Love Never Dies loses out at Oliviers
March 14, 2011
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sequel to The Phantom of the Opera misses out at Olivier Awards
Ramin Karimloo and Sierra Boggess, both nominated for Love Never Dies
This year’s Olivier Awards nominations were led by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s big new show Love Never Dies, securing 7 nominations including Best New Musical, Best Actor in a Musical for Ramin Karimloo and Best Actress in a Musical for Sierra Boggess.
However, Sunday’s awards at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane proved to be a disappointing night for Lord Lloyd Webber as the show was pipped to the post in all nomination categories.
Ramin Karimloo, who plays the role of the Phantom said last night that it was a “great evening” but a “shame” that the show didn’t win.
Sierra Bogges, who played Christine in the show, flies out of the UK this morning to start rehearsals for a new production of Master Class on Broadway alongside Tyne Daly. Celia Graham has taken over the role of Christine.
At the awards last night, Ramin Karimloo sang Til I Hear You Sing from Love Never Dies, and John Owen-Jones and Sierra Boggess performed The Phantom of the Opera.
In better news for Love Never Dies, its new star David Thaxton, who joined the cast earlier this month to play Raoul, won a Best Actor in a Musical award for his performance in Passion at the Donmar Warehouse.
Organised by the Society of London Theatre, the awards are the most popular and important in the British theatre calendar. This year they enjoyed an overhaul, with Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton hosting, MasterCard sponsoring the event and live broadcast by the BBC.
LINKS
Love Never Dies Special offer: Save £27.50 on tickets
Olivier Awards – list of winners
Olivier Awards 2011 – Winners
March 13, 2011
The winners of the 35th Olivier Awards were announced on 13 March 2011 at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
Society of London Theatre Special Award:
Stephen Sondheim
Best Actress:
Nancy Carroll for After the Dance at the Lyttelton, NT
Best Actor:
Roger Allam for Henry IV Parts 1 & 2 at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre
Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
Michelle Terry for Tribes at the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, Royal Court
Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
Adrian Scarborough for After the Dance, at the Lyttelton, NT
Best New Play:
Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris at the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, Royal Court
Best Musical Revival:
Into the Woods at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Best New Musical:
Legally Blonde – The Musical book by Heather Hach, music and lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin at the Savoy
Best Entertainment:
The Railway Children by E Nesbit, adapted by Mike Kenny at the Waterloo Station Theatre
Best Actress in a Musical:
Sheridan Smith for Legally Blonde – The Musical at the Savoy
Best Actor in a Musical:
David Thaxton for Passion at the Donmar Warehouse
Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical:
Jill Halfpenny for Legally Blonde – The Musical at the Savoy
Best Director:
Howard Davies for The White Guard at the Lyttelton, NT
Best Revival:
After the Dance directed by Thea Sharrock at the Lyttelton. NT
Best Theatre Choreographer:
Leon Baugh for Sucker Punch at the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, Royal Court
Best Lighting Design:
The White Guard designed by Neil Austin at the Lyttelton, NT
Best Set Design:
The White Guard designed by Bunny Christie at the Lyttelton, NT
Best Costume Design:
After the Dance designed by Hildegard Bechtler at the Lyttelton, NT
Best Sound Design:
King Lear designed by Adam Cork at the Donmar Warehouse
BBC Radio 2 Audience Award for Most Popular Show:
We Will Rock You
Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre:
Lyric Hammersmith for Blasted
Best New Opera Production:
OperaUpClose and Soho Theatre’s La Boheme at the Soho Theatre
Outstanding Achievement in Opera:
Christian Gerhaher for his performance in the Royal Opera’s Tannhauser at the Royal Opera House
Best New Dance Production:
Babel (Words) by Eastman vzw and Royal Opera House La Monnaie at Sadler’s Wells, choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet
Outstanding Achievement in Dance:
Antony Gormley for his set design of Babel (Words) by Eastman vzw and Theatre Royal de la Monnaie at Sadler’s Wells
LINKS
Compare all Olivier Award winners
Olivier Awards tonight
March 13, 2011
The 35th annual Laurence Olivier Awards are to be held tonight, Sunday 13 March 2011, at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London.
Organised by the Society of London Theatre, the awards are the most popular and important in the British theatre calendar. This year they are set for an overhaul, with MasterCard sponsoring the event, and a glitzy ceremony planned for the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
The awards will feature full red carpet arrivals and star-studded ceremony that will be hosted by musical theatre star and TV and radio presenter Michael Ball, and award-winning actress Imelda Staunton.
Star presenters handing out Olivier gongs will include Lost star Matthew Fox, opera tenor Alfie Boe, stars of Frankenstein Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller, Mad Men’s Elisabeth Moss, Rupert Everett, Amanda Holden and Elaine Paige. Musical performances will include Barry Manilow and Kerry Ellis.
The awards will be covered extensively by the BBC on television, radio and online – including full red carpet coverage of stars arriving for the awards. A live broadcast of the ceremony will be played out via the BBC’s red button service (digital, cable or satellite viewers only), and also Paul Gambaccini will host Radio 2’s live coverage of the night, along with Jodie Prenger who will cover the red carpet arrivals. Plus BBC News will have special live coverage of the red carpet arrivals, and a post-awards reaction programme presented by Jane Hill and BBC Arts Editor Will Gompertz. Also highlights of the awards will be available on BBC iplayer the following week.
This year’s Olivier Awards nominations are lead by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies with 7 nominations and Thea Sharrock’s National Theatre production of Terence Rattigan’s After The Dance with 6 nominations, including best director for Sharrock and best actress for Nancy Carroll.
The National Theatre has 17 nominations in total, including nods for Fela!, Hamlet, Beauty And The Beast, The White Guard, Earthquakes In London and London Assurance. The Royal Court and the Donmar Warehouse have nine nominations each. The Royal Court’s Clybourne Park has 4 nominations including best play, and has recently enjoyed success at a number of awards including the South Bank Sky Arts Awards.
Also tipped for awards are End Of The Rainbow, with 4 nominations including best actress for Tracie Bennett, and Legally Blonde The Musical, with 5 nominations including best actress in a musical for Sheridan Smith. Other nominees for best actress in the musical category include Sierra Boggess for Love Never Dies, Love Story’s Emma Williams and Elena Roger for Passion at the Donmar.
Mark Rylance is nominated for a best actor award for his performance in La Bete, alongside Derek Jacobi, David Suchet, Rory Kinnear and Roger Allam. And in the musical category, Ramin Karimloo has a nod for Love Never Dies, joined by Legally Blonde’s Alex Gaumond, David Thaxton for Passion, Sahr Ngaujah for Fela! and Love Story’s Michael Xavier.
In the Olivier Audience Award category, four shows have been up for public vote: Billy Elliot the Musical, Jersey Boy, Les Misérables and We Will Rock You. Also at the awards, Stephen Sondheim will receive the Society of London Theatre’s Special Award for his outstanding contribution to theatre.
The UK’s most prestigious theatre awards started in 1976 as The Society of West End Theatre Awards, becoming the Laurence Olivier Awards in 1984.
LINKS
Olivier Awards: Last Chance to Vote
March 9, 2011
Today is the last chance for theatregoers to vote for their favourite West End shows and choose a winner for this year’s Olivier Audience Award.
Recent press advertising for We Will Rock You
Voting ends just before midnight tonight, Wednesday 9 March 2011.
The short list of shows are Billy Elliot the Musical, Jersey Boy, Les Misérables and We Will Rock You. They received more votes than the 14 other eligible shows in the Audience Award category, and were voted for by members of the theatregoing public.
The winner will be announced at the Olivier Awards at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on Sunday 13 March.
All four musicals have been promoting their nominations, with shows such as Jersey Boys and We Will Rock You taking out press advertising to canvas theatregoer’s votes.
LINKS
Stephen Sondheim to receive Special Olivier Award
March 4, 2011
America’s great living composer and lyricist, Stephen Sondheim, will be honoured at this year’s Olivier Awards with a Special Award.
Stephen Sondheim
At the awards ceremony on 13 Match 2011 at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, Sondheim will be given the Special Award for his achievement within theatre.
Past recipients of the award include Harold Pinter, Ralph Richardson, Ian McKellen, Peter Hall, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier.
The award follows a year of celebrations for the composer’s 80th birthday including a number of revivals of his shows, including the Olivier Award nominated Passion at the Donmar Warehouse.
Sondheim will be at the ceremony in person to collect the award.
More presenters announced for Olivier Awards
March 4, 2011
The Society of London Theatre has released more details of the presenters at this year’s revamped Olivier Awards, at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 13 March 2011.
Benedict Cumberbatch, one of the presenters at this year's Olivier Awards
Showbiz stars who will be presenting awards include:
- Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller, current stars on Frankenstein
- Anne-Marie Duff, star of the Old Vic’s Cause Celebre
- Elisabeth Moss (Peggy from Mad Men), currently appearing in The Children’s Hour at the Comedy Theatre
- Actor Rupert Everett
- The League of Gentlemen and the National’s Season’s Greetings star Mark Gatiss
- Amanda Holden from Shrek The Musical
- Elaine Paige
- Tamara Rojo, Royal Ballet star
- Star of The Wizard of Oz, Danielle Hope
- Wicked’s Rachel Tucker
- Actor Patrick Stewart
They will join already announced stars that include Lost star Matthew Fox and Olivia Williams, the star of In A Forest, Dark and Deep at the Vaudeville Theatre, and Alfie Boe, opera and musicals leading man, who will play Jean Valjean in the West End production of Les Miserables this summer.
Also the first musical number presenters have been confirmed as legendary singer / songwriter Barry Manilow, who will be performing a number alongside West End star Kerry Ellis (Wicked, Oliver!).
Olivier Awards tickets released today
March 1, 2011
Don’t forget to buy your Olivier Awards tickets. They go on sale today, 1 March 2011, at 10am.
It’s the first time in over 10 years that theatregoers are able to attend the Olivier Awards ceremony, this year at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 13 March.
Tickets are available for the Balcony and Upper Circle, priced £25 to (a rather high) £65.
Controversially, you can buy through See Tickets (visit the Olivier Awards website) only using a MasterCard credit card as MasterCard are this year’s Awards sponsors. You can also pay in cash or Society of London Theatre theatre tokens if you can get to their tkts booths in either Leicester Square or Brent Cross.
Tickets will sell out within minutes, so if you miss the chance to attend in person then the awards are being broadcast on BBC Radio 2 and via the BBC’s red button TV service.
LINKS
LISTEN: Elaine Paige announces the Olivier Audience Award short list
New this week: Oz, Blithe Spirit, Flare Path
February 28, 2011
Some big-hitting West End shows open this week in London, including The Wizard of Oz, Million Dollar Quartet, Flare Path and Blithe Spirit.
Monday 28 February 2011
Million Dollar Quartet, the musical that recreates the historic day when Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis all made music together, opens tonight at the Noel Coward Theatre starring a multi-talented cast including Bill Ward (Coronation Street).
Tuesday 1 March 2011
The Wizard of Oz cast, left - right Edward Baker-Duly, David Ganly, Paul Keating and Danielle Hope
It’s the premiere tonight of the musical that has received more publicity, hype and good old-fashioned audience anticipation than any other show for years as Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sparkly new production of The Wizard of Oz opens at the London Palladium. Rebooted by Jeremy Sams and produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Bill Kenwright, the show sees Over The Rainbow star Danielle Hope make her West End stage debut joined by Michael Crawford as the Wizard and Hannah Waddingham as the Wicked Witch.
Also today, tickets go on sale for the Olivier Awards at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. The 13th March ceremony is open to theatregoers for the first time and promises a starry night of West End celebs and excerpts from the shows.
Wednesday 2 March 2011
Noel Coward’s blissful comedy Blithe Spirit starts previews at the Apollo Theatre featuring an all-star cast including Alison Steadman (Gavin & Stacey), Ruthie Henshall (Chicago), Hermione Norris (Spooks) and Robert Bathurst (Hattie). The revival is directed by the award-winning Thea Sharrock (After the Dance).
Thursday 3 March 2011
Previews starts for Hurly Burly at the Garrick Theatre, featuring the luscious Miss Polly Rae in an all singing, all dancing burlesque-inspired revue with a contemporary twist.
Alison Steadman as Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit
Also tonight, In A Forest, Dark and Deep starts previews at the Vaudeville Theatre with Lost star Matthew Fox and Olivia Williams (The Ghost Writer) in Neil LaBute’s new psychological thriller.
Friday 4 March 2011
Trevor Nunn begins his artistic directorship of the Theatre Royal Haymarket tonight with the start of previews for Flare Path. Terence Rattigan’s Second World War romance sees Sienna Miller, James Purefoy and Sheridan Smith star.
Saturday 5 March 2011
Kneehigh theare company, who scored a huge hit in London and on Broadway with their stage take on Noel Coward’s Brief Encounter, are back with a brand new production. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, based on the classic French film, begins previews at the Gielgud Theatre tonight starring Joanna Riding, Meow Meow and Andrew Durand.
Also on Saturday, A Flea in Her Ear closes at the Old Vic Theatre starring Tom Hollander and Ordinary Days starring Daniel Boys ends at the Trafalgar Studios.
Olivier Audience Award short list announced
February 27, 2011
The short list for this year’s Olivier Audience Award was announced today by Elaine Paige on her BBC Radio 2 show.
Gareth Gates in Les Miserables - on the short list for the Olivier Audience Award
The short list of shows are Billy Elliot the Musical, Jersey Boy, Les Misérables and We Will Rock You. They received more votes than the 14 other eligible shows in the Audience Award category, and were voted for by members of the theatregoing public.
Voting has now reopened to choose the winner, until 9 March 2011. The winner will be announced at the Olivier Awards at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on Sunday 13 March.
Queen musical We Will Rock You and Billy Elliot both made it on to the short list last year but were beaten by Wicked as the Audience Award winner 2010. Wicked was not included in the awards line-up this year. The nomination of Les Misérables follows the show’s recent win at the Whatsonstage Awards for its 25th anniversary O2 concert and UK touring production. Jersey Boys is the biographical musical telling the story and featuring the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, which opened at the Prince Edward theatre in 2008.
Also on Elaine Paige’s show this Sunday, a new song written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice for the new London Palladium production of The Wizard of Oz was given its world premiere. Red Shoes Blues was sung by Hannah Waddingham, who plays the Wicked Witch of the West in the show alongside Danielle Hope as Dorothy and Michael Crawford as the Wizard.
LINKS
LISTEN: Red Shoes Blues from The Wizard of Oz, sung by Hannah Waddingham
LISTEN: Elaine Paige announces the Olivier Audience Award short list
Shrek The Musical announces full cast
February 23, 2011
Shrek The Musical, which opens at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 6 May 2011, has announced the full cast of the show.
Shrek The Musical
Britain’s Got Talent judge Amanda Holden will star as Princess Fiona, with stage actor Nigel Lindsay (Four Lions) as Shrek, comedian Richard Blackwood as Donkey and TV actor Nigel Harman (EastEnders) as Lord Farquaad.
Produced by DreamWorks Theatricals and Sam Mendes’ Neal Street Productions, the show will begin previews at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 6 May 2011, with its opening night on 7 June.
Other members of the cast will include Delroy Atkinson, Amy Beadel, Stephanie Bron, Dean Chisnall, Jon-Scott Clark, Ste Clough, Lee William-Davis, Ross Dawes, Lucie Downer, Alice Fearn, Michelle Francis, Ashley E Hale, Rosanna Hyland, Bradley Jaden, Aaron Lee Lambert, Emma Lindars, Grant Murphy, Spencer O’Brien, Landi Oshinowo, Damien Poole, Stuart Matthew Price, Jacqui Sanchez, Jonathan Stewart, Leigh-Anne Stone, Lucy Tapp, Karli Vale and Michael Watson.
The London stage musical is based on the irreverent fairy tale from William Steig’s book Shrek and the Oscar-winning Dreamworks Animation film, and tells the story of the swamp-dwelling ogre who embarks on a life-changing adventure in order to reclaim the deed to his land.
The creative team behind the show includes directors Jason Moore (Avenue Q) and Rob Ashford (Promises, Promises), with book and lyrics by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire, music by Olivier Award winner Jeanine Tesori, scenic, costume and puppet design by Tim Hatley, lighting by Hugh Vanstone, sound design by Peter Hylenski and choreography by Josh Prince.
Book tickets to Shrek The Musical at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane
