West End leading lady Scarlett Strallen and 1984 directors Duncan Macmillan and Robert Icke are flying the flag for London in the nominations for this year’s UK Theatre Awards.
Strallen, who is nominated for her performance in the Menier Chocolate Factory’s production of Candide, faces competition in the Best Performance in a Musical category from Jamie Parker (Guys And Dolls) and current Les Misérables star Tom Edden (Oliver!) at the annual ceremony that celebrates the very best of theatre in the UK.
Another performer seen on the London stage this year, Patrick O’Kane is recognised for his performance in Owen McCafferty’s Belfast-set drama Quietly, which played at the Soho Theatre in May. He faces opposition from Suranne Jones (Orlando), last seen on the London stage in Beautiful Thing at the Arts Theatre, and Adam Best (Crime And Punishment), who recently appeared in The Silver Tassie at the National Theatre.
Writing and directing duo Macmillan and Icke, whose production of George Orwell’s classic opened to critical and public acclaim at the Almeida Theatre earlier this year before transferring to the West End, add a UK Theatre Award nomination for Best Director to the Olivier Award nomination for Best New Play they received earlier this year.
In the prestigious Best New Play at this year’s UK Theatre Awards, Alice Birch’s play Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again, which played as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s season at the Royal Court this summer, goes up against Olivier Award-winning actor David Haig’s Pressure and Deborah McAndrew’s An August Bank Holiday Lark.
Max Jones, who designed the current production of True West at the Tricycle Theatre, is also in the running to take home an award at this year’s ceremony, while The Two Worlds Of Charlie F, which came to the Richmond Theatre as part of its national tour, is represented in the category for Best Touring Production.
In the world of dance, English National Ballet and its Artistic Director Tamara Rojo receive a nod in the Achievement in Dance category for Lest We Forget, a programme of works marking the centenary of the First World War that came to the Barbican Theatre in April. Flying the flag for opera, the chorus for the Welsh National Opera’s production of Moses Und Aron, which was seen on the Royal Opera House’s stage in July, is nominated for Achievement in Opera.
Talking about this year’s crop of nominees, Julian Bird, Chief Executive of UK Theatre, said: “Truly this year’s list of nominations for the UK Theatre Awards represents the outstanding work on stages across the entire UK, with a huge range of diverse venues, creative teams and on-stage talent being recognised.”
In addition to the nominees announced today, theatregoers can have their say by voting for the My Theatre Matters! UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre Award, which puts scores of the capital’s theatres in the running to take home a prize next month, before 29 September.
All of this year’s winners will be revealed at London’s historic Guildhall on 19 October, when nominees and special guests will gather to honour the creative excellence and outstanding achievement seen on and off stage across the country.
Full list of nominees:
Best New Play
AN AUGUST BANK HOLIDAY LARK by Deborah McAndrew, a Northern Broadsides production in partnership with New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme on tour
PRESSURE by David Haig, a Chichester Festival Theatre and Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh production
REVOLT. SHE SAID. REVOLT AGAIN by Alice Birch, a Royal Shakespeare Company production at The Other Place and the Royal Court
Best Performance in a Play
Adam Best for CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, a Citizens Theatre, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse, and Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh production
Patrick O’Kane for QUIETLY, an Abbey Theatre production on tour
Suranne Jones for ORLANDO, a Royal Exchange Theatre production
Best Supporting Performance
Alan Suri for THE WINTERLING, a Theatre by the Lake production
Jenna Augen for BAD JEWS, a Theatre Royal Bath production, in the Ustinov Studio
Sally Ann Triplett for MY JUDY GARLAND LIFE, a Nottingham Playhouse Theatre production
Best Musical Production
THE BEAUTIFUL COSMOS OF IVOR CUTLER directed by Matthew Lenton, a Vanishing Point and National Theatre of Scotland production in association with Eden Court, at Citizens Theatre and on tour
BRASS directed by Sara Kestelman, a National Youth Music Theatre production at City Varieties Music Hall, Leeds
CHICAGO directed by Paul Kerryson, a Curve Theatre, Leicester production
Best Performance in a Musical
Jamie Parker for GUYS AND DOLLS, a Chichester Festival Theatre production
Scarlett Strallen for CANDIDE, a Menier Chocolate Factory production
Tom Edden for OLIVER!, a Sheffield Theatres production at the Crucible Theatre
Best Show for Children and Young People
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, a Royal Exchange Theatre and New Vic, Newcastle-under-Lyme production
DRAGON, a National Theatre of Scotland, Vox Motus and Tianjin People’s Art Theatre, China production, at the Citizens Theatre and Traverse Theatre
NIVELLI’S WAR, a Cahoots NI production on tour
Best Touring Production
TRANSLATIONS – English Touring Theatre
THE TWO WORLDS OF CHARLIE F. – Garry McQuinn and Amanda Faber
SHOW BOAT – Birmingham Hippodrome and Wales Millennium Centre in collaboration with Cape Town Opera
Best Director
David Thacker for LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, an Octagon Theatre, Bolton production
Duncan Macmillan and Robert Icke for 1984, a Headlong, Nottingham Playhouse and Almeida Theatre production, on tour
Louise Lowe for ANGEL MEADOW, an ANU Production at HOME, Manchester
Best Design
Jon Bausor for MAMETZ, a National Theatre Wales production
Max Jones for TRUE WEST, a Citizens Theatre production
Mike Britton for A TALE OF TWO CITIES, a Royal & Derngate, Northampton production
Achievement in Dance
Birmingham Hippodrome for the bold, extensive programming and presentation of the International Dance Festival Birmingham 2014, in partnership with DanceXchange.
English National Ballet and Tamara Rojo for the innovative trio of new commissions LEST WE FORGET
Rambert and Jeannie Steele for a striking new staging of Merce Cunningham’s EVENTS
Achievement in Opera
James Conway for his leadership of English Touring Opera
Richard Farnes for his exceptional conducting of Opera North’s DEATH IN VENICE, THE GIRL OF THE GOLDEN WEST and GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG
The Welsh National Opera chorus for MOSES UND ARON