TORONTO - ACTRA, the union representing Canadian performers, is honouring veteran actress Wendy Crewson, naming her the recipient of its 2007 Award of Excellence.
Crewson, who just joined the cast of "ReGenesis" and was seen recently in the CBC adaptation of Margaret Atwood's "The Robber Bride," also co-stars in the upcoming "Away From Her," the acclaimed first feature from director Sarah Polley that's already wowed both the Toronto and Sundance film festivals.
Crewson plays the no-nonsense manager of a care facility for patients with Alzheimer's disease. The movie arrives in theatres in May.
The prolific 50-year-old actress, with a long list of film and television credits that include a number of U.S. productions, including the "Santa Clause" movies, "Air Force One" and "The Path to 9-11," will pick up her award at a ceremony on Feb. 23 in Toronto.
ACTRA will also be bestowing three other honours at the ceremony: two awards for outstanding performance, male and female; and for the first time, an award for outstanding performance, voice. The nominees are:
Outstanding Performance - Female:
Martha Burns, "Slings & Arrows" (TV series)
Maria Del Mar, "Terminal City" (TV Series)
Deborah Grover, "11 Cameras" (TV series)
Martha Henry, "At The Hotel" (TV series)
Kristen Thomson, "Away From Her" (feature film)
Outstanding Performance - Male:
Chris Bolton, "Rent-A-Goalie" (TV series)
William Hutt, "Slings & Arrows" (TV series)
Don McKellar, "Monkey Warfare" (feature film)
Gordon Pinsent, "Away From Her" (feature film)
Michael Therriault, "Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story" (TV miniseries)
Outstanding Performance - Voice:
Len Carlson, "Atomic Betty" (animated TV series) posthumous nomination
Ellen-Ray Hennessy, "Di-Gata Defenders" (animated TV series)
Tajja Isen, "Atomic Betty" (animated TV series)
Ron Rubin, "Erky Perky" (animated TV series)
Adrian Truss, "Jane and the Dragon" (animated TV series)
