Cameron Mackintosh Says Oliviers Fail to be 'Premier Showcase of Commercial Theatre'

The Stage reported that Cameron Mackintosh has criticised the Olivier Awards for not showcasing commercial theatre as it was originally created to do.

His new revival of Miss Saigon did not win any awards at this year's Oliviers, and Mackintosh told The Stage that the cast's lack of nominations was "very curious" considering the current debate about diversity both on and offstage. Miss Saigon has drawn in diverse audiences, and Mackintosh said that both he and some of the actors think it is "insensitive" and "a disgrace" for the musical to be overlooked.

Mackintosh helped found the Oliviers, then called the Society of West End Theatre Awards, to "be a complement to the arty Evening Standard Awards."

He said: "That has gone now. Good art is good art - but the Oliviers should be the premier showcase of commercial theatre and it isn't. It hasn't been for many years. It's the same argument they are having about the Academy Awards, as they no longer represent mainstream Hollywood. And they worry about it."

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For nearly 50 years Cameron Mackintosh has been producing more musicals than anyone else in history, including the three longest-running musicals of all time, LES MISERABLES, The Phantom of the Opera and Cats, which are still running extraordinarily successfully across the world.

Uniquely, Cameron, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of both LES MISERABLES and The Phantom Of The Opera, has mounted new versions of both shows which are now proving as successful as the original. His spectacular new production of Miss Saigon, which was the fourth of his great hits of the 1980s, has now opened to record breaking advanced booking in London's Prince Edward Theatre, having been acclaimed around the world. The stage version of Mary Poppins, his co-production with Disney, continues to disperse its magic globally. As well as original musicals, Cameron enjoys producing new versions of such classics as My Fair Lady and Oliver! - which all continue to be successful.

LES MISERABLES remains the longest-running musical in the world and is now going into its 30th year in London and the Tony nominated new version has just opened to spectacular success on Broadway with other productions in Spain, Japan, Korea, Canada and Australia. His spectacular new version of The Phantom of the Opera, is also currently touring North America. Over the next three years he has over 30 new productions of his musicals due to open around the world.

In 2013 Cameron, in conjunction with Working Title Films and Universal, produced his first hugely successful musical film, the Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA award-winning LES MISERABLES.

Some of Cameron's awards include the following: In 1995 his company received The Queen's Award for Export Achievement and he was knighted in the 1996 New Year's Honours for his services to British theatre. In 2006 he received the National Enjoy England Award for Excellence for his Outstanding Contribution to Tourism and he has recently been the first British producer elected to the Theatre Hall of Fame on Broadway.