# Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design

The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design was an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre across collective Broadway, off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. The award was first presented in 1975, for work in either a play or musical production. It was briefly retired, when it was replaced in 2009 by separate play and musical categories, but returned as a singular category starting in 2010. It was permanently retired after the 2015 presentation, again replaced by separate play and musical categories.

## Winners and nominees
### 1970s

| Year | Designer | Production |
| 1975 |
| 1975 | Neil Peter Jampolis | Sherlock Holmes |
| 1975 | Feder | Goodtime Charley |
| 1975 | Roger Morgan | Saturday Sunday Monday |
| 1975 | Julia Trevelyan Oman | Brief Lives |
| 1975 | Andy Phillips | Equus |
| 1976 |
| 1976 | Jules Fisher | Chicago |
| 1976 | Ian Calderon | Trelawny of the 'Wells' |
| 1976 | Leon DiLeone | Angel Street |
| 1976 | Robert Ornbo | Travesties |
| 1976 | Thomas R. Skelton | Legend |
| 1976 | James Tilton | A Memory of Two Mondays / 27 Wagons Full of Cotton |
| 1976 | James Tilton | They Knew What They Wanted |
| 1977 |
| 1977 | Jennifer Tipton | The Cherry Orchard |
| 1977 | Jennifer Tipton | For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf |
| 1977 | John Bury | No Man's Land |
| 1977 | Burl Hash | The Crazy Locomotive |
| 1977 | Gilbert V. Hemsley, Jr. | Porgy and Bess |
| 1977 | Ron Wallace | Comedians |
| 1978 |
| 1978 | Jules Fisher | Dancin' |
| 1978 | John Arnone and Garland Wright | K |
| 1978 | Gilbert V. Hemsley, Jr. | The Mighty Gents |
| 1978 | Roger Morgan | Dracula |
| 1978 | Ronald Wallace | The Gin Game |
| 1978 | Marc B. Weiss | Deathtrap |
| 1979 |
| 1979 | Roger Morgan | The Crucifer of Blood |
| 1979 | Ken Billington | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street |
| 1979 | Beverly Emmons | The Elephant Man |
| 1979 | Tharon Musser | Ballroom |
| 1979 | Tharon Musser | They're Playing Our Song |

### 1980s

| Year | Designer | Production |
| 1980 |
| 1980 | Dennis Parichy | Talley's Folly |
| 1980 | David Hersey | Evita |
| 1980 | John McLain | Émigrés |
| 1980 | Tharon Musser | Children of a Lesser God |
| 1980 | Richard Nelson | Morning's at Seven |
| 1980 | Duane Schuler | Teibele and Her Demon |
| 1981 |
| 1981 | Jules Fisher and Robby Monk | Frankenstein |
| 1981 | John Bury | Amadeus |
| 1981 | Pat Collins | Penguin Touquet |
| 1981 | Dennis Parichy | Fifth of July |
| 1981 | Thomas R. Skelton | Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music |
| 1981 | Jennifer Tipton | Lunch Hour |
| 1982 |
| 1982 | Marcia Madeira | Nine |
| 1982 | Tharon Musser | Dreamgirls |
| 1982 | Beverly Emmons | The Dresser |
| 1982 | Eugene Lee | The Hothouse |
| 1983 |
| 1983 | David Hersey | Cats |
| 1983 | Ken Billington | Foxfire |
| 1983 | Allen Lee Hughes | K2 |
| 1983 | Richard Nelson | Death of Von Richthofen Witnessed from Earth |
| 1983 | Mal Sturchio | Johnny Got His Gun |
| 1984 |
| 1984 | Richard Nelson | Sunday in the Park with George |
| 1984 | Frances Aronson | Painting Churches |
| 1984 | Jules Fisher | La Cage aux Folles |
| 1984 | John Gisondi | Sound and Beauty |
| 1984 | Tharon Musser | The Real Thing |
| 1984 | Marc B. Weiss | The Rink |
| 1985 |
| 1985 | Richard Riddell | Big River |
| 1985 | Ken Billington | Grind |
| 1985 | Kevin Rigdon | Balm in Gilead |
| 1985 | Jennifer Tipton | Whoopi Goldberg |
| 1985 | Ron Wallace | Requiem for a Heavyweight |
| 1985 | Terry Wuthrich | Tracers |
| 1986 |
| 1986 | Pat Collins | Execution of Justice |
| 1986 | Paul Gallo | The Mystery of Edwin Drood |
| 1986 | Phil Monat | Goblin Market |
| 1986 | Kevin Rigdon | The Shawl |
| 1986 | Jennifer Tipton | Hamlet |
| 1987 |
| 1987 | Chris Parry | Les Liaisons Dangereuses |
| 1987 | Martin Aronstein | Wild Honey |
| 1987 | David Hersey | Les Misérables |
| 1987 | Dennis Parichy | Coastal Disturbances |
| 1987 | Jennifer Tipton | Worstward Ho |
| 1988 |
| 1988 | Andrew Bridge | The Phantom of the Opera |
| 1988 | Pat Collins | Woman in Mind |
| 1988 | Paul Gallo | Wenceslas Square |
| 1988 | Paul Gallo | Anything Goes |
| 1988 | David Hersey | Chess |
| 1988 | Richard Nelson | Into the Woods |
| 1989 |
| 1989 | Jennifer Tipton | Waiting for Godot |
| 1989 | Jennifer Tipton | Jerome Robbins' Broadway |
| 1989 | Jennifer Tipton | Long Day's Journey into Night |
| 1989 | Mary Jo Dondlinger | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street |
| 1989 | Paul Gallo | Miracolo D'Amore |
| 1989 | Paul Gallo | Lend Me a Tenor |
| 1989 | Neil Peter Jampolis and Jane Reisman | Black and Blue |
| 1989 | Kevin Rigdon | Our Town |

### 1990s

| Year | Designer | Production |
| 1990 |
| 1990 | Jules Fisher | Grand Hotel |
| 1990 | Andrew Bridge | Aspects of Love |
| 1990 | Paul Gallo | City of Angels |
| 1990 | Tharon Musser | Artist Descending a Staircase |
| 1990 | Kevin Rigdon | The Grapes of Wrath |
| 1991 |
| 1991 | David Hersey | Miss Saigon |
| 1991 | Jules Fisher | Hamlet |
| 1991 | Donald Holder | Caucasian Chalk Circle |
| 1991 | Tharon Musser | The Secret Garden |
| 1991 | Kenneth Posner | Machinal |
| 1992 |
| 1992 | Jules Fisher | Jelly's Last Jam |
| 1992 | Paul Gallo | Guys and Dolls |
| 1992 | Christopher Akerlind | Mad Forest |
| 1992 | Trevor Dawson | Dancing at Lughnasa |
| 1992 | Mimi Jordan Sherin | 'Tis Pity She's a Whore |
| 1993 |
| 1993 | Chris Parry | The Who's Tommy |
| 1993 | Robert Christen | Wings |
| 1993 | Jules Fisher | Angels in America: Millennium Approaches |
| 1993 | Brian MacDevitt | Three Hotels |
| 1993 | Mimi Jordan Sherin | Woyzeck |
| 1994 |
| 1994 | Rick Fisher | An Inspector Calls |
| 1994 | Christopher Akerlind | The Lights |
| 1994 | Beverly Emmons | Passion |
| 1994 | Paul Pyant | Carousel |
| 1994 | Mimi Jordan Sherin | All's Well That Ends Well |
| 1995 |
| 1995 | Richard Pilbrow | Show Boat |
| 1995 | Beverly Emmons | The Heiress |
| 1995 | Paul Gallo | Blade to the Heart |
| 1995 | Mark Henderson | Indiscretions |
| 1995 | Brian MacDevitt | Love! Valour! Compassion! |
| 1996 |
| 1996 | Peggy Eisenhauer and Jules Fisher | Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk |
| 1996 | Beverly Emmons and Jules Fisher | Chronicle of a Death Foretold |
| 1996 | Nigel Levings | The King and I |
| 1996 | Chris Parry | A Midsummer Night's Dream |
| 1997 |
| 1997 | Ken Billington | Chicago |
| 1997 | Kevin Adams | Henry VI |
| 1997 | Donald Holder | Juan Darien |
| 1997 | Jean Kalman | The Waste Land |
| 1997 | Richard Pilbrow | The Life |
| 1998 |
| 1998 | Donald Holder | The Lion King |
| 1998 | Paul Anderson | The Chairs |
| 1998 | Mike Baldassari and Peggy Eisenhauer | Cabaret |
| 1998 | Peggy Eisenhauer and Jules Fisher | Ragtime |
| 1998 | Peter Maradudin | Ballad of Yachiyo |
| 1998 | Kenneth Posner | Pride's Crossing |
| 1998 | Kenneth Posner | A View from the Bridge |
| 1999 |
| 1999 | Chris Parry | Not About Nightingales |
| 1999 | Howell Binkley | Parade |
| 1999 | Michael Chybowski | Wit |
| 1999 | Paul Gallo | The Civil War |
| 1999 | Natasha Katz | Twelfth Night |
| 1999 | Mimi Jordan Sherin | Bob |

### 2000s

| Year | Designer | Production |
| 2000 |
| 2000 | Peter Kaczorowski | Contact |
| 2000 | David J. Lander | Dirty Blonde |
| 2000 | Brian MacDevitt | An Experiment with an Air Pump |
| 2000 | Robert Perry | The Water Engine |
| 2000 | Kenneth Posner | The Wild Party |
| 2000 | Scott Zielinski | Space |
| 2001 |
| 2001 | Paul Anderson | Mnemonic |
| 2001 | Howell Binkley | The Full Monty |
| 2001 | Peter Kaczorowski | The Producers |
| 2001 | Brian MacDevitt | The Invention of Love |
| 2001 | Kenneth Posner | The Adventures of Tom Sawyer |
| 2001 | Hugh Vanstone | The Unexpected Man |
| 2002 |
| 2002 | T.J. Gerckens | Metamorphoses |
| 2002 | Frances Aronson | Psych |
| 2002 | David Hersey | Oklahoma! |
| 2002 | Natasha Katz | Sweet Smell of Success |
| 2002 | Peter Mumford | Private Lives |
| 2002 | Kenneth Posner | Monster |
| 2003 |
| 2003 | Nigel Levings | La Bohème |
| 2003 | Kevin Adams | Take Me Out |
| 2003 | Russell H. Champa | Yellowman |
| 2003 | Donald Holder | Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme |
| 2003 | Donald Holder | Movin' Out |
| 2003 | Peter Mumford | Vincent in Brixton |
| 2004 |
| 2004 | Peggy Eisenhauer and Jules Fisher | Assassins |
| 2004 | T.J. Gerckens | The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci |
| 2004 | Donald Holder | The Violet Hour |
| 2004 | David J. Lander | I Am My Own Wife |
| 2004 | Brian MacDevitt | Henry IV |
| 2004 | Kenneth Posner | Wicked |
| 2005 |
| 2005 | Christopher Akerlind | The Light in the Piazza |
| 2005 | Christopher Akerlind | Belle Époque |
| 2005 | Mark Henderson | Chitty Chitty Bang Bang |
| 2005 | Donald Holder | Gem of the Ocean |
| 2005 | R. Lee Kennedy | The Audience |
| 2005 | James Japhy Weideman | Frankenstein |
| 2006 |
| 2006 | Richard G. Jones | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street |
| 2006 | Christopher Akerlind | Awake and Sing! |
| 2006 | Traci Klainer | The Asphalt Kiss |
| 2006 | Martin Labrecque | Rain |
| 2006 | John McKernon | The Trip to Bountiful |
| 2006 | Robert Wilson | Peer Gynt |
| 2007 |
| 2007 | Brian MacDevitt, Kenneth Posner and Natasha Katz | The Coast of Utopia |
| 2007 | Howell Binkley | LoveMusik |
| 2007 | Paul Gallo | Blackbird |
| 2007 | Mark Jonathan | Prometheus Bound |
| 2007 | James Japhy Weideman | Jack Goes Boating |
| 2008 |
| 2008 | Kevin Adams | The 39 Steps |
| 2008 | Ken Billington | Sunday in the Park with George |
| 2008 | Maruti Evans | Slaughterhouse-Five |
| 2008 | Donald Holder | South Pacific |
| 2008 | Natasha Katz | The Little Mermaid |
| 2008 | Keith Parham | Adding Machine |
| 2009 | — | — |

### 2010s

| Year | Designer | Production |
| 2010 |
| 2010 | Neil Austin | Red |
| 2010 | Neil Austin | Hamlet |
| 2010 | Christian DeAngelis | Lizzie Borden |
| 2010 | Maruti Evans | John Ball's In the Heat of the Night |
| 2010 | Natasha Katz | The Addams Family |
| 2010 | Dane Laffery | The Boys in the Band |
| 2011 |
| 2011 | David Lander | Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo |
| 2011 | Jean Kalman | John Gabriel Borkman |
| 2011 | R. Lee Kennedy | See Rock City & Other Destinations |
| 2011 | Laura Mroczkowksi | Spy Garbo |
| 2011 | Ben Stanton | The Whipping Man |
| 2011 | David Weiner | A Small Fire |
| 2012 |
| 2012 | Brian MacDevitt | Death of a Salesman |
| 2012 | Kevin Adams | Carrie |
| 2012 | Neil Austin | Evita |
| 2012 | David Lander | One Arm |
| 2012 | Kenneth Posner | Death Takes a Holiday |
| 2012 | Paul Pyant | Richard III |
| 2013 |
| 2013 | Justin Townsend | Here Lies Love |
| 2013 | Daniel Winters | The Man Who Laughs |
| 2013 | Ken Billington | Chaplin: The Musical |
| 2013 | Jane Cox | Passion |
| 2013 | Kenneth Posner | Pippin |
| 2013 | Scott Zielinski | A Civil War Christmas |
| 2014 |
| 2014 | Christopher Akerlind | Rocky the Musical |
| 2014 | Jane Cox | Machinal |
| 2014 | David Lander | The Civil War |
| 2014 | Peter Mumford | King Lear |
| 2014 | Brian Tovar | Tamar of the River |
| 2014 | Japhy Weideman | Macbeth |
| 2015 |
| 2015 | Paule Constable | The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time |
| 2015 | Howell Binkley | Hamilton |
| 2015 | Paule Constable and David Plater | Wolf Hall Parts One & Two |
| 2015 | Maruti Evans | Deliverance |
| 2015 | Natasha Katz | The Iceman Cometh |
| 2015 | Ben Stanton | Our Lady of Kibeho |