Hamilton is on song at the Olivier Awards
American hip-hop musical dominates London theatre awards, while Cranston wins for Network role
The American hip-hop musical Hamilton was star of the show at the Olivier Awards last night, winning seven accolades, including Best New Musical. Bryan Cranston won Best Actor for Network, and The Ferryman, by Jez Butterworth, won three awards, including Best New Play.
A HIP-HOP rendering of the life and times of American founding father Alexander Hamilton on the London stage is not, on paper, an obvious candidate for critical acclaim.
But last night, Hamilton, having already won adulation from audiences, was confirmed as one of the most successful musicals in the world of theatre, winning a record-breaking seven Olivier awards – the most ever for a production that originated overseas. The haul equalled Matilda’s record for the most
Oliviers won for a musical. Lin-manuel Miranda’s unstoppable American juggernaut – one of the most popular productions to ever grace the West End stage – triumphed in the vast majority of the 10 categories in which it was nominated, including Best New Musical and Outstanding Achievement in Music.
Giles Terera, who plays the part of Aaron Burr, was named Best Actor in a Musical, beating co-star Jamael Westman who plays Hamilton, while Michael Jibson, who plays King George III, won Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical. The production also secured the Best Lighting Design, Best Sound Design and Best Theatre Choreographer awards. On arrival at ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall, Jibson described being in Hamilton as “one of the most exciting experiences” of his career and said: “It’s like nothing anyone has ever seen before.” Other big winners included the National Theatre, which staged something of a comeback after a few low-key years, winning five awards, its biggest number since 2012.
They included Best Revival for Angels in America and Best Musical Revival for Stephen Sondheim’s Follies. Bryan Cranston, of Breaking Bad fame, won Best Actor for his role in Network, based on the 1976 Oscarwinning film, which tells the story of a TV anchor whose on-air meltdowns become a ratings hit, and Denise Gough won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Angels in America.
Cranston said he was “beyond grateful” to work in the theatre in a country whose government not only supported the arts but considered it a “necessary element to achieve the happiness and health of its citizens”.
The Ferryman, by Jez Butterworth, won three awards including Best New Play. Sam Mendes won Best Director and Laura Donnelly, Butterworth’s partner won Best Actress.
Donnelly said she had dreamed of winning an Olivier since childhood and described The Ferryman as “a real family affair”.
The play was based on the story of her uncle, who was killed by the IRA. Her elder daughter was used as the baby in rehearsals and the younger, with whom she was pregnant on stage, was born just after the run ended.
Shirley Henderson won Best Actress in a Musical and co-star Sheila Atim won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Girl From The North Country.
Everybody’s Talking about Jamie, the “underdog” of this year’s awards which was plucked from the stage in Sheffield for a West End run starring previously unknown actors, was nominated for five awards but could not compete with the bigger beasts. new rule was announced following last year’s festival, at which there was fierce debate surrounding Netflix-funded films after two were premiered there the first time.
Okja, directed by Bong Joon-ho, and The Meyerowitz Stories, from director Noah Baumbach were booed by critics as the Netflix logo appeared on screen.
As a result of the row, the festival changed its rules to state that as of this year, films in competition would have to commit to distribution in French cinemas.
Thierry Frémaux, the Cannes Film Festival director, said last month: “Last year, when we selected these two films, I thought I could convince Netflix to release them in cinemas. I was presumptuous, they refused.”
One industry source told Vanity Fair magazine that the rule allowed industry stakeholders to limit Netflix’s growing influence. “They are weaponising Cannes,” the source said. “What are these people to do? The studios aren’t funding these movies. It’s not like [filmmakers] are choosing Netflix over a 2,500-screen release.”
Netflix, which is expected to spend more than £5.5 billion on original content this year, allows subscribers to see films immediately upon release, and at home, rather than in cinemas or later on DVD.
The official line-up for this year’s festival is due to be announced on Thursday. Netflix declined to comment.