The first awards were presented on January 12, 1998, with eighty individuals recognized, and the next year's ceremony recognized one hundred and fifty people. The first ceremony was held at the
Coronet Theatre in
Los Angeles, California, and awards in the following two years were presented in a ceremony at the
Geffen Playhouse in
Westwood, Los Angeles, California. Awards categories in the first year included production, performance, ensemble cast, sound design, costume, lighting design, set design, musical score, and choreography. The third annual awards ceremony in 2000 ran for two and a half hours, and one hundred and ten individuals were recognized. Well-known songs were played at the awards ceremony in a
sing-along fashion, including "
Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and pieces from
West Side Story and
Hedwig and the Angry Inch. The ninth annual awards ceremony was held at the Bootleg Theatre in Los Angeles on March 26, 2007. Over 175 guests attended the event, which honored 2006 productions and theatre contributors including
Salome Jens, who won a performance award for
Leipzig, and actor-singer
Camille Saviola for her role in
Zorba. Music director Gerald Sternbach, honored for his direction of
Zorba, stated his appreciation of the Garland Awards: "What's wonderful about the Garlands is it's unpretentious. At other things there is a lot of tension, but really, this isn't a ceremony, it's a party. It's a supportive environment where everyone gets to hang." == See also ==