The Stage

Empty Space 2008 award nominations announced

Published Tuesday 16 September 2008 at 14:40 by Alistair Smith

Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre will vie with London venues the Royal Court and Arcola theatres in the Established Studio category at the 2008 Empty Space… Peter Brook Awards.

The Merseyside venue, which is soon to undergo a multimillion pound refurbishment, is one of four companies based outside the capital which are in the running for awards this year. The National Theatre of Scotland and Edinburgh-based Forest Fringe receive special mentions in a new Theatre Without Walls category for site-specific performances, while Demi-Paradise Productions is nominated for the Ensemble Award for its production of Hamlet at Lancaster Castle.

Meanwhile, in the Up and Coming Studio category will be contested between three London venues - The Gate in Notting Hill, the Union Theatre in Southwark and Theatre 503 in Battersea. The Dan Crawford Pub Theatre Award will also be an all-London affair, with the Finborough Theatre in Earls Court and the Landor Theatre in Clapham both in the running. This year’s awards ceremony will take place at the National Theatre Studio on November 4.

The nominations in full are:

Established Studio:

• Royal Court Theatre
• Arcola Theatre
• Everyman Theatre, Liverpool

Up and Coming Studio:

• Gate Theatre
• Union Theatre
• Theatre 503

Dan Crawford Pub Theatre Award:

• Finborough Theatre
• The Landor

Theatre Without Walls (Special Mentions):

• National Theatre of Scotland
• Paines Plough
• Watch This Space at the National Theatre
• Forest Fringe
• Artichoke

Mark Marvin Rent Subsidy Award:

• Sons of York by James Graham at the Finborough Theatre
• Death of Long Pig by Nigel Planer at the Finborough Theatre
• Three One-Act Plays (The Sea at Night, Migration and Khadija Is 18) from the Angle Company at the Hackney Empire Studio

Peter Brook/Equity Ensemble Award:

• Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea Company at Battersea Arts Centre
• Demi-Paradise Productions at Lancaster Castle performing Hamlet