2017 SYDNEY THEATRE AWARDS Nominations Announced

Nominations were announced today for the Sydney Theatre Awards for 2017, which will be presented at a gala ceremony on Monday 22 January 2018 at 6pm at the Everest Theatre, Seymour Centre.

Leading the list with a record 12 nominations is Muriel's Wedding, produced by the Sydney Theatre Company and Global Creatures, followed by Sydney Theatre Company's Cloud Nine and Only Heaven Knows from Luckiest Productions and Hayes Theatre Co, both on nine nominations. Calamity Jane, produced by One Eyed Man Productions in association with Neglected Musicals and Hayes Theatre Co, was awarded eight nominations, while both The Trouble With Harry from Siren Theatre Co and Seymour Centre, and Assassins from Hayes Theatre Co received seven nominations. Red Line Productions' A View From The Bridge received six nominations.

Nominations in the 35 categories were spread across 51 productions which played on Sydney stages during 2017. Vying for Best Mainstage Production are Cloud Nine (Sydney Theatre Company), Hir (Belvoir), Mr Burns (Belvoir) and Shit (Sydney Festival). The nominees for Best Independent Production are Dry Land (Outhouse Theatre Co and Mad March Hare), The Ham Funeral (Siren Theatre Company), The Trouble With Harry (Siren Theatre Co in association with Seymour Centre) and A View From The Bridge (Red Line Productions).

The Sydney Theatre Awards are presented annually by a group of leading theatre critics to celebrate the strength, quality and diversity of theatre in Sydney. The Sydney Theatre Reviewers consist of Elissa Blake (Audrey Journal, formerly Fairfax), Jason Blake (Audrey Journal, formerly Sydney Morning Herald), Dee Jefferson (ABC, formerly Time Out), Deborah Jones (The Australian), Jo Litson (The Sunday Telegraph, Limelight), John McCallum (The Australian), Ben Neutze (Time Out, formerly Daily Review), Diana Simmonds (Stagenoise), Cassie Tongue (Time Out, The Guardian) and Suzy Wrong (Suzy Goes See).

The reviewers all felt 2017 was a very strong year for Sydney theatre. Elissa Blake said, "For me, this year was about the rise of the independent theatre scene. The difference in quality and ambition between the funded and unfunded theatre companies in Sydney has shrunk to the point where it is becoming minimal. Our best artists and our emerging artists are now working in both spaces, smashing the gender roles, telling all kinds of new Australian stories, cracking open audiences' hearts and minds."

Jo Litson agreed, saying, "Occasionally we expand the number of nominations in a category from four to five because the quality is so high and the voting so close that it seems wrong not to recognise five nominees. This year that has happened in three categories: Best Male Actor and Best Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Mainstage Production, and Best Newcomer.

"It is encouraging to note the number of women coming to the fore following a push to raise awareness of the lack of gender equity in Australian theatre. This year, three of the four nominations for both Best Direction of a Mainstage Production and Best Direction of an Independent Production have gone to women. Clearly there is more to be achieved in terms of gender parity, and a lot more to de done in terms of ethnic diversity in our theatre, though improvements are slowly being made."

Peter Lowry OAM, President of the Seaborn, Broughton & Walford Foundation, is happy to confirm that the Foundation will again be the major sponsor of the 2017 Sydney Theatre Awards. "As avid theatre goers, many of us have attended the shows and seen the performances that will be honoured at the Sydney Theatre Awards," he said. "We congratulate all nominees, and we congratulate the leading theatre critics responsible for the Awards, now in its 13th year, as they recognise and reward the strength, quality and diversity of outstanding, professional mainstage and independent plays, musicals and performances produced in Sydney over the last twelve months."

Following the wishes of founding President Dr Rodney Seaborn AO OBE, the Foundation proudly supports a wide variety of performing arts initiatives through funding, attending performances and preserving precious theatrical records for education and research.

NOMINATIONS FOR 2017 SYDNEY THEATRE AWARDS

BEST MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Cloud Nine (Sydney Theatre Company)

Hir (Belvoir)

Mr Burns (Belvoir)

Shit (Sydney Festival)

BEST INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Dry Land (Outhouse Theatre Co and Mad March Hare)

The Ham Funeral (Siren Theatre Company)

The Trouble With Harry (Siren Theatre Co in association with Seymour Centre)

A View From the Bridge (Red Line Productions)

BEST DIRECTION OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Anne-Louise Sarks (The Merchant of Venice)

Imara Savage (Mr Burns)

Anthea Williams (Hir)

Kip Williams (Cloud Nine)

BEST DIRECTION OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Claudia Barrie (Dry Land)

Kate Gaul (The Ham Funeral)

Kate Gaul (The Trouble With Harry)

Iain Sinclair (A View From the Bridge)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Genevieve Lemon (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf)

Heather Mitchell (Cloud Nine)

Kate Mulvany (Richard III)

Helen Thomson (Hir)

Ursula Yovich (Barbara and the Camp Dogs)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

John Bell (The Father)

Mitchell Butel (The Merchant of Venice)

Darren Gilshenan (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf)

Pacharo Mzembe (Prize Fighter)

Steve Rodgers (Diving for Pearls)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Belinda Giblin (Doubt)

Jodie Le Vesconte (The Trouble With Harry)

Sarah Meacham (Dry Land)

Gabrielle Scawthorn (The Village Bike)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Tommy Bradson (Nosferatutu)

Ivan Donato (A View From the Bridge)

Tobias Manderson-Galvin (Puntila/Matti)

John O'Hare (The Night Alive)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Kate Box (Cloud Nine)

Elaine Crombie (Barbara and the Camp Dogs)

Anita Hegh (The Father)

Claire Lovering (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Harry Greenwood (Cloud Nine)

Brandon McClelland (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf)

Josh McConville (Cloud Nine)

Michael Whalley (Hir)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Antoinette Barboutis (Puntila/Matti)

Charmaine Bingwa (Doubt)

Zoe Terakes (A View From the Bridge)

Janine Watson (A View From the Bridge)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Justin Stewart Cotta (This Much Is True)

Andrew Lindqvist (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo)

Lex Marinos (Sunset Strip)

Johnny Nasser (The Ham Funeral)

BEST STAGE DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Dale Ferguson (Away)

Michael Hankin (Hir)

Marg Horwell (Shit)

Jonathan Oxlade (Mr Burns)

BEST STAGE DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Alicia Clements (Assassins)

Isabel Hudson (Dry Land)

Alice Morgan (The Trouble With Harry)

Lauren Peters (Calamity Jane)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Elizabeth Gadsby (Cloud Nine)

Michael Hankin (Hir)

Jonathon Oxlade (Mr Burns)

Gabriela Tylesova (Muriel's Wedding)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Alicia Clements (Assassins)

Alice Morgan (The Trouble With Harry)

Lauren Peters (Calamity Jane)

Emma Vine (Only Heaven Knows)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Paul Jackson (Away)

Chris Petridis (Mr Burns)

Nick Schlieper (Chimerica)

Emma Valente (The Testament of Mary)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Alexander Berlage (Doubt)

Alexander Berlage (4:48 Psychosis)

Matt Cox (The Trouble With Harry)

Hartley TA Kemp (The Ham Funeral)

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Nate Edmondson (Cloud Nine)

J. David Franzke (Away)

Max Lyandvert (The Testament of Mary)

The Sweats (Chimerica)

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Nate Edmondson (The Ham Funeral)

Nate Edmondson (Jatinga)

Nate Edmondson (The Trouble With Harry)

Benjamin Freeman (4:48 Psychosis)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Chris Williams (Cloud Nine)

The Sweats (Chimerica)

Alana Valentine, Ursula Yovich and Adm Ventura (Barbara and the Camp Dogs)

Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall (Muriel's Wedding)

BEST NEW AUSTRALIAN WORK

Barbara and the Camp Dogs (Ursula Yovich and Alana Valentine)

Black is the New White (Nakkiah Lui)

Muriel's Wedding (PJ Hogan, Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall)

Shit (Patricia Cornelius)

BEST NEWCOMER

Maggie McKenna (Muriel's Wedding)

Michelle Ny (Dry Land)

Kurt Pimblett (Hir)

Zoe Terakes (A View From the Bridge)

Ebony Vagulans (Diving for Pearls)

BEST PRODUCTION OF A MAINSTREAM MUSICAL

Beautiful (Michael Cassel, Paul Blake, Sony/ATV Music Publishing and Mike Bosner)

Kinky Boots (Michael Cassel by arrangement with Daryl Roth and Hal Luftig)

Ladies in Black (Queensland Theatre, Sydney Festival and Sydney Lyric)

Muriel's Wedding (Sydney Theatre Company and Global Creatures)

BEST PRODUCTION OF AN INDEPENDENT MUSICAL

Assassins (Hayes Theatre Co)

Calamity Jane (One Eyed Man Productions in association with Neglected Musicals and Hayes Theatre Co)

Only Heaven Knows (Luckiest Productions in association with Hayes Theatre Co)

BEST DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL

Dean Bryant (Assassins)

Richard Carroll (Calamity Jane)

Simon Phillips (Muriel's Wedding)

Shaun Rennie (Only Heaven Knows)

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MUSICAL

Annie Aitken (Melba)

Virginia Gay (Calamity Jane)

Esther Hannaford (Beautiful)

Maggie McKenna (Muriel's Wedding)

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MUSICAL

David Campbell (Assassins)

Tim Draxl (Only Heaven Knows)

Toby Francis (Kinky Boots)

Ben Hall (Only Heaven Knows)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL

Blazey Best (Only Heaven Knows)

Justine Clarke (Muriel's Wedding)

Madeleine Jones (Muriel's Wedding)

Christie Whelan Browne (Muriel's Wedding)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL

Matthew Backer (Only Heaven Knows)

Rob Johnson (Calamity Jane)

Joe Kosky (High Fidelity)

Hayden Tee (Only Heaven Knows)

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY IN A MUSICAL

Andrew Hallsworth (Assassins)

Andrew Hallsworth (Muriel's Wedding)

Cameron Mitchell (Big Fish)

Cameron Mitchell (Calamity Jane)

BEST MUSICAL DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL

Daniel Edmonds (Only Heaven Knows)

Isaac Hayward (Muriel's Wedding)

Nigel Ubrihien (Calamity Jane)

Andrew Worboys (Assassins)

BEST CABARET PRODUCTION

Betty Grumble's Love and Anger

Blue, the Songs of Joni Mitchell

Hot Brown Honey

Mother's Ruin: A Cabaret About Gin

BEST PRODUCTION FOR CHILDREN

Diary of a Wombat (Monkey Baa)

Junk (Flying Fruit Fly Circus)

Kaleidoscope (Company 2 and Sydney Festival)

You and Me and the Space Between (Terrapin Puppet Theatre and Sydney Festival)

BEST PRODUCTION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

Dignity of Risk (atyp/Shopfront Arts)

Moth (atyp)

Oedipus Doesn't Live Here Anymore (atyp)

When The Streets Had a Name (Monkey Baa)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

To be announced at the Awards ceremony