Fantasia Wins Theatre World Award for Best Broadway Debut

Fantasia certainly is taking Broadway by storm!

Last week, the reviews for her Broadway debut in the musical "The Color Purple" were ecstatic -- Charles Isherwood of the New York Times said she was ideal for the part of Celie, and notoriously prickly New York Post critic Clive Barnes even wrote that her performance brought tears to his eyes.

Now, she has won one of the biggest theater awards -- the Theatre World Award, given for Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway debut. She is one of only 12 recipients of this prestigious prize this year, and is the first Idol alumni to take home a theater award.

Congrats also go to Jonathan Groff, who is sensational in Spring Awakening.

The other winners of the 2007 Theatre World Award are:

Eve Best, A Moon for the Misbegotten
Mary Birdsong, Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me
Erin Davie, Grey Gardens
Xanthe Elbrick, Coram Boy
Johnny Galecki, The Little Dog Laughed
Jonathan Groff, Spring Awakening
Gavin Lee, Mary Poppins
Lin-Manuel Miranda, In the Heights
Bill Nighy, The Vertical Hour
Stark Sands, Journey's End
Nilaja Sun, No Child…

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