Full details of 2019 Olivier Awards for Musical Theatre

The guests, performers and presenters at this year's Olivier Awards have now been announced. The winners will be  announced on Sunday 7th April,  at the Royal Albert Hall hosted by Jason Manford. Those attending the event include Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, Danny Dyer, Sally Field, Paapa Essiedu, Gloria Estefan, Judy Kuhn, Wendell Pierce, Bill Pullman, Art Malik, Andy Nyman, Kelsey Grammer, Tom Hiddleston, Zawe Ashton, Charlie Cox, Ashley Shaw, Joanne Clifton and Kevin Clifton.

Presenters will also include Jack McBrayer, Katharine McPhee, Ruthie Henshall, Harriet Scott, the Mamma Mia! 'Dynamos', Jade Anouka, Ncuti Gatwa, Thea Sharrock, Wunmi Mosaku, Arthur Darvill, Beverley Knight, Danielle de Niese, Layton Williams, Pasek and Paul and Shane Richie.

There will be  performances from casts from  The Lion King and Mamma Mia! -  both of which are celebrating 20 years in the West End - as well as a number of award-nominated shows including Caroline, Or Change, Come From Away, Company, Fun Home, The King And I, Six and Tina – The Tina Turner Musical.

Beverley Knight will perform during the In Memoriam section of the show.

The full list of categories and nominations which include musical theatre nominees are listed below.

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL - Jonathan Bailey, Company, Clive Carter, Come, Richard Fleeshman, Company, Robert Hands, Come From Away.

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL - Patti LuPone, Company, Ruthie Ann Miles, The King and I , "The Queens" - Aimie Atkinson, Alexia McIntosh, Millie O'Connell, Natalie Paris, Maiya Quansah-Breed and Jarneia Richard-Noel - for Six, Rachel Tucker, Come From Away.

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC - Come From Away - Book, Music and Lyrics: David Hein and Irene Sankoff; Music Supervisor, Arrangements: Ian Eisendrath; Orchestrations: August Eriksmoen; Musical Director/UK Music Supervisor: Alan Berry; and the band of Come From Away at Phoenix Theatre, Fun Home - Composer: Jeanine Tesori; Lyricist/Bookwriter: Lisa Kron at Young Vic, The Inheritance - Composer: Paul Englishby at Young Vic and Noël Coward Theatre, A Monster Calls - Original music composed by Benji Bower and performed live by Benji with Will Bower (The Bower Brothers) at The Old Vic, Six - Original score, orchestrations and vocal arrangements: Toby Marlow, Lucy Moss, Tom Curran and Joe Beighton at Arts Theatre

BEST NEW DANCE PRODUCTION - 16 A Room/Solo Echo/Bill by Ballet British Columbia at Sadler's Wells, Blkdog by Botis Seva at Sadler's Wells, Playlist (Track 1, 2) by William Forsythe for English National Ballet at Sadler's Wells. The Unknown Soldier by Alastair Marriott for The Royal Ballet at Royal Opera House

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DANCE - Akram Khan for his performance in Xenos at Sadler's Wells, John Macfarlane for his design of Swan Lake at Royal Opera House, Dimitris Papaioannou for his choreography of The Great Tamer at Sadler's Wells

BEST THEATRE CHOREOGRAPHER - Kelly Devine for Come From Away, Christopher Gattelli based on original choreography by Jerome Robbins for The King And I , Carrie-Anne Ingrouille for Six , Liam Steel for Company.

BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL - Caroline, Or Change, Company,  The King And I

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL - Marc Antolin for Little Shop Of Horrors, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith for Tina - The Tina Turner Musical , Zubin Varla for Fun Home , Ken Watanabe for The King And I 

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL - Sharon D Clarke for Caroline, Or Change , Rosalie Craig for Company , Kelli O'Hara for The King And I , Adrienne Warren for Tina - The Tina Turner Musical.

AWARD FOR BEST LIGHTING DESIGN, Neil Austin for Company , Howell Binkley for Come From Away , Jon Clark for The Inheritance,  Lee Curran for Summer And Smoke.

BEST SOUND DESIGN - Paul Arditti and Christopher Reid for The Inheritance at Young Vic and Noël Coward Theatre, Mike Beer for A Monster Calls at The Old Vic, Carolyn Downing for Summer And Smoke at Almeida Theatre and Duke of York's Theatre, Gareth Owen for Come From Away at Phoenix Theatre, Nick Powell for The Lehman Trilogy at National Theatre - Lyttelton

BEST COSTUME DESIGN - Fly Davis for Caroline, Or Change, Anna Fleischle for Home, I'm Darling, Gabriella Slade for Six  Catherine Zuber for The King And I

AWARD FOR BEST SET DESIGN - Bunny Christie for Company, Bob Crowley for The Inheritance, Es Devlin for The Lehman Trilogy, Anna Fleischle for Home, I'm Darling

SIR PETER HALL AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR - Christopher Ashley for Come From Away, Stephen Daldry for The Inheritance, Marianne Elliott for Company, Rebecca Frecknall for Summer And Smoke, Sam Mendes for The Lehman Trilogy.


BEST NEW MUSICAL - Come From Away, Fun Home , Six  and Tina - The Tina Turner Musical a

MUSICAL THEATRE OLIVIER AWARD WINNERS

The 2018 Olivier Award winners were announced yesterday in a  glittering ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall.

Predictably Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton led the night with seven Olivier Award wins, with Giles Terera picking up Best Actor in a Musical and Michael Jibson winning Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his performance as King George. Other awards were for Best Lighting Design, Best Sound Design, Best New Musical, Best Choreography and Outstanding Achievement in Music.

David Lan was this year’s recipient of the Special Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution in leading the Young Vic since 2000, his work within the local community around the theatre, and his commitment to internationalism and diversity.

Performances on the night included American musical theatre legend Chita Rivera performing West Side Story's track Somewhere with Andy Karl (2017 winner for Groundhog Day), Adam J. Bernard (2017 winner for Dreamgirls), and the Arts Educational Schools London Choir, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the production debuting in London. Plus  performances from nominated musicals:  Hamilton; Everybody’s Talking About Jamie; Girl From The North Country, Young Frankenstein, Follies and 42nd Street.

The ceremony paid  homage to the 50th anniversary of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with past stars including Jason Donovan and Linzi Hateley, Lee Mead and Preeya Kalidas, and Joe McElderry and Danielle Hope.

Presenters this year included Alexandra Burke, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Anne-Marie Duff,  Beverley Knight, Chita Rivera, Cuba Gooding Jnr, Frank DiLella, Juliet Stevenson, Meera Syal, Mel Giedroyc, Michael Sheen, Ophelia Lovibond, Patti LuPone, Pearl Mackie and Sergei Polunin.

All the musical theatre winners are listed below:

BEST ENTERTAINMENT AND FAMILY
Dick Whittington at London Palladium

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Vicki Mortimer for Follies at National Theatre, Olivier

BEST SOUND DESIGN
Nevin Steinberg for Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre

BEST SET DESIGN
Bob Crowley and 59 Productions for An American In Paris at Dominion Theatre

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN
Howell Binkley for Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre


OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC
Hamilton - composer-lyricist: Lin-Manuel Miranda; orchestrator: Alex Lacamoire at Victoria Palace Theatre

BEST THEATRE CHOREOGRAPHER
Andy Blankenbuehler for Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre

BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL
Follies at National Theatre - Olivier

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Michael Jibson for Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Sheila Atim for Girl From The North Country at The Old Vic and the Noël Coward Theatre

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Shirley Henderson for Girl From The North Country at The Old Vic and the Noël Coward Theatre

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Giles Terera for Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre

BEST NEW MUSICAL
Hamilton at Victoria Palace Theatre

SPECIAL AWARD
David Lan

Complete guide to Musical Theatre Olivier Awards this Sunday

The 2018 Olivier Awards take place on Sunday 8th April at the Royal Albert Hall with Catherine Tate acting as host.

They  will be broadcast on ITV on Sunday 8 April from 22:20,  and worldwide at the same time on the Olivier Awards Facebook page.

Magic Radio will broadcast the entire show live on Sunday 8 April, hosted by Alice Arnold and Ruthie Henshall, with build-up on air from 18:00.

The Red Carpet Live show will return this year from 16:00 to 17:30, with a special interval Backstage show at 19:00, both shown exclusively on the Olivier Awards Facebook page.

Performances during the ceremony will include:

The 50th anniversary of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will be commemorated with past stars returning including Jason Donovan and Linzi Hateley, Lee Mead and Preeya Kalidas, and Joe McElderry and Danielle Hope.

John McCrea and the cast of Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Sheila Atim and the cast of Girl From The North Country, Lesley Joseph and the cast of Young Frankenstein, Tracie Bennett from Follies and the cast of 42nd Street.

The West End cast of Hamilton will open the show with a rendition of "Alexander Hamilton"-

American legend Chita Rivera will perform the West Side Story number "Somewhere" to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the production debuting in London. She will be accompanied by Andy Karl (Groundhog Day Olivier Award winner), Adam J Bernard (Dreamgirls Olivier Award winner) and the Arts Educational Schools London Choir

The list of musical theatre nominees are:

 BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL : Michael Jibson (Hamilton)/ Ross Noble (Young Frankenstein )/ Jason Pennycooke (Hamilton)/ Cleve September (Hamilton)

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL

Sheila Atim (Girl From The North Country) / Tracie Bennett (Follies) / Rachel John (Hamilton) / Lesley Joseph (Young Frankenstein)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC

Everybody's Talking About Jamie - Music and Orchestrations by Dan Gillespie Sells,  musical theatre composer and orchestrator / Follies - The Orchestra, under the Music Supervision of Nicholas Skilbeck and Music Director Nigel Lilley / Girl From The North Country - Music & Lyrics by Bob Dylan, Original Orchestrations & Arrangements by Simon Hale / Hamilton - Composer-Lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda

BEST ENTERTAINMENT AND FAMILY : David Walliams' Gangsta Granny / Derren Brown: Underground  / Dick Whittington at London Palladium / Five Guys Named Moe

BEST THEATRE CHOREOGRAPHER : Andy Blankenbuehler (Hamilton) /  Bill Deamer (Follies)  / Kate Prince (Everybody's Talking About Jamie) /  Randy Skinner (42nd Street)  / Christopher Wheeldon ( An American In Paris)

MAGIC RADIO BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL : 42nd Street / Follies / On The Town

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL : Ciarán Hinds (Girl From The North Country)/ John McCrea (Everybody's Talking About Jamie) /  Giles Terera (Hamilton) / Jamael Westman (Hamilton)

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL :  Janie Dee (Follies) / Shirley Henderson (Girl From The North Country)/  Imelda Staunton (Follies)/ Josie Walker (Everybody's Talking About Jamie)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN: Howell Binkley (Hamilton) / Paule Constable (Angels In America)/ Paule Constable (Follies) / Jan Versweyveld (Network)

BEST SOUND DESIGN :  Tom Gibbons (Hamlet) / Gareth Owen Bat Out Of Hell The Musical) / Eric Sleichim ( Network) / Nevin Steinberg (Hamilton)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN : Hugh Durrant (Dick Whittington) / Roger Kirk (42nd Street) / Vicki Mortimer (Follies) / Paul Tazewell (Hamilto)

BEST SET DESIGN : Bunny Christie (Ink) /  Bob Crowley and 59 Productions (An American In Paris) /  Rob Howell (The Ferryman) / Vicki Mortimer (Follies)

BEST DIRECTOR : Dominic Cooke (Follies) / Marianne Elliott (Angels In America) / Rupert Goold (Ink) /  Thomas Kail (Hamilton) / Sam Mendes (The Ferryman)

BEST NEW MUSICAL: An American In Paris /  Everybody's Talking About Jamie / Girl From The North Country / Hamilton / Young Frankenstein

Broadcast and Performance details of 2018 Olivier Awards on 8th April

Full details have just been revealed for the 2018 Olivier Awards, which take place on Sunday 8th April at the Royal Albert Hall with Catherine Tate acting as host.

The Biggest Night In British Theatre: The Olivier Awards will broadcast on ITV on Sunday 8 April from 22:20. It will also broadcast worldwide at the same time on the Olivier Awards Facebook page. The Oliviers will broadcast in China via iQiyi on Tuesday 10 April.

Magic Radio will broadcast the entire show live on Sunday 8 April, hosted by Alice Arnold and Olivier Award-winner Ruthie Henshall, with build-up on air from 18:00. Sirius XM will broadcast the show via radio in the US.

The Red Carpet Live show will return this year from 16:00 to 17:30, with a special interval Backstage show at 19:00, both shown exclusively on the Olivier Awards Facebook page.

Performances during the ceremony will include:

The 50th anniversary of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will be commemorated with past stars returning including Jason Donovan and Linzi Hateley, Lee Mead and Preeya Kalidas, and Joe McElderry and Danielle Hope.

John McCrea and the cast of Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Sheila Atim and the cast of Girl From The North Country, Lesley Joseph and the cast of Young Frankenstein, Tracie Bennett from Follies and the cast of 42nd Street.

 

The West End cast of Hamilton will open the show with a rendition of "Alexander Hamilton"-

 

American legend Chita Rivera will perform the West Side Story number "Somewhere" to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the production debuting in London. She will be accompanied by Andy Karl (Groundhog Day Olivier Award winner), Adam J Bernard (Dreamgirls Olivier Award winner) and the Arts Educational Schools London Choir.


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2017 Olivier Awards - Musical Theatre winners

The winners of the Olivier Awards 2017 with Mastercard were announced last night  (Sunday 9 April 2017) at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The  ceremony was hosted by Jason Manford and will be broadcast on ITV on Tuesday 11 April at 8:00pm.

Predictably Harry Potter And The Cursed Child collected a record-breaking nine Olivier Awards, overtaking Matilda and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time  as the most decorated production in the ceremony’s history.

In the musical categories, Groundhog Day, written by Tim Minchin and Danny Rubin, was named Mastercard Best New Musical. The production, which is currently in previews on Broadway, also received the award for Best Actor in a Musical for Andy Karl’s portrayal of Phil Connors.

Amber Riley, who performed a show-stopping rendition of And I Am Telling You, was named Best Actress in a Musical, while her co-star Adam J Bernard won Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical. Rebecca Trehearn won Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Show Boat, which transferred to the West End from Sheffield Theatres.

Two shows composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber also received awards, with School Of Rock The Musical winning Outstanding Achievement in Music for the three children’s bands who play instruments live every night at New London Theatre and Jesus Christ Superstar winning Magic Radio Best Musical Revival.

Disappointingly the highly popular and critically acclaimed productions of The Girls and Half a Sixpence did not win anything despite several nominations..

The list of winners in the various musical theatre categories is  as follows:

Best Theatre Choreographer:  Matthew Bourne for The Red Shoes at Sadler’s Wells

Outstanding Achievement in Music: School Of Rock The Musical

Best Entertainment and Family: Matthew Bourne’s production of The Red Shoes at Sadler’s Wells

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical: Adam J Bernard for Dreamgirls at Savoy Theatre

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical: Rebecca Trehearn for Show Boat at New London Theatre

Magic Radio Best Musical Revival: Jesus Christ Superstar

Best Actor in a Musical: Andy Karl for Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

Best Actress in a Musical: Amber Riley for Dreamgirls at Savoy Theatre

Mastercard Best New Musical: Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

Latest News on Presenters and Performers at Sunday's Olivier Awards

The Olivier Awards 2017 with Mastercard has revealed further details of the ceremony, hosted by Jason Manford on Sunday 9th  April at the Royal Albert Hall which  will be broadcast on ITV on Tuesday 11th April from 8:00pm to 10:00pm. It will broadcast worldwide at the same time, outside the UK, on Facebook. The awards ceremony will also stream to China for the first time ever via YouKu.

Presenters this year include David Baddiel, Alfie Boe, John Boyega, Michaela Coel, Leanne Cope, Julian Clary, Robert Fairchild, Ben Forster, Phoebe Fox, Andrew Garfield, Denise Gough, Matt Henry, Ruthie Henshall, Amanda Holden, Rufus Hound, Cush Jumbo, Nathan Lane, Rose Leslie, Maureen Lipman, Danny Mac, Audra McDonald, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Laura Mvula, Paul O'Grady, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Sophie Okonedo, Charlotte Ritchie, Mark Rylance and Russell Tovey.

The presenters join the previously announced line-up of i performers which will include Gary Barlow & Tim Firth with the company of The Girls, Amber Riley from Dreamgirls, Tim Minchin from his musical Groundhog Day and the companies of School Of Rock The Musical, Jesus Christ Superstar and Matthew Bourne’s touring production of The Red Shoes. Six-time Tony Award-winner, Audra McDonald (shortly to open in London in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill) performs exclusively as part of the In Memoriam section.

As previously announced, a new Red Carpet Live show debuts this year from 4:30pm to 6:00pm, hosted by Anita Rani, Jamie Lambert and Frank DiLella, exclusively onfacebook.com/OlivierAwards
 

Magic Radio will be broadcasting the entire show live on Sunday 9th April, hosted by Alice Arnold and Olivier Award-winner Ruthie Henshall, with build-up on air from 5:30pm. Sirius XM will broadcast the show via radio in the US

Gary Barlow, Amber Riley, Tim Minchin, Audra McDonald and School of Rock among performers at this year's Olivier Awards

The Olivier Awards Broadcast Date has been announced on ITV on Tuesday 11th April from 8:00pm to 10:00pm. It will be hosted by hosted by Jason Manford with performances from a variety of Olivier-nominated musicals. Gary Barlow and Tim Firth will open the show with the cast of The Girls. Amber Riley will perform the show-stopping And I Am Telling You from Dreamgirls. Tim Minchin will  represent Groundhog Day, which has just started previewing on Broadway. Andrew Lloyd Webber fans can see  a performance from the cast of School Of Rock plus  a performance from Regent's Park Open Air Theatre's acclaimed production of Jesus Christ Superstar, which is set to return this summer.

Additionally, there will be an exclusive performance from Matthew Bourne's The Red Shoes, nominated for Best Entertainment and Family which is currently on tour across the UK. Broadway legend and six-time Tony Award-winner, Audra McDonald who is soon to open in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill , will perform accompanied by the Olivier Awards' orchestra during the show's In Memoriam section.

The many guest presenters for the awards will be announced over the coming weeks.

It will broadcast worldwide at the same time, outside the UK, on Facebook. The awards ceremony will also stream to China for the first time ever via YouKu.

Magic Radio will be broadcasting the entire show live on Sunday 9th April, hosted by Alice Arnold and Olivier Award-winner Ruthie Henshall, with build-up on air from 5:30pm. Sirius XM will broadcast the show via radio in the US.

As previously announced, a new Red Carpet Live show debuts this year from 4:30pm to 6:00pm, hosted by Anita Rani, Jamie Lambert and Frank DiLella, exclusively on Facebook.

Laurence Olivier Award nominees announced

Denise Gough and Matt Henry have just announced the Laurence Oilvier Award nominees in a live stream today. The Olivier Awards will take place this year at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 9th  April.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is  the most nominated new play in Olivier history, with 11 nominations.JK Rowling and Jack Thorne's play won eight awards at the WhatsOnStage Awards earlier this year and the trend looks set to continue, after being nominated in categories including Best New Play, Best Set Design, Best Actress in a Supporting Role (for Noma Dumezweni) and Best Actor (for Jamie Parker)

Groundhog Day has also received eight nominations while Sonia Friedman Productions receive 31 nominations. Ian McKellen was nominated for the 10th time for No Man's Land.

This year Kenneth Branagh is being awarded the Special Achievement Olivier in recognition of his outstanding contribution to British theatre.
 

The Full List of Olivier Award Nominees for musical theatre are:
 

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical:

Ian Bartholomew for Half A Sixpence at Noël Coward Theatre

Adam J Bernard for Dreamgirls at Savoy Theatre

Ben Hunter for The Girls at Phoenix Theatre

Andrew Langtree for Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical

Haydn Gwynne for The Threepenny Opera at National Theatre - Olivier

Victoria Hamilton-Barritt for Murder Ballad at Arts Theatre

Rebecca Trehearn for Show Boat at New London Theatre

Emma Williams for  Half A Sixpence at Noël Coward Theatre

Outstanding Achievement in Music

Dreamgirls - Music by Henry Krieger at Savoy Theatre

Harry Potter And The Cursed Child - Composer and Arranger: Imogen Heap at Palace Theatre

Jesus Christ Superstar - The band and company creating the gig-like rock vibe of the original concept album of Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

School Of Rock The Musical - Three children's bands who play instruments live every night at New London Theatre

Best New Dance Production

Betroffenheit by Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young at Sadler's Wells

Blak Whyte Gray by Boy Blue Entertainment at Barbican Theatre

Giselle by Akram Khan and English National Ballet at Sadler's Wells

My Mother, My Dog And CLOWNS! by Michael Clark at Barbican Theatre

Outstanding Achievement in Dance

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for their London season at Sadler's Wells

Luke Ahmet for The Creation by Rambert at Sadler's Wells

English National Ballet for expanding the variety of their repertoire with Giselle and She Said at Sadler's Wells

Best Entertainment and Family

Cinderella at London Palladium

David Baddiel – My Family: Not The Sitcom at Vaudeville Theatre

Peter Pan at National Theatre - Olivier

The Red Shoes at Sadler's Wells
 

Best Theatre Choreographer

Matthew Bourne for The Red Shoes at Sadler's Wells

Peter Darling and Ellen Kane for Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

Steven Hoggett for Harry Potter And The Cursed Child at Palace Theatre

Drew McOnie for Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre


Magic Radio Best Musical Revival

Funny Girl at Savoy Theatre

Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

Show Boat at New London Theatre

Sunset Boulevard at London Coliseum


Best Actor in a Musical

David Fynn for School Of Rock The Musical at New London Theatre

Tyrone Huntley for Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

Andy Karl for Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

Charlie Stemp for Half A Sixpence at Noël Coward Theatre
 

Best Actress in a Musical

Glenn Close for Sunset Boulevard at London Coliseum

"The Girls" - Debbie Chazen, Sophie-Louise Dann, Michele Dotrice, Claire Machin, Claire Moore and Joanna Riding - for The Girls at Phoenix Theatre

Amber Riley for Dreamgirls at Savoy Theatre

Sheridan Smith for Funny Girl at Savoy Theatre

Mastercard Best New Musical

Dreamgirls at Savoy Theatre

The Girls at Phoenix Theatre

Groundhog Day at The Old Vic

School Of Rock The Musical at New London Theatre

Full details of Olivier Award Winners

The winners of the Olivier Awards 2016 with MasterCard were announced last night  at London’s Royal Opera House.
               
Hosted by two-time Oliver Award winner Michael Ball, the ceremony featured performances from Grammy and Tony Award winner Cyndi Lauper, Michael Feinstein, Joe Stilgoe and Jack Savoretti. For the finale, the awards welcomed back 15 past Olivier Award winners including Maria Friedman, Ruthie Henshall and Jill Halfpenny who performed What I Did For Love from A Chorus Line (winner of Best New Musical at the 1976 awards)

The guests presenting this year’s awards were Uzo Aduba, Zawe Ashton, Dame Shirley Bassey, Matthew Bourne, Rob Brydon, Jessie Buckley, Stephen Campbell Moore, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Adam Cooper, Paul Copley, Noma Dumezweni, Alfred Enoch, Luke Evans, David Gandy, Kit Harington, Emma Hatton, Lenny Henry, Eddie Izzard, Rory Kinnear, Beverley Knight, Lesley Manville, Julia McKenzie, James Norton, Vanessa Redgrave, Amber Riley, Juliet Stevenson, Savannah Stevenson, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Luke Treadaway, Zoë Wanamaker and Dame Barbara Windsor

The  show also included a live link to a free public Olivier Awards celebration on the ITV Stage in Covent Garden Piazza hosted by leading West End performers Carrie Hope Fletcher and Daniel Boys, where thousands of theatre-lovers enjoyed West End performances and a live big screen relay of the ceremony. ITV broadcast extensive highlights at 22:15 following the ceremony. The full ceremony will be broadcast on ITV3 on Monday 4 April at 23:00.


The winners are:

Best Revival/ Ma Rainey's Black Bottom at National Theatre, Lyttelton

Best Entertainment and Family/Showstopper! The Improvised Musical at Apollo Theatre

Best Costume Design/Gregg Barnes for Kinky Boots at Adelphi Theatre

Blue-i Theatre Technology Award for Best Set Design/Anna Fleischle for Hangmen at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre and Wyndham's Theatre

White Light Award For Best Lighting Design/Mark Henderson for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Best Sound Design/Tom Gibbons for People, Places And Things at National Theatre, Dorfman

Best New Opera Production/Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci at Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Opera/English National Opera Chorus and Orchestra for The Force Of Destiny, Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk and The Queen Of Spades at London Coliseum

Best Actor in a Supporting Role/Mark Gatiss for Three Days In The Country at National Theatre, Lyttelton

Best Actress in a Supporting Role/Dame Judi Dench for The Winter's Tale at Garrick Theatre

Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre/Pat Kinevane and Fishamble for Silent at Soho Theatre

Virgin Atlantic Best New Play/Hangmen at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre and Wyndham's Theatre

Best Actor/Kenneth Cranham for The Father at Wyndham's Theatre

Best Actress/Denise Gough for People, Places And Things at National Theatre, Dorfman

Magic Radio Audience Award/The Phantom Of The Opera

Best New Comedy/Nell Gwynn at Apollo Theatre

Best New Dance Production/Woolf Works by Wayne McGregor at Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Dance/Alessandra Ferri for her performances in Chéri and Woolf Works at Royal Opera House

Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music/In The Heights – Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Orchestrated and Arranged by Alex Lacamoire and Bill Sherman at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Theatre Choreographer/Drew McOnie for In The Heights at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Director/Robert Icke for Oresteia at Almeida Theatre

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical/David Bedella for In The Heights at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical/Lara Pulver for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Best Musical Revival/Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Best Actor in a Musical/Matt Henry for Kinky Boots at Adelphi Theatre

Best Actress in a Musical/Imelda Staunton for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

MasterCard Best New Musical/Kinky Boots at Adelphi Theatre


Next year the Olivier Awards with MasterCard will be on Sunday 9 April 2017  in a new venue: the Royal Albert Hall.

Nominees for todays' Olivier Awards

The nominees for today's 2016 Olivier Awards are (details of ceremony and TV coverage here)

Best Revival Of A Play-    Hamlet (Barbican Theatre)
-    Les Liasions Dangereuses (Donmar Warehouse)
-    Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (National Theatre, Lyttelton)
-    The Winter's Tale (Garrick Theatre)

Virgin Atlantic Best New Play
-    Farinelli And The King (Duke Of York's Theatre)
-    The Father (Wyndham's Theatre)
-    Hangmen (Royal Court & Wyndham's Theatre)
-    People, Places And Things (National Theatre, Dorfman)

Best New Comedy
-    A Christmas Carol (Noel Coward Theatre)
-    Hand To God (Vaudeville Theatre)
-    Nell Gwynn (Apollo Theatre)
-    Peter Pan Goes Wrong (Apollo Theatre)

Best Actor
-    Kenneth Branagh (The Winter's Tale - Garrick Theatre)
-    Kenneth Cranham (The Father - Wyndham's Theatre)
-    Benedict Cumberbatch (Hamlet - Barbican)
-    Adrian Lester (Red Velvet - Garrick Theatre)
-    Mark Rylance (Farinelli And The King - Duke Of York's Theatre)

Best Actress
-    Gemma Arterton (Nell Gwynn - Apollo Theatre)
-    Denise Gough (People, Places And Things - National Theatre, Dorfman)
-    Nicole Kidman (Photograph 51 - Noel Coward Theatre)
-    Janet McTeer (Les Liasions Dangereuses - Donmar Warehouse)
-    Lia Williams (Oresteia - Almeida)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
-    Mark Gatiss (Three Days in the Country - National Theatre, Lyttelton)
-    Michael Pennington (The Winter's Tale - Garrick Theatre)
-    Tom Sturridge (American Buffalo - Wyndham's Theatre)
-    David Suchet (The Importance Of Being Earnest - Vaudeville Theatre)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
-    Judi Dench (The Winter's Tale Garrick Theatre)
-    Michele Dotrice (Nell Gwynn - Apollo Theatre)
-    Melody Grove (Farinelli And The King - Duke Of York's Theatre)
-    Catherine Steadman (Oppenheimer - Duchess Theatre)

Best Director
-    Rob Ashford and Kenneth Branagh (The Winter's Tale - Garrick Theatre)
-    Matthew Dunster (Hangmen - Royal Court & Wyndham's Theatre)
-    Robert Icke (Oresteia - Almeida)
-    Jonathan Kent (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)

Mastercard Best New Musical
-    Bend It Like Beckham (Phoenix Theatre)
-    In The Heights (King's Cross Theatre)
-    Kinky Boots (Adelphi Theatre)
-    Mrs Henderson Presents (Noel Coward Theatre)

Best Musical Revival
-    Bugsy Malone (Lyric Hammersmith)
-    Guys And Dolls (Savoy Theatre)
-    Gypsy (Savoy Theatre)
-    Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (Regent's Park Open Air Theatre)

Best Actor in a Musical
-    Ian Bartholomew (Mrs Henderson Presents - Noel Coward Theatre)
-    Killian Donnelly (Kinky Boots - Adelphi Theatre)
-    David Haig (Guys And Dolls - Savoy Theatre)
-    Matt Henry (Kinky Boots - Adelphi Theatre)
-    Jamie Parker (Guys And Dolls - Savoy Theatre)

Best Actress in a Musical
-    Tracie Bennett (Mrs Henderson Presents - Noel Coward Theatre)
-    Natalie Dew (Bend It Like Beckham- Phoenix Theatre)
-    Laura Pitt-Pulford (Seven Brides For Seven Brothers - Regent's Park Open Air Theatre)
-    Imelda Staunton (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)
-    Sophie Thompson (Guys And Dolls - Savoy Theatre)

Best Actor In A Supporting Role In A Musical
-    David Bedella (In The Heights - King's Cross Theatre)
-    Dan Burton (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)
-    Peter Davison (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)
-    Gavin Spokes (Guys And Dolls - Savoy Theatre)

Best Actress In A Supporting Role In A Musical
-    Preeya Kalidas (Bend It Like Beckham - Phoenix Theatre)
-    Amy Lennox (Kinky Boots - Adelphi Theatre)
-    Lara Pulver (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)
-    Emma Williams (Mrs Henderson Presents - Noel Coward Theatre)

Best Costume Design
-    Gregg Barnes (Kinky Boots - Adelphi Theatre)
-    Hugh Durrant (Nell Gwynn - Apollo Theatre)
-    Jonathan Fensom (Farinelli And The King - Duke Of York's Theatre)
-    Katrina Lindsay (Bend It Like Beckham - Phoenix Theatre)

White Light Award for Best Lighting Design
-    Neil Austin (The Winter's Tale - Garrick Theatre)
-    Natasha Chivers (Oresteia - Almeida)
-    James Farncombe (People, Places And Things - National Theatre, Dorfman)
-    Mark Henderson (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)

Best Sound Design
-    George Dennis (The Homecoming - Trafalgar Studios)
-    Tom Gibbons (People, Places And Things - National Theatre, Dorfman)
-    Christopher Shutt (The Father - Wyndham's Theatre)
-    Christopher Shutt (Hamlet - Barbican)

Blue-i Theatre Technology Award for Best Set Design
-    Hildegard Bechter (Oresteia - Almeida)
-    Es Devlin (Hamlet - Barbican)
-    Jonathan Fensom (Farinelli And The King - Duke of York's Theatre)
-    Anna Fleischle (Hangmen - Royal Court & Wyndham's Theatre)

Best Entertainment And Family
-    Alice's Adventures Underground (The Vaults)
-    Dr. Seuss's The Lorax (The Old Vic)
-    I Want My Hat Back (National Theatre, Temporary Theatre)
-    Peter Pan (Regent's Park Open Air Theatre)
-    Showstopper! The Improvised Musical (Apollo Theatre)

Best New Dance Production
-    He Who Falls (Celui Qui Tombe) (Compagnie Yoann Bourgeois - Barbican)
-    Romeo Et Juliette (Les Ballets de Monte Carlo - London Coliseum)
-    Woolf Works (Wayne McGregor - Royal Opera House)

Outstanding Achievement in Dance
-    Alessandra Ferri (Cheri and Woolf Works - Royal Opera House)
-    Javier De Frutos (for his choreography of Anatomy Of A Passing Cloud - Linbury Studio Theatre, Royal Opera House)
-    Sasha Waltz (for her choreography of Sacre - Sadler's Wells)

Best New Opera Production
-    Cavalleria Rusticana/ Pagliacci (Royal Opera House)
-    The Force Of Destiny (London Coliseum)
-    Morgen Und Abend (Royal Opera House)

Outstanding Achievement in Opera
-    English National Opera Chorus and Orchestra
-    Felicity Palmer (The Queen Of Spades - London Coliseum)
-    Antonio Pappano (Royal Opera House)
-    Tamara Wilson (The Force Of Destiny - London Coliseum)

Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre
-    Barbarians (The Clare, Young Vic)
-    Pat Kinevane and Fishamble (Silent - Soho Theatre)
-    Phil Dunster (Pink Mist - Bush Theatre)
-    Violence And Son (Jerwood Theatre Upstairs - Royal Court)

Best Theatre Choreographer
-    Carlos Acosta and Andrew Wright (Guys And Dolls - Savoy Theatre)
-    Drew McOnie (In The Heights - King's Cross Theatre)
-    Stephen Mear (Gypsy - Savoy Theatre)
-    Jerry Mitchell (Kinky Boots - Adelphi Theatre)

Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music
-    Bend It Like Beckham (Phoenix Theatre)
-    Farinelli And The King (Duke Of York's Theatre)
-    In The Heights (King's Cross Theatre)
-    Kinky Boots (Adelphi Theatre)

Latest ceremony details for this Sunday's Olivier Awards

 The stars will arrive on the Royal Opera House’s red carpet from 16:45 onwards for  the 18:30 ceremony. This year’s list of Olivier Award nominees includes Gemma Arterton, Kenneth Branagh, Kenneth Cranham, Benedict Cumberbatch, Judi Dench, Mark Gatiss, Denise Gough, Preeya Kalidas, Nicole Kidman, Adrian Lester, Lara Pulver, Mark Rylance, Imelda Staunton, Tom Sturridge and David Suchet.

The guests presenting this year’s awards include Uzo Aduba, Zawe Ashton, Shirley Bassey, Matthew Bourne, Rob Brydon, Stephen Campbell Moore, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Adam Cooper, Paul Copley, Noma Dumezweni, Alfred Enoch, Luke Evans, David Gandy, Kit Harington, Emma Hatton, Lenny Henry, Eddie Izzard, Rory Kinnear, Beverley Knight, Lesley Manville, Julia McKenzie, James Norton, Vanessa Redgrave, Amber Riley, Juliet Stevenson, Savannah Stevenson, Kiri Te Kanawa, Luke Treadaway, Zoë Wanamaker and Barbara Windsor.

In a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Olivier Awards, Joe Stilgoe and Michael Feinstein will be joined by Michael Ball, Sharon D Clarke, Daniel Evans and Leigh Zimmerman to also perform an exclusive 40th anniversary tribute to the Olivier Awards.

As previously announced, Grammy Award and Tony Award winner Cyndi Lauper will perform both on her own and in a unique collaboration. Kinky Boots, with music and lyrics by Lauper, is nominated for seven Olivier Awards.

Also as previously announced, Jack Savoretti will perform Sonnet 18 at the ceremony to mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. His performance will be introduced by Rory Kinnear, the last person to win an Olivier Award for a Shakespeare role.

The evening will feature exclusive performances from all four nominated productions in the Best Musical Revival category. Best Actress in a Musical nominee Imelda Staunton will open the show performing a number from the multi-Olivier Award-nominated show Gypsy. Casts from Bugsy Malone, Guys And Dolls and Seven Brides For Seven Brothers will also perform.

Additionally, all four nominees for MasterCard Best New Musical will be performing. Theatre fans can expect dazzling performances from Bend It Like Beckham, In The Heights, Kinky Boots and Mrs Henderson Presents.

The BBC Concert Orchestra will be playing at the ceremony, with orchestrations and original music by Music Director Larry Blank, and further orchestrations by Mark Cumberland.

Red carpet styling will be provided by Amanda Wakeley, Asprey and Chester Barrie.

In the UK, shortly after the ceremony, extended highlights will be broadcast on ITV at 22:15. The full ceremony will be shown on ITV3 on Monday 4 April at 23:00. Both broadcasts will be available on the ITV Hub for the following 30 days. The ceremony will also be broadcast live on Mellow Magic, Magic Radio’s new digital station.

International audiences will be able to watch the full broadcast of the star-studded ceremony on the Olivier Awards new YouTube channel from 22:00 (BST) on Sunday 3 April. (www.youtube.com/olivierawards)

In a free public event, musical theatre stars Carrie Hope Fletcher and Michael Xavier will host the ITV Stage in Covent Garden Piazza. This will also be available to UK and international audiences to watch live on the Olivier Awards’ YouTube channel from 17:00-18:30 BST. There will be performances from the shortlisted shows for the Magic Radio Audience Award – Jersey Boys, Les Misérables, Matilda The Musical and The Phantom Of The Opera – as well as star turns from Murder Ballad’s Kerry Ellis, American Idiot, Breakin’ Convention Hip Hop Dance Festival: Myself UK, and Pro-Motion and West End Blend Choir.

To keep up with the latest Olivier Awards with MasterCard news visit www.olivierawards.com.

The Olivier Awards 2016 with MasterCard – the most prestigious event in the UK’s theatrical calendar – has revealed further details of the star-studded ceremony, hosted by two-time Olivier Award winner Michael Ball on Sunday 3 April at the Royal Opera House.

Details of Olivier Awards coverage on Sunday

The Olivier Awards 2016 have announced the details for this year's ceremony broadcast, including the first wave of presenters.

The awards (celebrating their 40th anniversary) take place at the Royal Opera House on Sunday 3rd April hosted by Michael Ball.

Guests  include past Olivier winners Matthew Bourne, Sharon D. Clarke, Paul Copley, Daniel Evans, Julia McKenzie, Lesley Manville, Vanessa Redgrave, Juliet Stevenson, Zoë Wanamaker, Leigh Zimmerman and Dame Shirley Bassey. Also in the line up of presenters,  will be  DREAMGIRLS star Amber Riley and GAME OF THRONES and soon-to-be DOCTOR FAUSTUS star Kit Harington. The evening will also feature a  performance by KINKY BOOTS Tony winner Cyndi Lauper who will duet with   Michael Ball.

There is an exclusive  performance by Jack Savoretti to mark the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death inspired by the 2002 album When Loves Speaks: a collection of Shakespeare’s sonnets interpreted in spoken word and song which was co-curated by Alan Rickman. Savoretti’s performance of Sonnet 18, widely known for its opening line ‘Shall I Compare Thee To A Summer's Day?’, will be introduced by two-time Olivier Award winner Rory Kinnear – the last person to win an Oliver Award for a Shakespeare role. Many of the album’s contributors are past Olivier Award winners including Juliet Stevenson, who will be presenting an award at the ceremony, and 2016 nominees Kenneth Branagh and Imelda Staunton.

Extended highlights will be broadcast shortly after the ceremony on ITV 1 at 22:15. The full ceremony will be shown on ITV3 on Monday 4th April at 23:00. (Both broadcasts available on the ITV Hub for the following 30 days).  Those wanting to watch the ceremony live in full can head to Covent Garden Piazza where it will be relayed on big screens on  the ITV Stage following an afternoon of live performances from nominated shows and special guests

The ceremony will also be broadcast live on Mellow Magic, Magic Radio's new spin-off station who are also broadcasting a special four-part documentary celebrating 40 years of the Olivier Awards which is narrated by three-time award-winner Imelda Staunton.

International audiences  can watch the full broadcast on the Olivier Awards new YouTube channel from 22:00 (BST) on Sunday 3 April.

Will post any more information as soon as it is announced.

Michael Ball hosting Olivier Awards in April

Michael Ball is to host this year's Olivier Awards which are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year and will be held at London's Royal Opera House on 3rd April. He will also be hosting the nominations announcement, taking place at noon on 29th February. The announcement will be streamed live at www.olivierawards.com

The West End singer and presenter was made an OBE last month, previously co-hosted the awards in 2011 and 2012 has previously won two Oliviers - for best actor in a musical in 2008 for Hairspray and in 2013 for Sweeney Todd.

The 16 shows in the running for the award are: Beautiful - The Carole King Musical; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; Jersey Boys; Disney's The Lion King; Mamma Mia!; Matilda the Musical; Les Miserables; The Mousetrap; The Phantom of the Opera; The Railway Children; Stomp; Sunny Afternoon; The Play that Goes Wrong; The Woman in Black and Thriller Live.

Last year's big winners were Kinks-inspired musical Sunny Afternoon and drama A View From the Bridge, with Dame Angela Lansbury winning her first Olivier Award for her role as Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit, her first West End role in nearly 40 years.

Voting opened on Tuesday for the Magic Radio Audience Award, the only Olivier voted on by the public.

Ways to Watch the 2015 Olivier Awards

ITV is televising recorded  highlights 10:15pm to 12:00am from tomorrow's awards ceremony which is being hosted by Lenny Henry at the Royal Opera House.
But there is also plenty going on in the Piazza from 16:45 where Olivier Award nominee Michael Xavier and ITV This Morning's Alison Hammond will host an  evening of entertainment on the stage in Covent Garden  outside the Royal Opera House.  All the action from the ceremony  is being streamed live  directly to the Piazza on big screens with  a line-up of exclusive performances beforehand and during the interval from the This Morning Audience Award nominees Billy Elliot The Musical, Jersey Boys, Matilda The Musical and Wicked, as well Avenue Q, Beyond Bollywood, Sadler's Wells' Breakin’ Convention and the West End Gospel Choir.

The action on the Red Carpet starts from  from 17:00 when stars of the London stage and celebrities from film and television begin to arrive. You can see this as it happens by checking the Official London Theatre website, the awards' official news channel, for coverage throughout the evening.

Performers and Coverage of the Olivier Awards

This year's  Olivier Awards will be held on Sunday 12th  April at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden  with full highlights  broadcast on ITV from 22:15 that evening. Lenny Henry will host proceedings with voice over by Julie Walters.

Guest presenters on the night include Dianna Agron, Jamie Campbell Bower, Laura Carmichael, Lauren Cuthbertson, Dame Judi Dench, Anne-Marie Duff, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Emilia Fox, Adam Garcia, David Harewood, Pixie Lott, Lorna Luft, James Norton, Claire Sweeney, Catherine Tate, Russell Tovey and Michael Urie, with more special guests on the night.

The evening will feature exclusive performances from the  four nominated productions in the MasterCard Best New Musical category. Best Actress in a Musical nominees Katie Brayben and Beverley Knight will each perform a number from their multi-Olivier nominated shows, Beautiful - The Carole King Musical and Memphis The Musical. The cast of Sunny Afternoon will perform a medley of much-loved Kinks songs, and for Here Lies Love there will be an exclusive performance by leading lady Natalie Mendoza and Talking Heads' David Byrne, who co-created the show with Fatboy Slim. The pair share their own nomination in the Outstanding Achievement in Music category.

There will also be performances from the Magic Radio Best Musical Revival nominated productions, City Of Angels, The Gershwins' Porgy And Bess, Miss Saigon and Cats when  Olivier nominee Nicole Scherzinger sing  Memory.

The special finale performance will not be revealed until the night of the ceremony.

Members of the public can watch the stars arrive on the red carpet at the Royal Opera House from 17:00. This year's list of Olivier nominees include Gillian Anderson, Richard Armitage, Gemma Arterton, James McAvoy, Tamsin Greig, Beverley Knight, Dame Angela Lansbury, Mark Strong, Nicole Scherzinger, Dame Kristin Scott Thomas and Penelope Wilton.

Musical Theatre 2014 Olivier Award Winners

Best Actor in a Musical - Gavin Creel for The Book Of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre

Best Actress in a Musical - Zrinka Cvitesic for Once at the Phoenix Theatre

Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical - Stephen Ashfield for The Book Of Mormon

MasterCard Best New Musical - The Book Of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre

Best Musical Revival - Merrily We Roll Along at the Harold Pinter Theatre

Best Theatre Choreographer - Casey Nicholaw for The Book Of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre

Best Entertainment and Family - The Wind In The Willows at the Duchess Theatre

Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music - Once - Martin Lowe for composition and arrangements, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova for music and lyrics

White Light Award for Best Lighting Design - Tim Lutkin and Finn Ross for Chimerica at the Almeida Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre and Paul Pyant and Jon Driscoll for Charlie And The Chocolate Factory at Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Best Sound Design - Carolyn Downing for Chimerica at the Almeida Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre and Gareth Owen for Merrily We Roll Along at the Harold Pinter Theatre

Best Costume Design - Mark Thompson for Charlie And The Chocolate Factory at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane

BBC Radio 2 Audience Award - Les Miserables at the Queen's Theatre

Performances and Presenters at 2014 Olivier Awards

With the Olivier Awards taking place inside the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden this Sunday there is also plenty of action outside withWest End leading man Michael Xavier (about to appear in The Pajama Game) and TV presenter Myleene Klass hosting some great musical theatre entertainment on the stage in Covent Garden Piazza from 5:00 pm.

There are llive performances from hit shows and touring productions including Avenue Q, Happy Days, The Pajama Game, Les Misérables, Matilda The Musical, Wicked and  The West End Gospel Choir.

When the actual ceremony (hosted by  Made in Dagenham's Gemma Arterton and Stephen Mangan) starts at 18:30 it will be streamed directly to theatre fans in the Piazza .

This year’s  presenters include Michael Ball, Samantha Barks, Kristin Davis, Beverley Knight, Dame Penelope Keith, Mark Strong, Luke Treadaway, Gok Wan and Ruth Wilson.

Among the shows performing are Best New Musical nominees The Book Of Mormon, Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Once and The Scottsboro Boys. Broadway's Bernadette Peters and opera star Joseph Calleja will take to the Royal Opera House stage and  ABBA’s Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus join the cast of Mamma Mia! to celebrate the show’s 15th birthday.  

New Olivier Award for Musical Supervisors and Orchestrators

Musical supervisors and orchestrators will be honoured at next year's Olivier Awards in a brand new prize category which recognises outstanding achievement in music “bringing together potential nominations across the music fields including composition of original music for plays, orchestration and musical supervision/direction”.

Campaigner Mike Dixon (We Will Rock You and The Bodyguard)  said: “The most important aspect of this award is that finally the Oliviers are respecting the fact that music and musicians play a central role in musical theatre. After a couple of years campaigning for some recognition for musical supervisors and musical directors I am really pleased that from next year there is an award that recognises the huge contribution to the industry that all musicians make.”

Next year’s Olivier Awards will take place on April 13th at the Royal Opera House. The cut off for eligible shows is February 25th.

Great Line Up Announced for the Olivier Awards

The Olivier Awards are being held at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden on 28th April. The Musical Theatre nominees can be found here.

As already mentioned. they are being hosted this year by Sheridan Smith and Hugh Bonneville, but the line has now been announced with Glee and Broadway stars Idina Menzel and Matthew Morrison performing live.  They will be joined by Petula Clark, Will Young with the cast of Cabaret, the full companies of A Chorus Line and Top Hat plus The Bodyguard star and Best Actress in a Musical nominee Heather Headley will sing I Will Always Love You.  Busted and Son Of Dork musician James Bourne will sing from his nominated musical Loserville.

Michael Xavier and Claudia Winkelman will be in charge of he proceedings on the stage in the Covent Garden Piazza. There will be live performances from shows including Billy Elliot The Musical, Matilda The Musical, The Phantom Of The Opera, Wicked, Burn The Floor, Potted Potter and Some Like It Hip Hop. There will also be a large screen showing the awards ceremony as it happens.

Envelope opened and award presenters will include Damien Lewis, Daniel Radcliffe,  Kim Cattrall, Lee Evans, Romola Garai, Lily James, David Suchet, Myleene Klass and Tim Minchin.
Sounds like a great event this year which  will be broadcast live with red carpet coverage and performances from the show on BBC Radio 2 from 6:00 pm. Shortly after the ceremony ends ITV1 will be broadcasting highlights.

Olivier Award Nominations for Musical Theatre

The following shortlist for musical theatre shows has just been announced for this year's Olivier Awards:

Best New Musical: Loserville, Soul Sister, The Bodyguard and Top Hat.  

Best Musical Revival: A Chorus Line, Cabaret, Kiss Me Kate and Sweeney Todd

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical: Adam Garcia, Kiss Me Kate:  Debbie Kurup The Bodyguard:  Leigh Zimmerman A Chorus Line and  Sian Phillips Cabaret

Best Actor in a Musical:  Michael Ball,  Sweeney Todd,  Alex Bourne Kiss Me Kate,  Tom Chambers Top Hat and Will Young Cabaret

Best Actress in a Musical:  Heather Headley The Bodyguard: Imelda Staunton, Sweeney Todd: Summer Strallen, Top Hat and  Hannah Waddingham Kiss Me Kate

BBC R2 Audience Award Billy Elliott, Matilda, Phantom of the Opera and Wicked!

The awards will be presented at the Royal Opera House on 28th April.