Loved it, loved it – Nancy James opening the show with “Applause,” all the twentysomething talent who brought their parents to the show, the company of “Around the World in 80 Days” standing on stage at the Aronoff’s Jarson-Kaplan telling the crowd that Cincinnati has the best audiences anywhere.

Monday night’s third Acclaim Awards brought lots of friends to the stage – Cincinnati kid Richard Oberacker flew in from his day job as music director for Cirque du Soleil’s “Ka” to cheer hometown theater.

“Jersey Boys” ensemble member Brandon Mattheus helped Rick Steiner hand out the evening’s top awards and was moved to talk about the wonderful theater community in Cincinnati. Students from CCM-Drama’s winning “Anon(ymous)” blogged the entire evening.

Tom Peters of Walnut Hills High School co-winner of the 2008 Enquirer/Fifth Third Bank Theater Educator Award with Marc Raia, choked up when he talked about his own high school drama teacher.

Big winner Giles Davies (for solo show “Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus”) reminds us that he’ll be performing his Charles Dickens one-man show in Oxford in early June, and he’s contemplating blogging about his adventures when he leaves Cincinnati a few weeks from now. (I’ll believe it when I see it, from the man who doesn’t check his e-mails.)

Big applause to entertainers including Liz Holt (a 2008 Rising Star, the Know Theatre favorite is headed for New York), Charlie Clark (coming up in two Fringe shows, including his self-titled show) and Jessica Hendy sent the finale soaring with “Waiting for Life to Begin.” She, with Clark, will be in Richard Oberacker’s Fringe revue, “Don’t Make Me Pull This Show Over” before returning to “The Great American Trailer Park Musical” June 11-22.

Cincinnati Arts Association turned the Aronoff Center over to Acclaim, with the pre-show reception in the street level Center Stage room and the After-Party in the loge lobby of Procter & Gamble Hall.

The pre-show reception was packed, with a delicious repast by BlackFinn, Jean Robert, Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse, McCormick & Schmick’s, Nicholson’s, Palomino’s, and Via Vite, all talking about how important theater is to downtown.

At the After-Party, Northern Kentucky University theater students were a knockout, with that full window and the Walnut Street cityscape behind them as backdrop and Danny Davies’ Double-D Cup cupcakes were cross-your-eyes good. Women were fainting over the double chocolates, I’m told the Hula Mango Tangos, with a chili bite, were surprising and better than good.

Hope you had a wonderful time – tell us about it if you did. And hope to see you next year at the 2008-2009 theater season celebration.