Fleabag stars Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Andrew Scott are in the running for acting prizes at this year’s Olivier awards. The nominations, which were announced on Tuesday, include best actress for Waller-Bridge for reprising the role in her Fleabag monologue in a sold-out season in the West End and best actor for Scott for his performance as a washed-up matinee idol in Noël Coward’s Present Laughter at the Old Vic. Waller-Bridge received a second nomination for Fleabag, which will compete for the award for best entertainment or comedy play. Fleabag was nominated for an Olivier award in 2014 when it was staged at Soho theatre after an Edinburgh fringe run, years before it became a hit TV series.
The show leading this year’s Olivier nominations, with a tally of nine, is the bright and bold jukebox musical & Juliet, which features hit songs produced by the Swedish pop mastermind Max Martin and imagines an alternative ending to Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet. The musical received three acting nominations (for David Bedella, Cassidy Janson and Miriam-Teak Lee) as well as nominations for best new musical, best original score or new orchestrations, best theatre choreographer and best lighting, set and costume designs. & Juliet won six prizes at the WhatsOnStage awards on Sunday. For the Olivier award for best new musical it is up against an adaptation of the French film Amélie and two hit American shows, Waitress and Dear Evan Hansen.
The best actor in a musical category features two young performers in their West End debuts: Sam Tutty as the troubled teenager Evan Hansen and Jac Yarrow in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Charlie Stemp is nominated for Mary Poppins and so is Andy Nyman for Fiddler on the Roof, which picked up eight nominations including one for Trevor Nunn as best director and one for Judy Kuhn as best actress in a musical. In that category, Kuhn and Miriam Teak-Lee are up against Audrey Brisson for Amélie and Zizi Strallen for Mary Poppins. Dear Evan Hansen has seven nominations in total, with four of its cast recognised in the best supporting role categories.
Revivals of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman and Henrik Ibsen’s Rosmersholm picked up five nominations each, including best actor for Wendell Pierce as Miller’s Willy Loman and best actress for Sharon D Clarke who plays his wife, Linda. Hayley Atwell (Rosmersholm) and Juliet Stevenson (The Doctor) are also nominated for best actress and Toby Jones (Uncle Vanya) and James McAvoy (Cyrano de Bergerac) are in the running for best actor.
The best director award – now given in honour of Sir Peter Hall after his name was omitted from the “in memoriam” segment in 2018 – is between Jamie Lloyd for Cyrano de Bergerac, Trevor Nunn for Fiddler on the Roof, Ian Rickson for Uncle Vanya, and Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell who co-directed Death of a Salesman.
The best new play category features The Ocean at the End of the Lane, The Doctor and Leopoldstadt, which Tom Stoppard has said could be his final play, as well as A Very Expensive Poison – written by Lucy Prebble and based on the book by Guardian journalist Luke Harding. Prebble on Tuesday also won the Susan Smith Blackburn award for women writers.
In the technical categories, the brothers Ben and Max Ringham are nominated for their sound designs for both at the National Theatre and Cyrano de Bergerac at the Playhouse. For best set design, Rae Smith will see if her design for Rosmersholm will beat her set for Uncle Vanya, or if both will lose out to either Bob Crowley for Mary Poppins or Soutra Gilmour for & Juliet.
The awards ceremony is on 5 April at the Royal Albert Hall in London, and will be osted by Jason Manford.
The nominations in full
Best actor in a supporting role in a musical
David Bedella for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Stewart Clarke for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Jack Loxton for Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Rupert Young for Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Best actress in a supporting role in a musical
Lucy Anderson for Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Petula Clark for Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Cassidy Janson for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Lauren Ward for Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Best original score or new orchestrations
& Juliet – New Orchestrations by Bill Sherman and Dominic Fallacaro at Shaftesbury theatre
Amélie the Musical – musical supervisor and arrangements by Barnaby Race at the Other Palace
Dear Evan Hansen – music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, orchestration by Alex Lacamoire at Noël Coward theatre
Fiddler on the Roof – New Orchestrations by Jason Carr at Playhouse theatre
Waitress – music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles at Adelphi theatre
Best new dance production
La Fiesta by Israel Galván at Sadler’s Wells
Ingoma by Mthuthuzeli November for Ballet Black at Royal Opera House – Linbury theatre
Mám by Michael Keegan-Dolan for Teaċ Daṁsa at Sadler’s Wells
Vessel by Damien Jalet and Kohei Nawa at Sadler’s Wells
Outstanding achievement in dance
Sara Baras for her choreography and performance in Ballet Flamenco – Sombras at Sadler’s Wells
Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker for her performance in Mitten wir im Leben sind/Bach6Cellosuiten at Sadler’s Wells
Gisèle Vienne for choreography of Crowd, presented by Dance Umbrella at
Sadler’s Wells
Best entertainment or comedy play
Emilia at Vaudeville theatre
Fleabag at Wyndham’s theatre
Magic Goes Wrong at Vaudeville theatre
The Upstart Crow at Gielgud theatre
Best theatre choreographer
Fabian Aloise for Evita at Regent’s Park Open Air theatre
Matthew Bourne and Stephen Mear for Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Jerome Robbins and Matt Cole for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Jennifer Weber for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Best musical revival
Evita at Regent’s Park Open Air theatre
Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium
Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Best actor in a musical
Andy Nyman for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Charlie Stemp for Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Sam Tutty for Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Jac Yarrow for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium
Best actress in a musical
Audrey Brisson for Amélie the Musical at the Other Palace
Judy Kuhn for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Miriam-Teak Lee for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Zizi Strallen for Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Best revival
Cyrano de Bergerac at Playhouse theatre
Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic and Piccadilly theatre
Present Laughter at the Old Vic
Rosmersholm at Duke of York’s theatre
Best family show
Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear – the Musical! at National Theatre – Dorfman
Oi Frog & Friends! at Lyric theatre
To the Moon and Back at Barbican theatre
The Worst Witch at Vaudeville Theatre
Outstanding achievement in an affiliate theatre
Baby Reindeer at Bush theatre
Blues in the Night at Kiln theatre
Our Lady of Kibeho at Theatre Royal Stratford East
Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner at Jerwood Theatre Upstairs at the Royal Court theatre
Warheads at Park theatre
Best lighting design
Neil Austin for Rosmersholm at Duke of York’s theatre
Paule Constable for The Ocean at the End of the Lane at the National Theatre – Dorman
Howard Hudson for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Bruno Poet for Uncle Vanya at Harold Pinter theatre
Best sound design
Gregory Clarke for Rosmersholm at Duke of York’s theatre
Emma Laxton for Emilia at Vaudeville theatre
Ben and Max Ringham for Anna at the National Theatre – Dorfman
Ben and Max Ringham for Cyrano de Bergerac at Playhouse theatre
Best costume design
Hugh Durrant for Goldilocks and the Three Bears at the London Palladium
Jonathan Lipman for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Joanna Scotcher for Emilia at Vaudeville theatre
Paloma Young for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Best set design
Bob Crowley for Mary Poppins at Prince Edward theatre
Soutra Gilmour for & Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Rae Smith for Rosmersholm at Duke of York’s theatre
Rae Smith for Uncle Vanya at Harold Pinter theatre
Best actor in a supporting role
Arinzé Kene for Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic
Colin Morgan for All My Sons at the Old Vic
Adrian Scarborough for Leopoldstadt at Wyndham’s theatre
Reece Shearsmith for A Very Expensive Poison at the Old Vic
Best actress in a supporting role
Michele Austin for Cyrano de Bergerac at Playhouse theatre
Sophie Thompson for Present Laughter at the Old Vic
Indira Varma for Present Laughter at the Old Vic
Josie Walker for The Ocean at the End of the Lane at the National Theatre – Dorfman
Best new opera production
Berenice at the Royal Opera House – Linbury theatre
Billy Budd at the Royal Opera House
Hansel and Gretel at Regent’s Park Open Air theatre
Noye’s Fludde at Theatre Royal Stratford East
Outstanding achievement in opera
Jette Parker Young Artists for their performances in Berenice, Death in Venice and Phaedra at Royal Opera House
The Children’s Ensemble for their performance in Noye’s Fludde at Theatre Royal Stratford East
Martyn Brabbins and James Henshaw for their conducting of The Mask of Orpheus for English National Opera at London Coliseum
Best actor
Toby Jones for Uncle Vanya at Harold Pinter theatre
James McAvoy for Cyrano de Bergerac at Playhouse theatre
Wendell Pierce for Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic and Piccadilly theatre
Andrew Scott for Present Laughter at the Old Vic
Best actress
Hayley Atwell for Rosmersholm at Duke of York’s theatre
Sharon D Clarke for Death of a Salesman at Piccadilly theatre
Juliet Stevenson for The Doctor at Almeida theatre
Phoebe Waller-Bridge for Fleabag at Wyndham’s theatre
Best director
Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell for Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic and Piccadilly theatre
Jamie Lloyd for Cyrano de Bergerac at Playhouse theatre
Trevor Nunn for Fiddler on the Roof at Playhouse theatre
Ian Rickson for Uncle Vanya at Harold Pinter theatre
Best new play
A Very Expensive Poison at the Old Vic
The Doctor at Almeida theatre
Leopoldstadt at Wyndham’s theatre
The Ocean at the End of the Lane at National Theatre – Dorfman
Best new musical
& Juliet at Shaftesbury theatre
Amélie the Musical at the Other Palace
Dear Evan Hansen at Noël Coward theatre
Waitress at Adelphi theatre
