A critically-acclaimed revival of the musical ‘Cabaret’ and a stage adaptation of the hit novel ‘Life of Pi’ were the big winners at the Olivier Awards on Sunday, scooping the top prizes on Britain’s biggest night for theatre.
After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the London theatre community reunited for a glitzy ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall.
‘Cabaret’ had led nominations with 11 nods. It won seven awards, including best musical revival and prizes for actors Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley.
The winner of the award for Magic Radio @magicfm Best Musical Revival is:
Cabaret at @kitkatclubLDN @ThePlayhouseLDN#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/7aWlxWQHQv— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
“This is the dream… This was the part that I played when I was a kid at school, it was the thing that got my passion for theatre really fuelled,” Redmayne said.
“And getting to do it every night with that extraordinary group of people was dumbfounding.”
The winner of the award for the Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical is:@elliotlevey_ for Cabaret at @kitkatclubLDN @ThePlayhouseLDN#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/ItlbrdvB1R
— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
‘Cabaret’ also won best supporting acting awards for Elliot Levey and Liza Sadovy and best director for Rebecca Frecknall.
The winner of the award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical is:
Liza Sadovy for Cabaret at @kitkatclubLDN @ThePlayhouseLDN#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/gehDLIja1z— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
Originally produced on Broadway in 1966, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, ‘Cabaret’ follows the lives of characters linked to a seedy Berlin nightclub during the rise of the Nazis.
Oscar-winner Redmayne played the Kit Kat Klub’s master of ceremonies and Buckley portrayed Sally Bowles, an English singer with more ambition than talent.
The winner of the Sir Peter Hall Award for Best Director is:
Rebecca Frecknall for Cabaret at @kitkatclubLDN @ThePlayhouseLDN#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/QHWgYiJt1W— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
Frecknall said the musical was poignant ‘now with everything that is happening internationally’.
‘Life of Pi’, based on Yann Martel’s book about a boy stranded on a lifeboat with a tiger, won five awards, including best new play, best actor for Hiran Abeysekera, and best supporting actor for the seven performers portraying the show’s puppet tiger.
The winner of the award for Best New Play is:@LifeOfPiWestEnd at Wyndham’s Theatre#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/EpxT4YOEnL
— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
“The fact that we’ve been nominated for a puppet character…is phenomenal and a landmark moment for puppetry,” actor Fred Davis. “Hopefully it opens the door for more puppets in central roles in theatre in the future.”
The winner of the award for Best Actor is:
Hiran Abeysekera for @LifeOfPiWestEnd at Wyndham’s Theatre#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/KsmigoKghs— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
‘Back To The Future – The Musical’, based on the hit 1985 sci-fi film, won best new musical while the play ‘Constellations’, about a relationship between a quantum physicist and a beekeeper, took the best revival and best actress for Sheila Atim.
The winner of the award for Best Actress is:
Sheila Atim for Constellations – @DonmarWarehouse at Vaudeville Theatre#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/VrpLUcKcoJ— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
Liz Carr won best supporting actress for ‘The Normal Heart’, a new production of Larry Kramer’s play about the 1980s AIDS crisis in New York.
The winner of the award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role is:@TheLizCarr for The Normal Heart at @NationalTheatre – Olivier#OlivierAwards pic.twitter.com/jkW3mK92OD
— Olivier Awards (@OlivierAwards) April 10, 2022
Like other industries, London’s West End was badly hit by the pandemic when its theatres were forced to close their doors in March 2020.
They began welcoming back audiences last spring, albeit not all, and those that did return with smaller productions and at 50% capacity. Bigger productions resumed shows in the summer.
Established in 1976 and named after actor Laurence Olivier, the awards are Britain’s most prestigious theatrical honors.
