candide and another Drama Desk Award for his performance in Travels With My Aunt. In recent years, Dale's voice has become well known for his audio recordings of the Harry Potter series of books, for which Dale does all of the characters. He received a 2001 Grammy Award for Best Children's Audio Recording for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Prior to Threepenny, his last New York stage appearance was as Scrooge in the final season of A Christmas Carol at Madison Square Garden.

Award winners were chosen by a panel of judges, which included Betty Corwin Director of Special Projects, Theatre on Film & Tape Archive of the Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts, Adam Feldman Time Out NY, Arne Gundersen President of the Actors' Equity Foundation, Harry Haun Playbill, Michael Kuchwara Associated Press, Patrick Quinn President of Actors' Equity Association, David Rosenberg Back Stage, Michael Sommer The Star Ledger and Douglas Watt The Daily News.

The Richard Seff Awards are each accompanied by $1,000 and a crystal trophy. The presentation of the honors will take place at Actors' Equity Association on August 1.