Winners For 2018 Sydney Theatre Awards Announced

At a star-studded ceremony tonight, the winners of the 2018 Sydney Theatre Awards were announced, with 34 Awards presented, shared between 16 productions which played in Sydney during the calendar year of 2018. Over 450 members of the Sydney theatre community packed the York Theatre at the Seymour Centre to celebrate.

Best Mainstage Production was awarded to Sydney Theatre Company's The Harp in the South: Part One and Part Two, which also won Best Direction of a Mainstage Production (Kip Williams) and Best New Australian Work (Kate Mulvany). Best Independent Production went to New Theatre's Stupid f-ing Bird, which also won Best Female Supporting Actor in an Independent Production (Annie Stafford). Best Direction of an Independent Production went to Dino Dimitriadis for Apocalypse Theatre Company and Red Line Productions' Metamorphoses, which was also awarded Best Costume Design (Jonathan Hindmarsh), Best Lighting Design (Benjamin Brockman) and Best Sound Design (Benjamin Brockman). STC's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui also won four awards, Best Male Actor in a Leading Role (Hugo Weaving), Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role (Mitchell Butel), Best Stage Design (Robert Cousins) and Best Sound Design (Stefan Gregory) in the mainstage categories.

In the Musical categories, Best Musical went to Cry-Baby, produced by LPD in association with Hayes Theatre Co, which also got nods for Best Direction of a Musical (Alexander Berlage), Best Stage Design of an Independent Production (Isabel Hudson) and Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Musical (Ashleigh Rubenach). Best Male Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical was awarded to Ryan Gonzalez (In the Heights). The Best Newcomer Award went to Justin Amankwah (The Flick).

The Sydney Theatre Award for Lifetime Achievement was presented to Riverside Theatres, Parramatta Director Robert Love, a champion of the arts in Western Sydney. Robert's 45-year career began as trainee director for the Old Tote and ATYP before he founded theatre-in-education company Toe Truck Theatre in 1976. Since then he has been General Manager of the Seymour Centre, the State Theatre Company of South Australia and Sydney Theatre Company, before being appointed to his position at Riverside Theatres in 2000.

Presenters at the Awards Ceremony - which this year included actors and people who work in various roles behind the scenes - were Johanna Allen, Stephen Anderson, Olivia Ansell, Jim Burch, Luke Byrne, Guy Edmonds, Rarriwuy Hick, Sarah Lantry-Griffith, Carly Leonard, Jonathan Llewellyn, Shell McKenzie, Chris Mercer, Fiona Press, Susan Prior, Brett Russell and Garry Scale; and there were performances by Casey Donovan, and cast members of the musicals Muriel's Wedding and The Book of Mormon.

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), Jason Blake (Audrey Journal), Deborah Jones (The Australian), Jo Litson (Limelight), John McCallum (The Australian), Joyce Morgan (Sydney Morning Herald), Ben Neutze (Time Out), John Shand (Sydney Morning Herald), Diana Simmonds (Stagenoise), Cassie Tongue (Time Out) and Suzy Wrong (Suzy Goes See).

The Sydney Theatre Awards gratefully thanks major sponsor, The Seaborn, Broughton and Walford Foundation, as well as other sponsors William Fletcher Foundation, Showcast, Currency Press, Ticketmaster, Hayes Theatre Co, Bellbird Cottages, Actors Benevolent Fund, ACMN, JPJ Audio and Helen Constance.

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WINNERS OF 2018 SYDNEY THEATRE AWARDS

BEST MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
The Harp in the South (Sydney Theatre Company)

BEST INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Stupid f-ing Bird (New Theatre)

BEST DIRECTION OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Kip Williams (Harp in the South)

BEST DIRECTION OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Dino Dimitriadis (Metamorphoses)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Claire Lovering (The Feather in the Web)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Hugo Weaving (The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Nikki Shiels (They Divided the Sky)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Justin Amankwah (The Flick)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Kate Box (Top Girls)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Mitchell Butel (The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui)

BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Annie Stafford (Stupid f-ing Bird)

BEST MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Damon Manns (The Rolling Stone)

BEST STAGE DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Robert Cousins (The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui)

BEST STAGE DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Isabel Hudson (Cry-Baby)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Renée Mulder (Top Girls)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Jonathan Hindmarsh (Metamorphoses)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Verity Hampson (Blackie Blackie Brown)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Benjamin Brockman (Metamorphoses)

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
Stefan Gregory (The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION
William Barton (The Long Forgotten Dream)

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION
Ben Pierpoint (Metamorphoses)

BEST NEW AUSTRALIAN WORK
The Harp in the South (Kate Mulvany)

BEST NEWCOMER
Justin Amankwah (The Flick)

BEST PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
Cry-Baby (LPD in association with Hayes Theatre Co)

BEST DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL
Alexander Berlage (Cry-Baby)

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Ashleigh Rubenach (Cry-Baby)

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Ryan Gonzalez (In the Heights)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Zahra Newman (The Book of Mormon)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Rowan Witt (The Book of Mormon)

BEST MUSICAL DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL
Lucy Bermingham (In the Heights)

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY IN A MUSICAL
Amy Campbell (In the Heights)

BEST CABARET PRODUCTION
Since Ali Died (Omar Musa)

BEST PRODUCTION FOR CHILDREN OR YOUNG PEOPLE
Josephine Wants to Dance (Monkey Baa)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Robert Love

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