The Stage

Hairspray scoops four prizes at Oliviers

Published Monday 10 March 2008 at 11:35 by Alistair Smith

Hairspray has come out on top at this year’s Olivier Awards, picking up prizes in four main categories.

The show was chosen as Best New Musical, while Michael Ball picked up the award for Best Actor in a Musical, Leanne Jones received the prize for Best Actress in a Musical and Tracie Bennett won the Best Supporting Role in a Musical Award.

The ceremony, held at the Grosvenor House Hotel, also marked another successful year for the National Theatre, which picked up seven awards in total, shared between its productions of War Horse, Saint Joan, The Man of Mode and Rafta Rafta. Meanwhile the Royal Opera and the Royal Ballet completed a clean sweep of the dance and opera categories for the Royal Opera House.

The evening was a particularly good one for London’s subsidised theatre sector, with the National, Donmar Warehouse, Royal Court, Barbican and Young Vic all picking up prizes. In fact, Hairspray was the only winning production which did not start life in a subsidised venue. The only other winner from the commercial West End was Rupert Goold’s production of Macbeth, which was originally staged at Chichester Festival Theatre, before transferring to the Gielgud.

Andrew Lloyd Webber was presented with the Society of London Theatre’s Special Award following performances from three of his recent leading performers - Lee Mead, Connie Fisher and Elena Roger.

The winners in full are:

Best Lighting Design: Macbeth, designed by Howard Harrison, Gielgud

Best Sound Design: Saint Joan, designed by Paul Arditti with music by Jocelyn Pook, Olivier

Best Newcomer in a Play: Tom Hiddleston for Cymbeline, Barbican

Best New Dance Production: The Royal Ballet’s Jewels, Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Dance: The Royal Ballet Company, Jewels

Best Costume Design: The Man of Mode, designed by Vicki Mortimer, Olivier

Best Set Design: War Horse, designed by Rae Smith and Handspring Puppet Company, Olivier

Outstanding Achievement or Performance in an Affiliate Theatre: Gone Too Far, Jerwood Theatre Upstairs, Royal Court

Best Performance in a Supporting Role: Rory Kinnear for The Man of Mode, Olivier

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor for Othello, Donmar Warehouse

Best Actress: Kristin Scott Thomas for The Seagull, Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, Royal Court

Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical: Tracie Bennett for Hairspray, Shaftesbury

Best Theatre Choreographer: Toby Sedgwick for War Horse, Olivier

Best Actress in a Musical: Leanne Jones for Hairspray, Shaftesbury

Best Actor in a Musical: Michael Ball for Hairspray, Shaftesbury

Best New Opera Production: The Royal Opera’s Pelléas et Mélisande, Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Opera: Natalie Dessay for her performance in La Fille du Régiment, Royal Opera House

Best Revival: Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw, Olivier

Best Musical Revival: The Magic Flute - Impempe Yomlingo adapted from Mozart by Mark Dornford-May, words and music by Mandisi Dyantyis, Mbali Kgosidintsi, Pauline Malefane and Nolufefe Mtshabe, Young Vic

Best New Play: A Disappearing Number by Simon McBurney at the Barbican

Best New Comedy: Rafta Rafta by Ayub Khan-Din based on All in Good Time by Bill Naughton at the Lyttelton

Best Director: Rupert Goold for Macbeth, Gielgud

Best New Musical: Hairspray book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, based upon the New Line Cinema film written and directed by John Waters

The Society’s Special Award: Andrew Lloyd Webber