Theatre News

Lester, Chakrabarti & Blanchett shortlisted for Evening Standard Awards

12 November 2012

The shorlists have been announced for the 2012 Evening Standard Theatre Awards, which have been whittled down from last months’ longlists.

Among the names vying for honours are husband and wife Adrian Lester and Lolita Chakrabarti, who are both nominated for Red Velvet at the Tricycle (as Best Actor and Most Promising Playwright respectively). Lester and Chakrabarti also made the Standard‘s recent 1000 list of most influential people.

Elsewhere, Cate Blanchett is shortlisted for the Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress for her role in Gross und Klein (Big and Small) at the Barbican, while the Best Play category includes young writers Nick Payne (28) for Constellations and James Graham (30) for This House.

And the Young Vic’s acclaimed revival of A Doll’s House is up for three awards – Best Director, the Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress and Best Design.

Notable names who didn’t make the cut from last month’s longlists include Sheridan Smith (for Hedda Gabler) and Rupert Everett (for The Judas Kiss).

Sarah Sands, editor of the London Evening Standard, said: “This year’s shortlist serves to remind what is so great about London’s theatre – new plays by young writers, classic drama reimagined in the most exciting ways and a host of unforgettable performances. We simply wouldn’t be a world city without this jewel in our cultural crown – it deserves the Standard’s recognition with these Awards.”

The winners, decided by a panel of theatre critics chaired by Sands, will be revealed at a ceremony presented by James Corden (who has previously hosted the Whatsonstage.com Awards) at the Savoy Hotel on 25 November 2012.

Do you agree with the shortlists? Suggest your own nominations for the 2013 Whatsonstage.com Awards – the only major theatre prize to be decided entirely by the theatregoing public – at awards.whatsonstage.com

The full shortlists for the 58th Evening Standard Awards in association with Burberry:

Best Play

Constellations by Nick Payne (Royal Court Upstairs)

Love and Information by Caryl Churchill (Royal Court Downstairs)

This House by James Graham (National’s Cottesloe)

Best Director

Carrie Cracknell for A Doll’s House (Young Vic)

Nicholas Hytner for Timon of Athens (National’s Olivier)

James Macdonald for Love and Information (Royal Court Downstairs)

Ian Rickson for Hamlet (Young Vic)

Best Actor

Simon Russell Beale, Collaborators (National’s Cottesloe)

Charles Edwards, The King’s Speech (Wyndham’s) and This House (National’s Cottesloe)

Adrian Lester, Red Velvet (Tricycle Theatre)

Luke Treadaway, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, (National Theatre’s Cottesloe)

Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress

Eileen Atkins, All That Fall (Jermyn Street)

Cate Blanchett, Big and Small (Sydney Theatre Company for Barbican)

Laurie Metcalf, Long Day’s Journey Into Night (Apollo)

Hattie Morahan, A Doll’s House (Young Vic)

Ned Sherrin Award for Best Musical

Singin’ In the Rain (Chichester Festival and Palace Theatre)

Swallows and Amazons (A Bristol Old Vic production presented by the National Theatre in association with The Children’s Touring Partnership at the Vaudeville Theatre)

Sweeney Todd (Chichester Festival and Adelphi)

Best Design

Miriam Buether, Wild Swans (A Young Vic/American Repertory Theatre/Actors Touring Company co-production)

Soutra Gilmour, Inadmissible Evidence (Donmar Warehouse) and Antigone (National’s Olivier)

Ian MacNeil, A Doll’s House (Young Vic)

Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright

Lolita Chakrabarti, Red Velvet (Tricycle)

John Hodge, Collaborators (National’s Cottesloe)

Tom Wells, The Kitchen Sink (Bush)

The Milton Shulman Award for Outstanding Newcomer

Denise Gough, Our New Girl (Bush) and Desire Under the Elms (Lyric Hammersmith)

Abby Rakic-Platt, Vera Vera Vera (Royal Court Upstairs and Theatre Local Peckham)