Evening Standard Theatre Awards

{{Short description|Oldest theatrical awards ceremony in the United Kingdom}}

{{About|the theatre awards|the film awards|Evening Standard British Film Awards|the pub awards|Evening Standard Pub of the Year}}

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Evening Standard Theatre Awards}}

{{Infobox award

| name = Evening Standard Theatre Awards

| image =

| imagesize =

| caption =

| awarded_for = Outstanding achievements in London theatre

| presenter = Evening Standard

| location = London

| country = United Kingdom

| year = {{start date and age|1955}}

| year2 = 2023{{efn|name=Covid19}}

| website = [https://www.standard.co.uk/topic/london-evening-standard-theatre-awards standard.co.uk/london-evening-standard-theatre-awards]

}}

The Evening Standard Theatre Awards, established in 1955,{{cite news|last1=Bowie-Sell|first1=Daisy|title=Olympics Opening Ceremony honoured at Evening Standard Theatre Awards|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/9701909/Olympics-Opening-Ceremony-honoured-at-Evening-Standard-Theatre-Awards.html|access-date=27 November 2017|work=Daily Telegraph|date=25 November 2012|archive-date=31 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831201435/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/9701909/Olympics-Opening-Ceremony-honoured-at-Evening-Standard-Theatre-Awards.html|url-status=live}} are the oldest theatrical awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. They are presented annually for outstanding achievements in London Theatre, and are organised by the Evening Standard newspaper. They are the West End's equivalent to Broadway's Drama Desk Awards.{{cite web |title=Press Release:Glenn Close wins the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Sunset Boulevard |url=http://gateplc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Congratulatory-statement-Press-Release-clean.pdf |website=gateplc.com |publisher=Gate Ventures PLC |access-date=11 January 2019 |date=14 November 2016 |archive-date=11 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190111175734/http://gateplc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Congratulatory-statement-Press-Release-clean.pdf |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |author=BWW News Desk |title=Imelda Staunton, Nicole Kidman, and More Lead Evening Standard Theatre Award Winners- Full List! |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Imelda-Staunton-Nicole-Kidman-and-More-Lead-Evening-Standard-Theatre-Award-Winners--Full-List-20151122 |website=BroadwayWorld.com |access-date=11 January 2019 |language=en |date=22 November 2015 |archive-date=31 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831201437/https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Imelda-Staunton-Nicole-Kidman-and-More-Lead-Evening-Standard-Theatre-Award-Winners--Full-List-20151122 |url-status=live }}

Trophies

The trophies take the form of a modelled statuette, a figure representing Drama, designed by Frank Dobson RA, a former Professor of Sculpture at the Royal College of Art.

Categories

Three of the awards are given in the names of former Evening Standard notables:

  • Arts editor Sydney Edwards (who conceived the awards, and died suddenly in July 1979) for the Best Director category.
  • Editor Charles Wintour (who as deputy-editor in 1955, launched the awards after a nod from the proprietor, Lord Beaverbrook') for Most Promising Playwright.
  • Long-serving theatre critic Milton Shulman (for several years a key member of the judging panel) for the Outstanding Newcomer award.

In 2009, the Special Award was given in the name of Evgeny Lebedev, executive director of the Evening Standard.

In 1980, noting the first use of the Special Award category, Shulman observed that "In 1968 the judges felt that Alan Bennett's work Forty Years On did not fit either the category of a Play or a Musical. But since they liked it so much they gave him the coveted Dobson statuette as a Special Award. In a quarter of a century, only in 1968 had no-one been designated as 'Promising' although it could conceivably be argued that Alan Bennett's Special Award was a reasonable substitute for this category."Celebration: 25 Years of British Theatre

The Special Award process came to a climax in 2004 when, in the 50th anniversary year, the category was used to signal peaks of accomplishment by the National Theatre (an institution), Harold Pinter (a playwright) and Dame Judi Dench (a performer).

The Patricia Rothermere Award, presented biennially from 1999 to 2005, was created to honour the memory of Patricia Harmsworth, Viscountess Rothermere, wife of Viscount Rothermere, chairman of the Daily Mail and General Trust, which formerly owned the Evening Standard. The two part award recognised those who had given outstanding support to young actors, while also providing a three-year scholarship award for a drama student.

Commencing in 2009, the Best Actress award was renamed in tribute to Natasha Richardson, who died after a skiing accident in Quebec in March 2009.{{cite web|first=Louise |last=Jury |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23763315-the-standard-theatre-awards-2009-longlist-revealed.do |title=The Standard Theatre Awards 2009: Longlist revealed – Theatre – Going Out – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2009-11-02 |access-date=2013-11-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606125514/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23763315-the-standard-theatre-awards-2009-longlist-revealed.do |archive-date=2011-06-06 }}

Awards ceremonies

The 2007 Awards lunchtime ceremony took place at the Savoy Hotel in London on 27 November 2007.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23423308-details/Macbeth+and+Joan+of+Arc+storm+ES+awards/article.do |title=Macbeth and Joan of Arc storm ES awards – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2007-11-27 |access-date=2013-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904122844/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23423308-details/Macbeth+and+Joan+of+Arc+storm+ES+awards/article.do |archive-date=2009-09-04 |url-status=dead }} The judges' assessments of the winners are online.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23423447-details/Winning+performances+on+the+West+End+stage/article.do |title=Winning performances on the West End stage – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2007-11-28 |access-date=2013-11-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071230225548/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23423447-details/Winning+performances+on+the+West+End+stage/article.do |archive-date=2007-12-30 }}

The 2008 winners were announced in a ceremony at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, on 24 November 2008.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23591624-details/Donmar+dominates+the+London+stage+at+ES+Theatre+Awards/article.do |title=Donmar dominates the London stage at ES Theatre Awards – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2008-11-24 |access-date=2013-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228141156/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23591624-details/Donmar+dominates+the+London+stage+at+ES+theatre+awards/article.do |archive-date=2009-02-28 |url-status=dead }} The judges' assessments are online.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23592167-details/A+winning+year+for+leading+lights+of+the+London+stage/article.do |title=A winning year for leading lights of the London stage – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2008-11-25 |access-date=2013-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205010810/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23592167-details/A+winning+year+for+leading+lights+of+the+London+stage/article.do |archive-date=2008-12-05 |url-status=dead }}

The 2009 winners were announced in a ceremony, again at the Royal Opera House, on Monday, 23 November 2009.{{cite web |first=Louise |last=Jury |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23773738-its-a-royal-flush-for-cutting-edge-theatre-at-standard-awards.do |title=It's a Royal flush at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2009-11-23 |access-date=2013-11-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120101032324/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23773738-its-a-royal-flush-for-cutting-edge-theatre-at-standard-awards.do |archive-date=2012-01-01 }} The judges' assessments are online.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23774119-winners-of-evening-standard-theatre-awards-2009.do |title=Winners of Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2009 – Theatre – Going Out – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2009-11-24 |access-date=2013-11-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120104030742/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23774119-winners-of-evening-standard-theatre-awards-2009.do |archive-date=2012-01-04 }}

The 2010 winners were announced at a celebratory evening ceremony on Thursday 28 November 2010 in the newly refurbished Savoy Hotel.{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23901946-evening-standard-theatre-awards-celebrate-a-year-of-high-emotion-on-stage.do |title=Evening Standard Theatre Awards celebrate a year of high emotion on stage – Theatre – Going Out – London Evening Standard |publisher=Thisislondon.co.uk |date=2010-11-29 |access-date=2013-11-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120101124849/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/theatre/article-23901946-evening-standard-theatre-awards-celebrate-a-year-of-high-emotion-on-stage.do |archive-date=2012-01-01 }}

The 2011 winners were announced in a ceremony at the Savoy Hotel on 20 November 2011.

The 2012 winners were announced in a ceremony again at the Savoy Hotel on 25 November 2012.

The 2013 winners were announced in a ceremony again at the Savoy Hotel on 17 November 2013.

The 2014 winners were announced in a ceremony at the London Palladium on 30 November 2014.

The 2015 winners were announced in a ceremony at the Old Vic Theatre on 22 November 2015.

The 2016 winners were announced in a ceremony again at the Old Vic Theatre on 13 November 2016.

The 2017 winners were announced in a ceremony at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 3 December 2017.

The 2018 winners were announced in a ceremony again at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 18 November 2018.

The 2019 winners were announced in a ceremony at the London Coliseum on 24 November 2019.

The 2022 winners were announced in a ceremony at The Ivy on 11 December 2022.

The 2023 winners were announced in a ceremony at Claridge's Hotel on 19 November 2023.

Awards by year

List of existing articles for individual years:

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{{efn|name=Covid19|After the 65th Awards, presented in November 2019, the complete shutdown of UK theatres in 2020/2021, as a result of lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, delayed the 66th awards to December 2022.{{cite web |title=Honouring the city's best theatre. |website=www.eveningstandardcommercial.com |url=https://www.eveningstandardcommercial.com/events/theatre-awards#:~:text=It%20is%20the%20first%20major,2022%20at%20the%20London%20Coliseum. |access-date=2022-05-11 |quote=The 66th Evening Standard Theatre Awards will be hosted on Sunday 20 November 2022 at the London Coliseum. |archive-date=2023-08-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831201524/https://www.eveningstandardcommercial.com/events/theatre-awards#:~:text=It%20is%20the%20first%20major,2022%20at%20the%20London%20Coliseum. |url-status=live }}}}

}}

{{notelist}}

Winners 1955–2022

=Best Play=

{{main|Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Play}}

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=Best Director=

Also known as The Sydney Edwards Award for Best Director from 1979. Renamed the Milton Shulman Award for Best Director from 2014.

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=Best Actor=

{{main|Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor}}

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=Best Actress=

{{main|Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress}}

Also known as The Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress from 2009

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=Best Musical=

Renamed the Ned Sherrin Award for Best Musical in 2007

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=Best Musical Performance=

{{main|Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical Performance}}

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=Best Designer=

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=Best Comedy=

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=Most Controversial Play=

=Editor's Award (renamed 'for a Shooting Star' in 2010)=

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=Most Promising Playwright=

Also known as the Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright

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=Outstanding Newcomer=

Also known as the Milton Shulman Award for Outstanding Newcomer

:Note: Category ceased but is re-styled as the Emerging Talent Award

{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|

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=Emerging Talent=

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=Theatrical Achievement=

=Lady Rothermere Drama Award=

Two part award, originally as the Patricia Rothermere Award

  • 1992 - Fionuala Clarence, Scholarship award
  • 1993 – Matthew Rhys, scholarship award{{cite news |first=Rosanna |last=Greenstreet |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2001/oct/13/weekend7.weekend1 |title=Q & A Matthew Rhys |date=13 October 2001 |work=The Guardian |location=UK |access-date=7 March 2014 |archive-date=8 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140308020953/http://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2001/oct/13/weekend7.weekend1 |url-status=live }}{{Contradict-inline|article=Patricia Harmsworth, Viscountess Rothermere|section=Honours|reason=Text there says award was created in 1997 - consistent with this odd 1993 outlier in this article. Perhaps it was originally a RADA award (per the 1993 winner's cited source here) and only added to the larger Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 1997?|date=May 2022}}
  • 1997 – Judi Dench, for outstanding services to the theatre
  • 1997 – Mark Rice-Oxley, scholarship award
  • 1999 – Simon Callow, for outstanding services to the theatre
  • 1999 – Martin Rea, scholarship award
  • 2001 – Prunella Scales, for ...
  • 2001 – Cassandre Joseph, scholarship award
  • 2003 – Richard Attenborough, for exceptional support for young actors
  • 2003 – Elif Yesil, scholarship award
  • 2005 – Penelope Keith, for ...
  • 2005 – Hannah Croft, scholarship award

=The Special Award (given as The Lebedev Special Award in 2009)=

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=Theatre Icon Award=

  • 2013 – Maggie Smith{{cite web |url=http://www.playbill.com/newsarticle/award-winning-actress-maggie-smith-hopes-to-return-to-the-stage-211969 |work=Playbill |title=Award winning actress Maggie Smith hopes to return to the stage |access-date=6 July 2017 }}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

=Moscow Art Theatre's Golden Seagull=

=Beyond Theatre award=

=Award For Comedy=

=Best Revival of the Year=

See also

Sources

  • Celebration: 25 Years of British Theatre. W. H. Allen Ltd, 1980. {{ISBN|0-491-02770-2}}, for Awards 1955–1978
  • Theatre Record and its annual Indexes, for Awards 1981 to date.{{cite web |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/heavyweights-of-the-stage-battle-for-best-actor-prize-6833239.html |title=Heavyweights of the stage battle for best actor prize – News – London Evening Standard |publisher=Standard.co.uk |date=2008-11-04 |access-date=2013-11-16 |archive-date=2014-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140304214117/http://www.standard.co.uk/news/heavyweights-of-the-stage-battle-for-best-actor-prize-6833239.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/goingout/theatre/evening-standard-theatre-awards-2007-the-longlist-6658718.html |title=Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2007: the longlist – Theatre – Going Out – London Evening Standard |publisher=Standard.co.uk |date=2007-10-31 |access-date=2013-11-16 |archive-date=2023-08-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831202039/https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/theatre/evening-standard-theatre-awards-2007-the-longlist-6658718.html |url-status=live }}

References

{{Reflist}}

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{{Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor}}

{{Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress}}

{{Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Director}}

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{{Evening Standard Theatre Award for Outstanding Newcomer}}

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Category:London awards

Category:Awards established in 1955

Category:British theatre awards

Category:1955 establishments in the United Kingdom

Category:Theatre in London