Evening Standard Awards 2018 nominations announced

The nominees for the 64th Evening Standard Awards have been announced, with several categories expanding to five nominees to reflect the wealth of talent on the London theatre scene.

This year, Laura Linney (My Name is Lucy Barton) and Carey Mulligan (Girls and Boys) go head to head with Cecilia Noble (Nine Night), Sophie Okonedo (Antony and Cleopatra) and Lia Williams (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie) in the Best Actress category.

In the Best Actor category, Bryan Cranston (Network), Ian McKellen (King Lear), Ralph Fiennes (Antony and Cleopatra), Colin Morgan (Translations) and Kyle Soller (The Inheritance) are all nominated.

Company, Marianne Elliott's gender-swapped revival of Stephen Sondheim's musical is nominated in four categories, Best Musical, Best Musical Performance (for Rosalie Craig as Bobbie), Best Design (for Bunny Christie) and Best Director for Marianne Elliott.

The National Theatre is nominated 14 times for shows including Antony and Cleoptra, The Lehman Trilogy, Nine Night (also a nomination for Roy Alexander Weise in the Emerging Talent Award category) Translations, Network and The Great Wave.

In Best Musical Performance, Arinzé Kene, nominated for his turn in Misty is going head to head with Kelli O'Hara for The King and I, Sharon D Clarke for Caroline, or Change, Adrienne Warren in Tina and Craig in Company.

Best Musical this year is a particularly strong category, with nominations for Hamilton, Caroline, Or Change, Company, Everybody's Talking About Jamie and Fun Home. The Best Play category features Laura Wade's Home, I'm Darling, Matthew Lopez's The Inheritance, Annie Baker's John, Stefano Massini's The Lehman Trilogy and Ella Hickson's The Writer.

As well as Roy Alexander Weise – who is nominated as director of Nine Night and Br'er Cotton – the Emerging Talent Award nominees are Rona Morison for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Jamael Westman for Hamilton, Debris Stevenson for Poet in da Corner and Chris Walley for The Lieutenant of Inishmore.

The winners of this year's awards will be announced at a ceremony on 18 November at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, presented by Phoebe Waller-Bridge. This year's judging panel included Evening Standard's chief theatre Critic, Henry Hitchings; Daily Mail's Baz Bamigboye, Guardian writer and broadcaster Mark Lawson; WhatsOnStage's Sarah Crompton; and Matt Wolf, London theatre critic of the International New York Times' alongside the Evening Standard's editor, George Osborne.

The full shortlist for the 2018 Evening Standard Awards

BEST ACTOR
Bryan Cranston Network, National Theatre (Lyttelton)
Ralph Fiennes Antony and Cleopatra, National Theatre (Olivier)
Ian McKellen King Lear, Minerva Chichester and Duke of York's
Colin Morgan Translations, National Theatre (Olivier)
Kyle Soller The Inheritance, Young Vic and Noël Coward Theatre

NATASHA RICHARDSON AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS
Laura Linney My Name Is Lucy Barton, Bridge Theatre
Carey Mulligan Girls and Boys, Royal Court
Cecilia Noble Nine Night, National Theatre (Dorfman)
Sophie Okonedo Antony and Cleopatra, National Theatre (Olivier)
Lia Williams The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Donmar Warehouse

BEST PLAY
Home, I'm Darling Laura Wade, National Theatre (Dorfman)
The Inheritance Matthew Lopez, Young Vic & Noël Coward Theatre
John Annie Baker, National Theatre (Dorfman)
The Lehman Trilogy Stefano Massini, (adapted by Ben Power), National Theatre (Lyttelton)
The Writer Ella Hickson, Almeida

MILTON SHULMAN AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR
Stephen Daldry The Inheritance, Young Vic & Noël Coward Theatre
Marianne Elliott Company, Gielgud Theatre
Robert Hastie The York Realist, Donmar Warehouse
Phyllida Lloyd Tina, Aldwych Theatre
Ian Rickson Translations, National Theatre (Olivier)

BEST MUSICAL
Caroline, or Change Minerva Chichester & Hampstead Theatre
Company Gielgud Theatre
Everybody's Talking About Jamie Apollo Theatre
Fun Home Young Vic
Hamilton Victoria Palace

BEST MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
Sharon D Clarke Caroline, or Change, Minerva Chichester & Hampstead Theatre
Rosalie Craig Company, Gielgud Theatre
Arinzé Kene Misty, Bush & Trafalgar Studios
Kelli O'Hara The King and I, Palladium
Adrienne Warren Tina, Aldwych

BEST DESIGN
Miriam Buether The Jungle, Young Vic & Playhouse Theatre
Bunny Christie Company, Gielgud Theatre
Es Devlin Girls and Boys, Royal Court
Rae Smith Translations, National Theatre (Olivier)
Jan Versweyveld Network, National Theatre (Lyttelton)

CHARLES WINTOUR AWARD FOR MOST PROMISING PLAYWRIGHT
Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm Br'er Cotton, Theatre503
Natasha Gordon Nine Night, National Theatre (Dorfman)
Francis Turnly The Great Wave, National Theatre (Dorfman)

EMERGING TALENT AWARD
Rona Morison The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Donmar Warehouse
Debris Stevenson Poet in da Corner, Royal Court
Chris Walley The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Noël Coward Theatre
Roy Alexander Weise (director) Nine Night, National Theatre (Dorfman)/Br'er Cotton, Theatre503
Jamael Westman Hamilton, Victoria Palace