Ullmann, Murdoch, Armfield Join Presenters Roster For 2009 Helpmann Awards

The 2009 Helpmann Awards® Ceremony will be held next Monday 27 July at 6.30pm at Opera Theatre, Sydney Opera House, whilst the After Party will be held at The Argyle in The Rocks. Jonathan Biggins and Julia Zemiro, both acclaimed actors, broadcasters and comedians, will jointly MC the Awards Ceremony.

The Ceremony will include performances by the casts of Avenue Q, Candy Man, Chicago, Jerry Springer - The Opera, Metro Street, Shane Warne - The Musical, Spamalot, 7 Fingers and Wicked, as well as performances from The Australian Ballet, David Campbell, Kate Miller-Heidke, Scared Weird Little Guys, Sydney Dance Company, Tyler Coppin, and Emma Matthews from Opera Australia.

Live Performance Australia (LPA) today announced the names of Award Presenters for the 41 categories for the 2009 Helpmann Awards®. These include Neil Armfield, Damien Bermingham, Richard Bonynge, Joan Carden, Marta Dusseldorp, Joel Edgerton, Kate Fitzpatrick, Hale & Pace, Hi 5, Lindy Hume, Marilyn Jones, Maggie Kirkpatrick, Matt Lee, Craig McLachlan, Meow Meow, ShaRon Millerchip, Rob Mills, Sarah Murdoch, Julieanne Newbould, Glynn Nicholas, Bonjana Novakovic, Stephen Page, Gina Riley, Tim Rogers, Ruby Rose, Leo Schofield, Jim Sharman, Tiffany Speight, Lyndon Terracini, Liv Ullmann, Ben Winspear, and Ursula Yovich.

Michael Gudinski AM and John Bell AO OBE. will each be presented with the prestigious JC Williamson Award, recognising their outstanding contribution to the Australian live performance industry.

Also in attendance at the event will be Jimmy Barnes, Lucy Bell, Cate Blanchett, Rafael Bonachela, Michael Chugg, Diesel, Nancye Hayes, David McAllister, Todd McKenney, Molly Meldrum, Robyn Nevin, Stephen Page, Amanda Pelman, Eddie Perfect, Pamela Rabe, and Jackie Weaver.

The Awards Ceremony will be broadcast live on the Bio Channel, Foxtel.

The Helpmann Awards® are the pinnacle industry event for Australia's live performance industry, recognising the very best in live performances that annually attract over 20.8 million people to shows across the nation with revenues of over $A1.2 billion, and growing.

Tickets are available to the General Public from $89 (plus transaction fee) for a spectacular event.

Bookings - Sydney Opera House, Ph: 02 9250 7777 or sydneyoperahouse.com.