The UK Theatre Awards: Full list of winners
The ceremony celebrates theatre from all across the country
Last updated 24th Oct 2022
The UK Theatre Awards, the ceremony that celebrates outstanding achievements in theatre throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland took place yesterday.
The winners were announced at Guildhall London in a ceremony hosted by Legally Blonde and Six star Courtney Bowman.
UK Theatre Awards nominees and winners:
Best Design
Dracula: The Untold Story – Leeds Playhouse – Design by Laura Hopkins, Projection and Video Design by Simon Wainwright (WINNER)
Into The Woods – Theatre Royal Bath - Design by Jon Bausor, Video Design by Will Duke, Costume Design by Antony McDonald
Life is a Dream – Edinburgh Lyceum – Design by Georgia McGuinness
Best Director
Jessica Daniels – The Mozart Question - A Barn Theatre production in association with Bob & Marianne for Anthology Theatre and The Everyman Theatre Cheltenham
Robert Hastie, Anthony Lau, Elin Schofield – Rock/Paper/Scissors - The Crucible, Studio and Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield (WINNER)
Natalie Ibu – The White Card - A Birmingham Rep, Leeds Playhouse, Northern Stage & Soho Theatre co-production in association with HOME Manchester
RóisÃn McBrinn - Typical Girls – The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Best Musical Production
Billy Elliot – Leicester Curve (WINNER)
Now is Good – Storyhouse, Chester
Whistle Down the Wind – The Watermill Theatre
Best New Play
Cherry Jezebel – Liverpool Everyman
How to Bury a Dead Mule – Lyric Theatre, Belfast
Mugabe, My Dad & Me - A co-production by ETT, Brixton House & York Theatre Royal in association with Alison Holder (WINNER)
Best Performance in a Musical
Charlie Stemp – Crazy for You – Chichester Festival Theatre
Divina de Campo – Hedwig and the Angry Inch - A Leeds Playhouse and HOME co-production (WINNER)
Nicole & Kyla Fox, Emme & Eden Patrick, Sienna & Savannah Robinson – Identical – A Nottingham Playhouse and Kenny Wax Ltd co-production
Best Performance in a Play
Eithne Browne – Maggie May – Leeds Playhouse
Henry Goodman – Murder on the Orient Express – Chichester Festival Theatre
Leah St Luce – Black Love - A Paines Plough and Belgrade Theatre Coventry production, in association with tiata fahodzi
Giles Terera – The Meaning of Zong – A Bristol Old Vic Production (WINNER)
Best Play Revival
Jitney - A Headlong, Leeds Playhouse and Old Vic co-production
The Mountaintop – A Royal Exchange Theatre Production
Translations - An Abbey Theatre and Lyric Theatre Belfast Co-Production (WINNER)
Best Show for Children and Young People
Beauty and the Beast – A New Vic Production
Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World - Kenny Wax Family Entertainment in association with MAST Mayflower Studios (WINNER)
Petula – A National Theatre Wales, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru and August012 co-production
Best Supporting Performance (in a musical or play)
Nicola Hughes – Into The Woods – A Theatre Royal Bath Production
Robert Jackson – Brief Encounter – A Stephen Joseph Theatre, Octagon Theatre and Theatre By The Lake co-production
Nishla Smith – Kes – An Octagon Theatre and Theatre By The Lake co-production (WINNER)
UK Theatre – Achievement in Opera
Scottish Opera for Candide
Glyndebourne for the Poulenc Double Bill
Richard Mantle for the last year at Opera North, which epitomizes the work Richard has achieved over his tenure (WINNER)
Music Theatre Wales and Britten Pears Arts production of Violet at Buxton International Festival at Buxton Opera
UK Theatre – Achievement in Dance
William Tuckett’s Then or Now for Ballet Black, exquisitely melding poetry, dance, light and sound into an intimate work that gently touches big themes of our times
The dancers of Rambert for their ability to inhabit any choreographer’s vision, as a company of unique, versatile, incredibly skilled performers (WINNER)
Dan Daw for The Dan Daw Show, a kinky, joyful, unapologetic and vulnerable celebration of oneself and one’s body
Offstage categories
Digital Innovation
Chichester Festival Theatre (WINNER)
English Touring Theatre
Sadlers Wells
Excellence in Arts Education
Lyric Theatre Belfast (WINNER)
Storyhouse
Ambassador Theatre Group
Excellence in Inclusivity
English Touring Theatre (WINNER)
Graeae Theatre Company
Scottish Opera
Excellence in Touring
Graeae Theatre Company (WINNER)
Northern Ballet
Scottish Opera
Workforce Award
Ambassador Theatre Group
The Marlowe, Canterbury (WINNER)
Mercury Theatre
UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre
Leeds Playhouse
Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre
Sarah Holmes - Former CEO, New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich
Looking at the winners of Best Musical Revival at the Olivier Awards:
1991 - Show Boat
The first ever winner in this category was the Opera North and Royal Shakespeare Company's co-production of Show Boat which ran at the London Palladium in 1990.
1992 - The Boys from Syracuse
The Boys From Syracuse is a Rogers and Hart musical based on Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors. This production ran at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre in the summer of 1991 and was directed by none other than Dame Judi Dench.
1993 - Carousel
The National Theatre's first win in this category was their revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel which enjoyed a sellout limited run from December 1992 to March 1993. The revival then re-opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre in September of that year.
1994 - Sweeney Todd
Alun Armstrong and Julia McKenzie starred in the first London revival of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's Sweeney Todd. The production ran at the Cottesloe Theatre (now named the Dorfman) from June 1993 before transferring to the Lyttleton Theatre December of that year.
1995 - She Loves Me
She Loves me was revived at the Savoy Theatre and was directed by Scott Ellis and choreographed by Rob Marshal, the pair had just done a Broadway revival of She Loves Me the year prior.
The West End revival starred John Gordon Sinclair and Ruthie Henshall with the pair both winning Best Actor and Actress in a Musical.
1997 - The Who's Tommy
This year the name of the award changed to Outstanding Musical Production, which lasted through until 2007.
This rock musical is based on the 1969 rock opera, Tommy by The Who.
1998 - Chicago
In 1997, the Broadway revival of Kander and Ebb's Chicago transferred to the West End with Ute Lemper as Velma Ruthie Henshall as Roxie. The West End revival ran until 2012 and the Broadway revival is still running to this day!
1999 - Oklahoma!
The National Theatre revived Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma in 1998 with a cast that included Hugh Jackman as Curly, Maureen Lipman as Aunt Eller, Josefina Gabrielle as Laurey and Shuler Hensley as Jud Fry.
2000 - Candide
A second win in a row for the National Theatre with their 1999 production of Candide which includes music by West Side Story composer Leonard Bernstein.
2001 - Singin' in the Rain
The West Yorkshire Playhouse's production of Singin' in the Rain directed by Jude Kelly quickly got a West End transfer and ran at the National's Olivier Theatre for a month in 2000.
2002 - My Fair Lady
The National continued their winning streak with their production of My Fair Lady which starred Martine McCutcheon as Eliza and Jonathan Pryce as Higgins. The production then transferred to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane after four months.
2003 - Anything Goes
The National Theatre got their fifth win in a row with their production of Anything Goes which starred Sally Ann Triplett, John Barrowman and Yao Chin. Like My Fair Lady, the production then transferred to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
2004 - Pacific Overtures
The Chicago Shakespeare Theater's production of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's Pacific Overtures transferred to the Donmar Warehouse where it ran for a short period in 2003.
2005 - Grand Hotel
A second win a row for the Donmar Warehouse with their revival of Grand Hotel starring Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio.
2006 - Guys and Dolls
Guys and Dolls was revived at the Piccadilly Theatre running between 2005 and 2007. The cast of this production originally included Ewan McGregor as Sky, Jenna Russell as Sarah, Jane Krakowski as Adelaide and Douglas Hodge as Nathan Detroit.
2007 - Sunday in the Park with George
The Menier Chocolate Factory's production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Sunday in the Park with George transferred to the West End at the Wyndham's Theatre in 2006. The West End production starred Daniel Evans as George and Jenna Russell as Dot, both of whom won Olivier Awards for their respective roles.
2008 - The Magic Flute
After a run in Cape Town and at the Young Vic, The Magic Flute transferred to the West End with a run at the Duke of York's Theatre.
2009 - La Cage Aux Folles
Following the success of the Menier Chocolate Factory's scaled down production of La Cage Aux Folles, it got a West End transfer at the Playhouse Theatre with Douglas Hodge as Albin.
The success of the revival saw it get a Broadway transfer with Douglas reprising his role.
2010 - Hello Dolly!
Regent's Park Open Air Theatre started a streak of wins in this category with their revival of Hello Dolly! which starred Samantha Spiro in the titular role.
2011 - Into the Woods
The second win in this streak was for their revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods - which was very fitting for an open air theatre!
2012 - Crazy For You
Ira and George Gershwin's Crazy For You was Regent's Park's third win in a row for this category. This production got an extended life when it transferred to the Novello Theatre in October 2011.
2013 - Sweeney Todd
Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd broke an Olivier record this year when it became the first musical to win Best Musical Revival for a second time. This production began at the Chichester Festival Theatre and transferred to the Adelphi Theatre in the West End in 2012.
2014 - Merrily We Roll Along
Stephen Sondheim got a second win in a row for this category with the West End transfer of the Menier Chocolate Factory's production of Merrily We Roll Along which ran at the Harold Pinter Theatre.
2015 - City of Angels
Cy Coleman, David Zippel, and Larry Gelbart's City of Angels was revived at the Donmar Warehouse in 2014 directed by Josie Rourke.
2016 - Gypsy
Another win for Sondheim (as a lyricist at least) with the West End transfer of the Chichester Festival Theatre's production of Gypsy which starred Imelda Staunton in the iconic role of Mamma Rose.
2017 - Jesus Christ Superstar
The first Andrew Lloyd Webber revival to win this award was the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre production of Jesus Christ Superstar. This production went on to get runs in the US as well as the Barbican Centre in London.
The production returned to Regent's Park as a socially distanced concert in the summer of 2020.
2018 - Follies
The winner in 2018 was the National Theatre's revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman's Follies which starred Peter Forbes as Buddy, Imelda Staunton as Sally, Janie Dee as Phyllis, Philip Quast as Ben and Tracie Bennett as Carlotta.
The production was filmed and screened in cinemas as well as making a return to the Olivier Theatre in 2019.
2019 - Company
A modern reimagining of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's Company saw the leading role gender-swapped and played by Rosalie Craig. Patti LuPone reprised the role of Joanne (which she played in the 2011 Broadway concert).
The production is now running on Broadway.
2020 - Fiddler on the Roof
The Menier Chocolate Factory's production of Fiddler on the Roof directed by Trevor Nunn got a West End transfer. The West End production opened at the Playhouse Theatre in March 2019.
2022 - Cabaret
London's Playhouse Theatre has been transformed into the Kit Kat Club for this brand new revival of Cabaret directed by Rebecca Frecknall. As well as winning Best Musical Revival the production won in all four acting categories and now joins Hamilton and Matilda as one of the most awarded musicals with a total of seven wins.
2023 - Oklahoma!
Following a Tony-winning run on Broadway, Daniel Fish's stripped down revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma! transferred to the Young Vic in London. Since then it transferred to the West End at the Wyndham's Theatre.
Read more:
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