Second chance to see Into The Woods

Download service Digital Theatre has released filmed performances of a number of acclaimed West End shows.

The web service is offering theatregoers another chance to see some of the most talked-out and critically acclaimed West End productions of 2010, including Into the Woods, All My Sons and the RSC’s As You Like It.

The Open Air Theatre’s acclaimed production of Stephen Sondheim’s Into The Woods proved a big hit for the Regent’s Park venue last summer and starred The Wizard of Oz’s Hannah Waddingham as the Witch and Love Story’s Michael Xavier as the Wolf/Prince.

Howard Davies’ Apollo Theatre production of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, which was recently nominated for Best Revival and Best Actor Olivier Awards, featured an all-star cast including David Suchet, Zoe Wanamaker, Stephen Campbell Moore (Clybourne Park) and Jemima Rooper.

Finally, the RSC’s production of As You Like It, which is Digital Theatre’s second collaboration with the RSC, is also available to download. Michael Boyd’s production starred Jonjo O’Neill and Katy Stephens.

Digital Theatre, which charges £6.99 per download,  films live stage performances using multiple camera angles and high-definition technology, and has forged partnerships with a number of major theatre companies including the Almeida Theatre, the English Touring Theatre, the Royal Court, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Young Vic.

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ALL MY SONS

Directed by Howard Davies and designed by William Dudley, the universally acclaimed All My Sons which enjoyed a sell out season at the Apollo Theatre in London’s West End last year, has lighting by Mark Henderson, music by Dominic Muldowney and sound by Paul Groothius. The Laurence Olivier Award winning All My Sons was produced in the West End by Kim Poster for Stanhope Productions and Sonia Friedman Productions, Eric Falkenstein, Robert G. Bartner and Norman Tulchin, Simon Meadon, Dan Frishwasser. Earlier this month it was announced that All My Sons has received two Laurence Olivier Award nominations – Best Revival and Best Actor for David Suchet.

The cast is led by David Suchet as Joe Keller and Zoe Wanamaker as Kate Keller. They are accompanied by Stephen Campbell Moore as Chris, Olivia Darnley as Lydia Lubey, Steven Elder as Dr Jim Bayliss, Claire Hackett as Sue Bayliss, Daniel Lapaine as George Deever, Jemima Rooper as Ann Deever, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor as Frank Lubey and Ted Allpress as Bert.

AS YOU LIKE IT

Directed by Royal Shakespeare Company Artistic Director Michael Boyd, As You Like It is designed by Tom Piper, lighting by Wolfgang Göbbel, music by John Woolf, sound by Andrew Franks, movement by Struan Leslie and fights by Terry King.

The cast includes Charles Aitken as Oliver, David Carr as Charles the Wrestler, Dyfan Dwyfor as William, Christine Entwisle as Phoebe, Geoffrey Freshwater as Adam/Corin, Mariah Gale as Celia, James Howard as First Lord, Ansu Kabia as Le Beau, Richard Katz as Touchstone, Debbie Korley as Hisperia, Forbes Masson as Jaques, Sandy Neilson as Duke Frederick, Jonjo O’Neill as Orlando, Dharmesh Patel as Lord Amiens, Peter Peverley as Jacques Du Boys/Dennis, Sophie Russell as Audrey, Clarence Smith as Duke Ferdinand, Katy Stephens as Rosalind, James Traherne as Sir Oliver Martext and James Tucker as Silvius.

INTO THE WOODS

Celebrating Stephen Sondheim’s 80th birthday, the 2010 season at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre closed with Sondheim and Lapine’s 1987 musical Into the Woods co-directed by Timothy Sheader and Liam Steel. With designs by Soutra Gilmour, movement by co-director Liam Steel, musical supervision and direction Gareth Valentine, lighting by Jon Clark, orchestrations by Chris Walker and sound by Mike Walker, Into the Woods became the highest selling single production at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. Earlier this month it was announced that Into the Woods has received two Laurence Olivier Award nominations – Best Musical Revival and Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Michael Xavier.

The cast (in order of appearance) comprises Eddie Manning as the The Narrator, Helen Dallimore as Cinderella, Ben Stott as Jack, Mark Hadfield as Baker, Jenna Russell as Baker’s Wife, Gaye Brown as Cinderella’s Stepmother, Amy Ellen Richardson as Florinda, Amy Griffiths as Lucinda, Marilyn Cutts as Jack’s Mother, Beverly Rudd as Little Red Ridinghood, Hannah Waddingham as Witch, Gemma Wardle as Cinderella’s Mother, Billy Boyle as Mysterious Man, Michael Xavier as Wolf and Cinderella’s Prince, Valda Aviks as Grandmother, Alice Fearn as Rapunzel, Simon Thomas as Rapunzel’s Prince, Mark Goldthorp as Steward, Sophie Caton as Snow White/Harp, Marc Antolin as Woodsman, with Judi Dench as the voice of the Giant.

LINKS

VIDEO: Watch a trailer for As You Like It

Digital Theatre

Digital Theatre: William Shakespeare’s As You Like It, Stephen Sondheim And James Lapine’s Into The Woods, Arthur Miller’s All My Sons Now Available To Stream And Download

Digital Theatre today (14 February 2011) announces William Shakespeare’s As You Like It – their second collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company; the critically acclaimed Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into The Woods, and the sell out West End production of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons as their next three downloadable productions which will also be available to stream from £6.99 at www.digitaltheatre.com. As You Like It will be available from today followed shortly by Into The Woods and All My Sons.

Digital Theatre’s partner theatres are the Almeida Theatre Company, the Bush Theatre, English Touring Theatre, the Gate Theatre, Notting Hill, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, the Royal Court Theatre, the Royal Exchange Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Young Vic.

AS YOU LIKE IT

Unable to act on their feelings and forced into exile in the Forest of Arden, lovers Rosalind and Orlando become entangled in a beguiling game of love, lust and mistaken identity. One of Shakespeare’s great comedies, As You Like It subverts the traditional rules of romance. Gender roles nature and politics are confused in a play that reflects on how bewildering yet utterly pleasurable life can be.

Directed by Royal Shakespeare Company Artistic Director Michael Boyd, As You Like It is designed by Tom Piper, lighting by Wolfgang Göbbel, music by John Woolf, sound by Andrew Franks, movement by Struan Leslie and fights by Terry King.

Michael Boyd said: “After completing sold out seasons at Stratford-upon-Avon and the Roundhouse, I am delighted that, with Digital Theatre’s input, the life of As You Like It can be extended. It’s great that audiences who were not able to purchase tickets in the UK will now be able to access our production to watch at their leisure.”

The cast comprises Charles Aitken as Oliver, David Carr as Charles the Wrestler, Dyfan Dwyfor as William, Christine Entwisle as Phoebe, Geoffrey Freshwater as Adam/Corin, Mariah Gale as Celia, James Howard as First Lord, Ansu Kabia as Le Beau, Richard Katz as Touchstone, Debbie Korley as Hisperia, Forbes Masson as Jaques, Sandy Neilson as Duke Frederick, Jonjo O’Neill as Orlando, Dharmesh Patel as Lord Amiens, Peter Peverley as Jacques Du Boys/Dennis, Sophie Russell as Audrey, Clarence Smith as Duke Ferdinand, Katy Stephens as Rosalind, James Traherne as Sir Oliver Martext and James Tucker as Silvius.

INTO THE WOODS

Into the Woods takes the stories of the Brothers Grimm and gives them a dark and humorous twist. The popular tales of Red Ridinghood, Jack (of Beanstalk fame), Cinderella and Rapunzel are interwoven with that of the Baker and his Wife and their quest to have a child. However this re-telling goes beyond ‘happily ever after’ as the familiar characters find themselves in unfamiliar circumstances and hopes and dreams are questioned and revisited.
Celebrating Stephen Sondheim’s 80th birthday, the 2010 season at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre closed with Sondheim and Lapine’s 1987 musical Into the Woods co-directed by Timothy Sheader and Liam Steel. With designs by Soutra Gilmour, movement by co-director Liam Steel, musical supervision and direction Gareth Valentine, lighting by Jon Clark, orchestrations by Chris Walker and sound by Mike Walker, Into the Woods became the highest selling single production at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. Earlier this month it was announced that Into the Woods has received two Laurence Olivier Award nominations – Best Musical Revival and Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Michael Xavier.
The cast (in order of appearance) comprises Eddie Manning as the The Narrator, Helen Dallimore as Cinderella, Ben Stott as Jack, Mark Hadfield as Baker, Jenna Russell as Baker’s Wife, Gaye Brown as Cinderella’s Stepmother, Amy Ellen Richardson as Florinda, Amy Griffiths as Lucinda, Marilyn Cutts as Jack’s Mother, Beverly Rudd as Little Red Ridinghood, Hannah Waddingham as Witch, Gemma Wardle as Cinderella’s Mother, Billy Boyle as Mysterious Man, Michael Xavier as Wolf and Cinderella’s Prince, Valda Aviks as Grandmother, Alice Fearn as Rapunzel, Simon Thomas as Rapunzel’s Prince, Mark Goldthorp as Steward, Sophie Caton as Snow White/Harp, Marc Antolin as Woodsman, with Judi Dench as the voice of the Giant.

ALL MY SONS

All My Sons tells the story of Joe Keller, a successful, middle-aged, self-made man who has done a terrible and tragic thing: during World War II, rushing to meet an order from the Army, he knowingly sold them defective airplane parts which later caused the planes to crash and killed 21 men. He framed his business partner for this crime and engineered his own exoneration; now, his son is about to marry the partner’s daughter, the affair is revisited, and his lie of a life is unravelled.

Directed by Howard Davies and designed by William Dudley, the universally acclaimed All My Sons which enjoyed a sell out season at the Apollo Theatre in London’s West End last year, has lighting by Mark Henderson, music by Dominic Muldowney and sound by Paul Groothius. The Laurence Olivier Award winning All My Sons was produced in the West End by Kim Poster for Stanhope Productions and Sonia Friedman Productions, Eric Falkenstein, Robert G. Bartner and Norman Tulchin, Simon Meadon, Dan Frishwasser. Earlier this month it was announced that All My Sons has received two Laurence Olivier Award nominations – Best Revival and Best Actor for David Suchet.

The cast is led by David Suchet as Joe Keller and Zoe Wanamaker as Kate Keller. They are accompanied by Stephen Campbell Moore as Chris, Olivia Darnley as Lydia Lubey, Steven Elder as Dr Jim Bayliss, Claire Hackett as Sue Bayliss, Daniel Lapaine as George Deever, Jemima Rooper as Ann Deever, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor as Frank Lubey and Ted Allpress as Bert.

CATALOGUE OF DIGITAL THEATRE PRODUCTIONS:

English Touring Theatre’s Far From The Madding Crowd, an adaptation by Mark Healy from Thomas Hardy, directed by Kate Saxton with a cast including Rebecca O’Mara, Phil Cheadle and Stephen Billington.

The Container, presented in association with The Young Vic and Amnesty International, highlighting the plight of illegal immigrants coming to the UK, written by Clare Bayley, directed by Tom Wright, designed by Naomi Dawson.

Jez Butterworth’s Laurence Oliver Award nominated Parlour Song, directed by Ian Rickson at the Almeida, with a cast comprising Amanda Drew, Andrew Lincoln and Toby Jones.

Kathryn Hunter’s acclaimed one woman show Kafka’s Monkey by Franz Kafka, in an adaptation by Colin Teevan, directed by Walter Meierjohann, which enjoyed a sell-out season at the Young Vic.

Mark Ravenhill’s Over There, part of the Royal Court Theatre’s 2009 Off The Wall season, written by Mark Ravenhill and directed by Ravenhill and Ramin Gray, with a cast of twin brothers Harry Treadaway and Luke Treadaway.

The Royal Shakespeare Company and Told by an Idiot’s The Comedy of Errors, created for schools and family audiences, directed by Paul Hunter. In addition Digital Theatre offer a behind the scenes documentary to download.

Robert Delamere and Tom Shaw launched Digital Theatre in 2009 and to date the site has users from over 120 countries worldwide. With the support of Equity, BECTU and the Musicians Union; Digital Theatre produces theatre productions filmed in front of live audiences for users to stream or download and keep at www.digitaltheatre.com

Digitaltheatre.com has been built with a variety of technologies to provide the user with the best platform for delivery. The entire application is hosted in a secure and scalable environment with servers running the latest Windows and Adobe software. Adobe Rights Management ensures top level digital copyright protection. SSL site encryption provides high-level security guaranteeing the privacy of customer and payment information.

GULF STAGE
In addition to the newest downloads, Digital Theatre is also pleased to announce Gulf Stage, a unique digital project with the British Council in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage (Qatar), and The Cultural Development Centre – a member of the Qatar Foundation. Six original theatre productions from the participating countries of the Gulf Co-operation Council Youth Theatre Festival (GCCYTF, Doha, Qatar 2010) – UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait – were digitally captured alongside a professional development workshop in digital film making, in a pioneering initiative to preserve contemporary Gulf cultural heritage.
The six productions, subtitled into English, along with an accompanying documentary are available to view online for free at digitaltheatre.com/gulfstage
Gulf Stage, Digital Theatre’s first international project, was facilitated by the British Council.

Release issued by: Premier PR

LINKS

Digital Theatre

Nicholas Hytner announces plans for 2011 and beyond at the National Theatre

Highlights of the forthcoming productions at the National Theatre, announced today by Nicholas Hytner, include Howard Davies’s production of The Cherry Orchard; Jonathan Kent’s staging of Ibsen’s Emperor and Galilean; Katie Mitchell’s production of A Woman Killed with Kindness; Alecky Blythe and Adam Cork’s London Road; Dominic Cooke’s NT debut with The Comedy of Errors; and Nicholas Hytner’s production of Richard Bean’s One Man,Two Guvnors. There will be a new musical by Tori Amos and Sam Adamson; new plays by John Hodge, Mike Leigh and Conor McPherson; revivals of classic 20th-century plays by Odets, Wesker and O’Casey; and Jonathan Miller’s staging of Bach’s St Matthew Passion.

Olivier Theatre

Tickets for the ninth Travelex season at the National Theatre will continue to offer exciting and ambitious work at the equivalent of cinema prices, with almost half the tickets for every performance at £12 and the rest at £20 and £30. The season opens on 17 May with Howard Davies’s production of THE CHERRY ORCHARD by Anton Chekhov, in a version by Andrew Upton; Zoë Wanamaker as Madame Ranevskaya and Conleth Hill as Lopakhin head the cast, which also includes Claudie Blakley, Mark Bonnar, Pip Carter, Gerald Kyd, James Laurenson, Tim McMullan, Emily Taaffe, Charity Wakefield and Sarah Woodward.

Ibsen’s EMPEROR AND GALILEAN, in a new version by Ben Power, will be directed by Jonathan Kent, opening on 15 June; Andrew Scott plays Julian and the cast also includes James McArdle, Jamie Ballard, John Heffernan, Ian McDiarmid (as Maximus), Genevieve O’Reilly and Prasanna Puwanarajah.

The Travelex £12 Season will continue in September with a production yet to be confirmed, directed by Thea Sharrock; and will conclude in October with a new production of Arnold Wesker’s 1957 play THE KITCHEN, directed by Bijan Sheibani.

Jonathan Miller’s staging of Bach’s ST MATTHEW PASSION, in collaboration with Southbank Sinfonia, will have nine performances in September as part of the four hundredth anniversary celebrations for the King James Bible. The National will also present readings from the Old and New Testaments, abridged by Edward Kemp, by a company of leading actors from the NT’s last 25 years; Nicholas Hytner will be the supervisory director and the readings will take place in the Olivier and Lyttelton Theatres.

Dominic Cooke, Artistic Director of The Royal Court, will make his National Theatre debut with Shakespeare’s THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, opening in the Olivier in November.

As already announced, earlier in the year Danny Boyle directs FRANKENSTEIN, a new play by Nick Dear, based on the novel by Mary Shelley. Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternate the roles of Victor Frankenstein and The Creature; the cast also includes Karl Johnson and Naomie Harris. The production, sponsored by Coutts & Co, has press nights on 22 and 23 February.

Lyttelton Theatre

The 2011 Lyttelton season opens on 1 February, as previously announced, with GREENLAND by Moira Buffini, Matt Charman, Penelope Skinner and Jack Thorne. NT associate directors Bijan Sheibani and Ben Power are the director and dramaturg respectively; the production is sponsored by Accenture.

Angus Jackson directs ROCKET TO THE MOON by Clifford Odets, opening on 30 March, with a cast led by Keeley Hawes, Joseph Millson, Jessica Raine and Nicholas Woodeson.

In May, Nicholas Hytner directs ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS by Richard Bean, based on The Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni; James Corden heads the cast. The production will tour the UK in October following its Lyttelton run.

A WOMAN KILLED WITH KINDNESS by Thomas Heywood will be directed by Katie Mitchell, opening in July.

A new play written and directed by Conor McPherson will open in the Lyttelton in October. As yet untitled, the play is set in 19th-century Ireland.

Howard Davies will direct Sean O’Casey’s JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, with Sinead Cusack as Juno and Ciaran Hinds as Captain Boyle. This will be a co-production with the Abbey Theatre, Ireland, where it premieres in September before opening at the Lyttelton in November.

Cottesloe Theatre

Ryan Craig’s new play, THE HOLY ROSENBERGS, opens on 16 March directed by Laurie Sansom, with a cast led by Henry Goodman and also including Philip Arditti, Stephen Boxer, Paul Freeman, Tilly Tremayne, Alex Waldmann and Susannah Wise.

Rufus Norris will direct LONDON ROAD, with book and lyrics by Alecky Blythe, and music and lyrics by Adam Cork, opening on 14 April; the cast includes Rosalie Craig, Kate Fleetwood, Nick Holder, Claire Moore, Michael Shaeffer and Paul Thornley. (Alecky Blythe’s award-winning play Do We Look Like Refugees?, seen at the Edinburgh Festival in 2010, will visit Riverside Studios in May, in a co-production by the NT Studio/Rustaveli Theatre, Georgia.)

In July, four new one-hour plays commissioned from emerging writers new to the National Theatre will be directed by Polly Findlay and Lyndsey Turner, presented in alternating double-bills.

Mike Leigh returns to the National with a new play, opening in September; the cast will include Ruby Bentall and Lesley Manville.

A new play by John Hodge will be directed by Nicholas Hytner, opening in October. The play centres on an imaginary encounter between Joseph Stalin and the playwright Mikhail Bulgakov; Alex Jennings will play Bulgakov and Simon Russell Beale will play Stalin.

Winter and beyond

Looking further ahead, a production of THE WAY OF THE WORLD by William Congreve will open in the Olivier in January 2012.

A new musical with music and lyrics by Tori Amos and book and additional lyrics by Samuel Adamson, suggested by a story by George MacDonald, will be directed by Marianne Elliott, opening in April 2012 in the Lyttelton Theatre.

Beyond the National: National Theatre Live, on tour, in the West End and on Broadway

Following its sell-out run at the Olivier, Nicholas Hytner’s production of HAMLET will tour from mid-February to Salford, Nottingham, Woking, Milton Keynes, Plymouth and Luxembourg.

Richard Bean’s ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS, with the original cast led by James Corden, will visit Plymouth, Salford, Birmingham and Edinburgh in October.

Mike Leigh’s new play will visit Bath and Cambridge in the autumn, during its Cottesloe run.

The second season of National Theatre Live (now on 360 screens across 20 countries, sponsored by Aviva) continues with the Donmar Warehouse’s production of KING LEAR, with Derek Jacobi directed in the title role by Michael Grandage, filmed at the Donmar’s home in Covent Garden on 3 February; Danny Boyle’s production of FRANKENSTEIN on 17 March; and Howard Davies’s production of THE CHERRY ORCHARD on 30 June. A third season of National Theatre Live will begin in the autumn.

WAR HORSE, based on a novel by Michael Morpurgo, adapted by Nick Stafford, continues its run at the New London Theatre where it is now booking until February 2012. The National’s production opens at Lincoln Center Theater, New York, with the original creative team working with a new American cast, from 15 March 2011.

Watch This Space Festival
The National’s free summer festival of outdoor entertainment will return with the giant grass furniture in Theatre Square in June 2011, featuring theatre, fire, circus, juggling, hula-hooping, dance and street performance.

Release issued by: National Theatre press office

LINKS

National Theatre venue information: Lyttleton Theatre |  Olivier Theatre
National Theatre website

Evening Standard Awards – winners

Royal Court and National Theatre sweep up at annual Evening Standard Theatre Awards; Royal Court wins best play; National’s Nancy Carroll and Rory Kinnear win best actress and actor

At a glittering ceremony yesterday, 28 November, at the newly reopened Savoy Hotel in London, the annual Evening Standard Theatre Awards were announced.

Hosted by Stephen Fry, the 56th awards saw a host of stars from stage and screen come together to celebrate the best of the year’s theatre scene.

This year saw a notable number of rising young stars acknowledged in the awards, including teenage playwright Anya Reiss, who was presented with the Charles Wintour award for most promising playwright by Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch for her play Spur of the Moment at the Royal Court.

Also another young Royal Court winner was rewarded, with Skins actor Daniel Kaluuya winning the “Editor’s award for a shooting star” for Sucker Punch. The venue also picked up best play for Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park, which is to transfer to the Wyndham’s Theatre next year, and best design for Miriam Buether for Sucker Punch at the Royal Court and Earthquakes in London at the National Theatre.

The National were also major beneficiaries of this year’s awards, with Nancy Carroll beating Passion’s Elena Roger, Legally Blonde’s Sheridan Smith and Clybourne Park’s Sophie Thompson to win the best actress award for After the Dance at the National. Also at the venue, Rory Kinnear won best actor for his title role in Hamlet, along with Measure for Measure at the Almeida, and Howard Davies won best director for The White Guard and his production of All My Sons at the Apollo.

Best musical went to Passion, the Donmar Warehouse’s revival of Stephen Sondheim’s show starring Elena Roger, and the Milton Shulman award for Outstanding newcomer was given to You Me Bum Bum Train created by Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd at the LEB Building, E2.

Two special awards for achievement in theatre were also given: Sir Michael Gambon received a special award  for his contribution to theatre, and Sir Peter Hall, who enjoyed this 80th birthday this month, was awarded the Moscow Art Theatre’s Golden Seagull award.

The National Theatre’s production of Hamlet, starring Evening Standard best actor award winner Rory Kinnear, will be filmed as part of the National’s NT Live season and screened in cinemas across the UK and around the world on 9 December 2010. See more information here.

Watch a video of the Evening Standard Theatre Awards

See the full list of Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2010 winners here

Evening Standard Theatre Awards – Winners 2010

Awards announced: Sunday 28 November 2010, Savoy Hotel London

BEST ACTOR
Rory Kinnear- Measure for Measure (Almeida)/Hamlet (National’s Olivier)

THE NATASHA RICHARDSON AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS
Nancy Carroll – After the Dance (National’s Lyttelton)

BEST PLAY
Bruce Norris – Clybourne Park (Royal Court)

THE NED SHERRIN AWARD FOR BEST MUSICAL
Passion – Donmar Warehouse

BEST DIRECTOR
Howard Davies – The White Guard (National’s Lyttelton)/All My Sons (Apollo)

BEST DESIGN
Miriam Buether – Sucker Punch (Royal Court)/Earthquakes in London (National’s Cottesloe)

THE CHARLES WINTOUR AWARD FOR MOST PROMISING PLAYWRIGHT
Anya Reiss – Spur of the Moment (Royal Court)

THE MILTON SHULMAN AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING NEWCOMER
You Me Bum Bum Train created by Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd (LEB Building, E2)

EDITOR’S AWARD FOR A SHOOTING STAR
Daniel Kaluuya for his performance in Sucker Punch (Royal Court)

THE LEBEDEV SPECIAL AWARD
Sir Michael Gambon for his contribution to theatre

THE MOSCOW ART THEATRE’S GOLDEN SEAGULL
Sir Peter Hall

Evening Standard Awards – shortlist

Sheridan Smith and Elena Roger head-to-head for Evening Standard Theatre Awards

The Evening Standard has published their Theatre Awards shortlist ahead of a glitzy ceremony at the newly reopened Savoy Hotel this Sunday, 28 November.

Hosted by Stephen Fry, the 56th annual awards will see stars of stage and screen join an impressive list of nominees for this year’s event.

In the Best Actress category, in honour of Natasha Richardson, two musicals stars are pitted against each other: Sheridan Smith, in Legally Blonde at the Savoy Theatre, and Elena Roger, star of Passion at the Donmar Warehouse and soon to be Ricky Martin co-star on Broadway in Evita. They are shortlisted against Nancy Carroll for the National’s After the Dance and Sophie Thompson for the Royal Court’s Clybourne Park – a part which she will revive in the New Year for the West End transfer of the show at the Wyndham’s Theatre.

The National Theatre and the Royal Court are the producing houses to benefit most from this year’s shortlist, with 10 and 11 nods respectively. The National Theatre is celebrated for a range of productions, with Thea Sharrock (After the Dance), Nicholas Hytner (The Habit Of Art, London Assurance, Hamlet), Howard Davies for The White Guard (plus All My Sons at the Apollo) and Laurie Sansom for Beyond The Horizon and Spring Storm all vying for the Best Director award.

The Royal Court’s reputation for writing has won out again over its competitors this year, earning the venue complete dominance over both Best Play category, with nominations for Cock, Clybourne Park and Sucker Punch, and Most Promising Playwright category, with DC Moore for The Empire, Nick Payne for Wanderlust (plus If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet at the Bush) and Anya Reiss for Spur Of The Moment.

Performances of Shakespeare is the theme of this year’s Best Actor category, with Roger Allam singled out for his performance in Henry IV Parts One and Two at Shakespeare’s Globe and Rory Kinnear for two Shakespeare roles, the National Theatre’s Hamlet and the Almeida’s Measure For Measure. David Suchet also gets nod for All My Sons at the Apollo Theatre.

Best Musicals, in honour of Ned Sherrin, cover all tastes, with Legally Blonde at the Savoy, Stephen Sondheim’s Passion at the Donmar Warehouse and – despite Trevor Nunn and John Caird’s sniping over Cameron Mackintosh’s new touring production – the 2010 reinvention of Les Miserables at the Barbican Theatre.

Finally Outstanding Newcomers include a well-deserved nod to Spice Girl Mel C for Blood Brothers.

See the Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2010 shortlist here

Evening Standard Theatre Awards – Shortlist 2010

Awards announced: Sunday 28 November 2010, Savoy Hotel London

BEST ACTOR
Roger Allam Henry IV Parts One and Two (Shakespeare’s Globe)
Rory Kinnear Hamlet (National’s Olivier)/Measure For Measure (Almeida)
David Suchet All My Sons (Apollo)

THE NATASHA RICHARDSON AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS
Nancy Carroll After The Dance (National Lyttelton)
Elena Roger Passion (Donmar Warehouse)
Sheridan Smith Legally Blonde (Savoy)
Sophie Thompson Clybourne Park (Royal Court)

BEST PLAY
Mike Bartlett Cock (Royal Court)
Bruce Norris Clybourne Park (Royal Court)
Roy Williams Sucker Punch (Royal Court)

THE NED SHERRIN AWARD FOR BEST MUSICAL
Legally Blonde Savoy Theatre
Les Misérables Cameron Mackintosh 2010 production at Barbican Theatre
Passion Donmar Warehouse

BEST DIRECTOR
Howard Davies The White Guard (National Lyttelton)/All My Sons (Apollo)
Nicholas Hytner The Habit Of Art (National Lyttelton)/London Assurance (National Olivier)/Hamlet (National Olivier)
Laurie Sansom Beyond The Horizon and Spring Storm (National Cottesloe)
Thea Sharrock After The Dance (National Lyttelton)

BEST DESIGN
Miriam Buether Sucker Punch (Royal Court)/Earthquakes In London (National Cottesloe)
Bunny Christie The White Guard (National Lyttelton)
Christopher Oram Passion (Donmar Warehouse)/Red (Donmar Warehouse)

CHARLES WINTOUR AWARD FOR MOST PROMISING PLAYWRIGHT
DC Moore The Empire (Royal Court)
Nick Payne If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet (Bush)/Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Anya Reiss Spur Of The Moment (Royal Court)

THE MILTON SHULMAN AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING NEWCOMER
Melanie Chisholm for her performance in Blood Brothers (Phoenix)
Daniel Kaluuya for his performance in Sucker Punch (Royal Court)
Isabella Laughland for her performance in Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Shannon Tarbet for her performance in Spur Of The Moment (Royal Court)
You Me Bum Bum Train created by Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd (LEB Building, E2)

THE GOLDEN SEAGULL AWARD
Presented on behalf of Moscow Art Theatre.

THE LEBEDEV SPECIAL AWARD
For outstanding contribution to theatre.

Evening Standard nominees announced

This year’s London Evening Standard Theatre Awards long-list of nominees has been announced.

The nominees cover some of the most high-profile of this year’s West End shows with a starry list of performers, directors and playwrights alongside some serious new talent. The Royal Court scores particularly highly with a range of acting and creative nods – including four nominations for Clybourne Park.

See the full list of London Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2010 nominees here

The shortlist of nominees will be announced a week prior to the awards ceremony, which will be held this year on 28 November at the newly reopened Savoy Hotel. The judging panel for the awards includes theatre critics Henry Hitchings of the Standard, Charles Spencer of the Telegraph, Susannah Clapp of the Observer, Georgina Brown of the Mail on Sunday and Matt Wolf of the Herald Tribune. Chair will be Evgeny Lebedev, who is chairman of the Standard and also the son of the proprietor Alexander Lebedev.

In terms of musicals it’s a good list for Sir Cameron Mackintosh who sees his 25th anniversary production of Les Misérables tapped, plus his West End transfer of Broadway hit of Hair – which closed after a relatively short run at the Gielgud Theatre. Also listed is the Menier’s Sweet Charity at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, which is about to close on 6 November, alongside long-runner Legally Blonde at the Savoy and current critical success Passion at the Donmar Warehouse.

In the Best Actor category up-and-coming stars such as Benedict Cumberbatch and Rory Kinnear are matched alongside established heavy-weights, from Roger Allam and Jonathan Pryce to David Suchet and Simon Russell Beale, the later for his turns in the National’s London Assurance and current West End hit Deathtrap. Alfred Molina also gets a nod for the Donmar’s Red after losing out at the Tony’s to co-star Eddie Redmayne.

Best Actress nominees feature a range of talent from high-profile crowd-pleasers that will guarantee plenty of red carpet coverage (Keira Knightley, Gemma Arterton, Sheridan Smith) to hard-hitters Judi Dench, Zoe Wannamaker and Fiona Shaw.

Best Plays feature both boxing shows to have played in London this year – Beautiful Burnout by Bryony Lavery at the York Hall and Sucker Punch by Roy Williams at the Royal Court. It’s a big awards for the Court who also get nods for Cock by Mike Bartlett, Clybourne Park by Mike Bartlett and Posh by Laura Wade.

Director nods feature a who’s who of current hitmakers, ticking pretty much every director box including Howard Davies, Rupert Goold, Michael Grandage, Nicholas Hytner, and director of the moment Thea Sharrock. Also Dominic Cooke gets a well-deserved nod for Clybourne Park, which transfers from the Royal Court to the West End in January.

Lez Brotherston is a notable inclusion in the Designer category with four of his productions credited: The Rise and Fall of Little Voice at the Vaudeville, Measure for Measure at the Almeida, Women Beware Women at the National and Design for Living at the Old Vic.

Most Promising Playwright nominees pay tribute to the Royal Court’s progressive programme of nurturing new writing talent, with 3 playwrights nominated: DC Moore for The Empire, Anya Reiss for Spur of the Moment and Nick Payne for Wanderlust. Equally impressive is the Bush, which is once again proving to punch well above its weight, with James Graham for The Whisky Taster, Nick Payne (again) for If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet and Penelope Skinner for Eigengrau all nominated.

The Outstanding Newcomer category is dominated by onstage talent, with a surprise nod to the Spice Girls’ Melanie Chrisholm for her much-praised stint in Blood Brothers, alongside upstarts including Laura Dos Santos for Educating Rita, Henry Lloyd-Hughes for Rope and Posh, and Simon Godwin for his direction, and Isabella Laughland and James Musgrave for their performances, in the Royal Court’s Wanderlust.

See the full list of London Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2010 nominees here

Evening Standard Theatre Awards – Nominees 2010

Awards announced: 28 November 2010

BEST ACTOR

Roger Allam: Henry IV Parts One and Two (Shakespeare’s Globe)
Bertie Carvel: Rope (Almeida)
Benedict Cumberbatch: After the Dance (National’s Lyttelton)
Martin Freeman: Clybourne Park (Royal Court)
Alex Jennings: The Habit of Art (National’s Lyttelton)
Rory Kinnear: Measure for Measure (Almeida)/ Hamlet (National’s Olivier)
Adrian Lester: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Novello)
Alfred Molina: Red (Donmar Warehouse)
Jonathan Pryce: The Caretaker (Trafalgar Studios)
Simon Russell Beale: London Assurance (National’s Olivier)/ Deathtrap (Noël Coward)
Adrian Scarborough: After the Dance (National’s Lyttelton)
David Suchet: All My Sons (Apollo)

THE NATASHA RICHARDSON AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS

Gemma Arterton: The Little Dog Laughed (Garrick)
Nancy Carroll: After the Dance (National’s Lyttelton)
Judi Dench: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Rose, Kingston)
Tamsin Greig: The Little Dog Laughed (Garrick)
Jenny Jules: Ruined (Almeida)
Keira Knightley: The Misanthrope (Comedy Theatre)
Amanda Lawrence: Jiggery Pokery (BAC)/ Henry VIII (Shakespeare’s Globe)
Rosaleen Linehan: The Beauty Queen of Leenane (Young Vic)
Helen McCrory: The Late Middle Classes (Donmar Warehouse)
Lesley Manville: Six Degrees of Separation (Old Vic)
Anna Maxwell Martin: Measure for Measure (Almeida)
Elena Roger: Passion (Donmar Warehouse)
Fiona Shaw: London Assurance (National’s Olivier)
Sheridan Smith: Legally Blonde (Savoy)
Sophie Thompson: Clybourne Park (Royal Court)
Zoë Wanamaker: All My Sons (Apollo)

BEST PLAY

Cock by Mike Bartlett (Royal Court)
The Big Fellah by Richard Bean (Lyric Hammersmith)
The Habit of Art by Alan Bennett (National’s Lyttelton)
Beautiful Burnout by Bryony Lavery (York Hall)
Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris (Royal Court)
Ruined by Lynn Nottage (Almeida)
Posh by Laura Wade (Royal Court)
Sucker Punch by Roy Williams (Royal Court)

THE NED SHERRIN AWARD FOR BEST MUSICAL

Hair – Gielgud Theatre
The Human Comedy - A Young Vic/The Opera Group production co-produced with Watford Palace Theatre
Legally Blonde - Savoy Theatre
Les Misérables (2010) - Cameron Mackintosh production at Barbican Theatre
Passion - Donmar Warehouse
Sweet Charity - Menier Chocolate Factory; transferred to Theatre Royal Haymarket

BEST DIRECTOR

Dominic Cooke: Clybourne Park (Royal Court)
Howard Davies: The White Guard (National’s Lyttelton)/ All My Sons (Apollo)
Rupert Goold: Romeo and Juliet (RSC Stratford)/Earthquakes in London (National’s Cottesloe)
Michael Grandage: Red (Donmar Warehouse)/ Danton’s Death (National’s Olivier)
Jeremy Herrin: Spur of the Moment (Royal Court)
Joe Hill-Gibbins: The Beauty Queen of Leenane (Young Vic)
Nicholas Hytner: The Habit of Art (National’s Lyttelton/London Assurance (National’s Olivier)/Hamlet (National’s Olivier)
James MacDonald: Cock (Royal Court)
Roger Michell: Rope (Almeida)
Laurie Sansom: Beyond the Horizon and Spring Storm (National’s Cottesloe)
Thea Sharrock: After the Dance (National’s Lyttelton)
Lyndsey Turner: Posh (Royal Court)

BEST DESIGN

Lez Brotherston: The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (Vaudeville)/Measure for Measure (Almeida)/Women Beware Women (National’s Olivier)/Design for Living (Old Vic)
Miriam Buether: Sucker Punch (Royal Court)/Earthquakes in London (National’s Cottesloe)
Bunny Christie: The White Guard (National’s Lyttelton)
Rob Howell: Private Lives (Vaudeville)/Deathtrap (Noël Coward)
Vicki Mortimer: The Cat in the Hat (National’s Cottesloe; transferred to Young Vic)
Christopher Oram: Passion (Donmar Warehouse)/Red (Donmar Warehouse)
Mark Thompson: London Assurance (National’s Olivier)

THE CHARLES WINTOUR AWARD FOR MOST PROMISING PLAYWRIGHT

James Graham: The Whisky Taster (Bush)/The Man (Finborough)
DC Moore: The Empire (Royal Court)
Nick Payne: If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet (Bush)/Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Anya Reiss: Spur of the Moment (Royal Court)
Atiha Sen Gupta: What Fatima Did (Hampstead)
Penelope Skinner: Eigengrau (Bush)

THE MILTON SHULMAN AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING NEWCOMER

You Me Bum Bum Train created by Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd (LEB Building, E2)
Melanie Chisholm for her performance in Blood Brothers (Phoenix)
Laura Dos Santos for her performance in Educating Rita (Menier Chocolate Factory, transferred to Trafalgar Studios)
Simon Godwin for his direction of Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Daniel Kaluuya for his performance in Sucker Punch (Royal Court)
Isabella Laughland for her performance in Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Henry Lloyd-Hughes for his performances in Rope (Almeida) and Posh (Royal Court)
James Mcardle for his performance in Spur of the Moment (Royal Court)
James Musgrave for his performance in Wanderlust (Royal Court)
Nikesh Patel for his performance in Disconnect (Royal Court)
Shannon Tarbet for her performance in Spur of the Moment (Royal Court)

THE GOLDEN SEAGULL AWARD
Presented on behalf of Moscow Art Theatre.

THE LEBEDEV SPECIAL AWARD
For outstanding contribution to theatre.

Opening this week in London

It’s a busy week for London theatre as comedy, Shakespeare, showgirls and Ben Barnes hit the West End stage.

OPENING THIS WEEK

Monday 27 September

Yes, Prime Minister opens at the Gielgud Theatre. Following a sell-out season at Chichester Festival Theatre, the original writers of the BBC series, Antony Jay & Jonathan Lynn, have reunited for this 30th anniversary production of Yes, Prime Minister starring Henry Goodman and David Haig. BOOK TICKETS

Tuesday 28 September

Birdsong opens at the Comedy Theatre. A new stage adaptation of Sebastian Faulks’ acclaimed novel Birdsong, adapted by Rachel Wagstaff, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring the Chronicles of Narnia’s Ben Barnes, Nicholas Farrell, Iain Mitchell, Genevieve O’Reilly and Lee Ross. BOOK TICKETS

Wednesday 29 September

Caroline O’Connor – The Showgirl Within opens at the Garrick Theatre. The international award-winning musicals star Caroline O’Connor is back in London with a new one-woman show following sell-out seasons in New York and Sydney. BOOK TICKETS

Traces opens at the Peacock Theatre. After a sell-out run in 2009, The 7 Fingers return to London with their fresh, urban and seriously high-energy smash-hit circus show Traces. Circus with a distinctly 21st century edge. BOOK TICKETS

Thursday 30 September

Hamlet starts previews at the National Theatre. Following his celebrated performances at the National in Burnt by the Sun , The Revenger’s Tragedy , Philistines and The Man of Mode, Rory Kinnear plays Hamlet, joined by Clare Higgins as Gertrude, Patrick Malahide as Claudius and David Calder as Polonius.

Pam Ann – Flying High opens at the Vaudeville Theatre. The fabulous Pam Ann will be winging her way into the Vaudeville Theatre featuring the glamorous Australian viper-tongued airline hostess from hell in an hilarious new show co-written by Pam Ann creator Caroline Reid. BOOK TICKETS

SHOWS CLOSING

Saturday 2 October

All My Sons at the Apollo Theatre. Howard Davies’ powerful production of Arthur Miller’s classic play comes to an end at the Apollo, starring David Suchet and Zoe Wanamaker.

Les Miserables at the Barbican Theatre. 

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