Stars Nominated as Olivier TV Broadcast CancelledDate: 15 January 2004
International stars including Helen Mirren, Kristin Scott Thomas, Kenneth Branagh and Warren Mitchell are amongst the nominations, announced today, in the 28th annual Laurence Olivier Awards, London's equivalent of the Tonys (See Today's Other News). But theatregoers will be disappointed to learn that they won’t have the opportunity to see any of the tears or triumphs at this year’s round of the UK's most prestigious stage awards.
Whereas in recent years, the daytime prize-giving, hosted by Clive Anderson, has been held at a theatre, with upper circle and balcony tickets put on general sale, this year’s ceremony, on Sunday 22 February at the London Hilton, will be a formal sit-down dinner closed to the general public.
In a further change of format, for what's believed to be the first time since the awards were established in 1976, the ceremony will not be televised. Oliviers coverage was initially incorporated as part of a special arts series and, since the early 1980s, has been given its own dedicated slot.
A spokesperson told Whatsonstage.com that the discontinuation of this followed a BBC review of its arts programming, in which the corporation decided it no longer wanted to broadcast one-off events. A disappointed awards committee, she said, is in discussion with the BBC about how it might incorporate more theatre into its ongoing arts schedule.
Performance head-to-heads
Broadcast or not, this year’s Oliviers look set to serve up the usual drama. Several big names are weighing up against one another in the key performance categories. In both Best Actor and Best Actress, the fields are so strong that the usually four-strong races have been expanded to five competitors.
They are: for Best Actor, Roger Allam (Democracy), Kenneth Branagh (Edmond), Greg Hicks (Coriolanus), Matthew Kelly (Of Mice and Men), and Evening Standard Award winner Michael Sheen (Caligula); and for Best Actress, Eileen Atkins (Honour), Helen Mirren (Mourning Becomes Electra), Ann Mitchell (Through the Leaves), Kelly Reilly (After Miss Juliet) and Kristin Scott Thomas (Three Sisters).
Even more intriguingly, in the musical performance categories, there are no fewer than four head-to-heads between co-stars. In Best Actress in a Musical, Thoroughly Modern Millie’s Amanda Holden competes with Maureen Lipman (as well as Ragtime’s Maria Friedman and Jerry Springer – The Opera’s Alison Jiear). In Best Actor in a Musical, there are two sets of double headers: Ragtime’s Graham Bickley and Kevyn Morrow versus each other and Jerry Springer’s David Bedella and Michael Brandon. And in Best Supporting Performance, Pacific Overtures’ Richard Henders competes with fellow Jerome Pradon (as well as High Society’s Tracie Bennett, Ragtime’s Matthew White and the entire chorus of Jerry Springer).
Musicals Take the Mother Lode
2003’s big musicals have made the biggest impact in terms of number of nominations as well. Jerry Springer – The Opera and Ragtime both nab eight nominations apiece, including Best New Musical (in which they compete against Thoroughly Modern Millie, with its five nominations) and Best Director (for Stewart Lee and Stafford Arima, respectively. In fact, contrary to most years, three out of the four Best Director nominations are for people who've directed musicals. Also up for that honour and a total of eight nominations (including Outstanding Musical Production) is the Donmar Warehouse’s revival Pacific Overtures.
Those nods for the Sondheim musical help the Donmar clock up a total of 12 nominations, which is bettered only by the National Theatre’s 20 nominations (just one shy of its 21 from last year). The Royal Court earns five nods, three of them for Terry Johnson’s Hitchcock Blonde. The Royal Shakespeare Company, which lacked a permanent London home in 2003, received just two nominations, both for actors.
Other plays with multiple nominations include Franco Zeffirelli’s revival of Pirandello’s Absolutely! (perhaps) (four), Howard Davies’ revival of Eugene O’Neill’s Mourning Becomes Electra (four), Michael Grandage’s revival of Camus’ Caligula (three), Jonathan Church’s revival of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice & Men (two) and the National Theatre premieres of Michael Frayn’s Democracy and Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman (two apiece).
No One’s Laughing
Two previous categories have been omitted from this year’s awards call – Best New Comedy and Most Promising Playwright. The latter had been limited to affiliate theatres – such as the Almeida, Young Vic, Royal Court Upstairs, Lyric Hammersmith and Hampstead – which have compensated with a new category for Outstanding Achievement.
In this field, the Young Vic has been recognised for its entire ‘audacious’ season under artistic director David Lan, while the Almeida and Lyric Hammersmith are noted for their productions of The Lady from the Sea and Pericles, respectively. Author Tanika Gupta is also nominated here for her new play Fragile Land at Hampstead and her adaptation of Harold Brighouse’s Hobson’s Choice at the Young Vic.
- by Terri Paddock
To view the full list of 2004 Olivier nominations, click here.
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