Theatre News

Shortlists announced for The Stage Awards 2016

Chichester Festival Theatre and the Almeida Theatre are among those nominated

Orange Tree Theatre, Almeida Theatre and Chichester festival Theatre
Orange Tree Theatre, Almeida Theatre and Chichester festival Theatre

The shortlists have been announced for this year's The Stage Awards with the Almeida Theatre and Shakespeare's Globe among the nominees in London Theatre of the Year.

The awards, which will take place on 29 January at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, celebrate performing arts organisations and the teams behind them.

This year's shortlist includes Chichester Festival Theatre, the Royal and Derngate in Northampton and Manchester's Royal Exchange vying for Regional Theatre of the Year whilst the Globe is back in the running for the second year in a row for London Theatre of the Year; it won in the International category in 2015.

Sonia Friedman is also shortlisted for Producer of the Year for the second year in a row after she won in the 2015 awards. Friedman is up against Tooting Arts Club's Rachel Edwards and the Edinburgh International Festival.

In the International category, the Good Chance theatre space, based in the Calais refugee camp, is recognised alongside London's Greenwich Docklands and International Festival, and the national theatres of China and Great Britain for the exchange of skills on their joint production of War Horse.

Alistair Smith, print editor of The Stage and chair of the judging panel, said: "The Stage Awards represent the full breadth of the industry, from the schools training our future theatremakers to international collaborations that are trading skills across the globe.

"The Stage Awards recognise innovation and success in theatre, and we're thrilled so many of our readers took the opportunity to tell us who they thought should be nominated. We also had dozens of top-level industry practitioners put forward their own nominations and the judging panel faced some very tough choices putting together this shortlist."

The Stage Awards, in association with Robertson Taylor W&P Longreach, are decided by The Stage’s senior editorial team.

The full shortlist is as follows:

London Theatre of the Year
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Almeida Theatre
Barbican
Shakespeare’s Globe

Fringe Theatre of the Year
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Camden People’s Theatre, London
Orange Tree Theatre, London
The Other Room, Cardiff

Regional Theatre of the Year
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Chichester Festival Theatre
Royal and Derngate, Northampton
Royal Exchange, Manchester

Producer Theatre of the Year
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Edinburgh International Festival
Rachel Edwards
Sonia Friedman

International Award
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Good Chance, Calais
Greenwich and Docklands International Festival
War Horse China

School of the Year
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Arts Educational Schools, London
Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
University of Warwick, School of Theatre, Performance and Cultural Policy Studies

Theatre Building of the Year
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King’s Cross Theatre, London
NT Future, London
Wilton’s Music Hall, London