Best Actor in a Play was awarded to former Doctor Who star David Tennant for his role in Don Juan in Soho, making it a consecutive win for him at the UK theatre awards show following his award for Best Actor in a Play from 2015’s Richard II. Olivia Colman won Best Actress in a Play for her performance in Mosquitoes and is set to star in the third series of Netflix’s critically acclaimed drama The Crown.
Taking home the award for Best Actor in a Musical was John McCrea from Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, which also went on to win Best New Musical. Also adding to the show’s winning streak was Lucie Shorthouse’s win for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical. The musical sensation recently extended its run on the West End and is now playing at the Apollo Theatre until 6 October 2018.
Another big win for London’s West End was Jez Butterworth’s The Ferryman, which took home 3 awards for Best New Play, Best Direction, and Best Supporting Actor for Fra Fee’s performance as Michael Carney. Tickets for the Gielgud Theatre production are currently on special offer and will be closing on 19 May 2018.
Winning Best Supporting Actress in a Play for her performance in Hamlet was Juliet Stevenson, who is currently ruling the stage in Mary Stuart as either the titular character or Elizabeth I, which is determined by a nightly coin toss. The show recently transferred to the Duke of York’s Theatre and is available for booking until 31 March 2018 with no fees.
Best Supporting Actor in a Musical went to Ross Noble for his short-lived role as Igor in Young Frankenstein. The character of Igor is now being played by Cory English. Mel Brooks’ musical comedy is now booking until 29 September 2018 at the Garrick Theatre.
Other wins of the night included Best Lighting Design for Patrick Woodroffe’s Bat Out of Hell and Best Original Cast Recording for Les Misérables. The Meat Loaf-inspired Bat Out of Hell: The Musical will be firing up the stage once more from 2 April 2018 for its second run at the Dominion Theatre while Les Misérables will continue to captivate its audiences at the Queens Theatre until 20 October 2018.
Both Aladdin’s Genie, played by Trevor Dion Nicholas, and Vikki Stone hosted the ceremony. For a detailed list of all the winners and nominations for the 18th Annual WhatsOnStage Awards, see below.
Best Actor in a Play
- David Tennant, Don Juan in Soho
- Andrew Garfield, Angels in America
- Andrew Scott, Hamlet
- Bryan Cranston, Network
- Martin Freeman, Labour of Love
Best Actress in a Play
- Olivia Colman, Mosquitoes
- Eve Best, Love in Idleness
- Imelda Staunton, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
- Natalie Dormer, Venus in Fur
- Tamsin Greig, Labour of Love
Best Actor in a Musical
- John McCrea, Everybody's Talking About Jamie
- Andrew Polec, Bat Out of Hell
- Danny Mac, Sunset Boulevard
- Hadley Fraser, Young Frankenstein
- Tom Lister, 42nd Street
Best Actress in a Musical
- Carrie Hope Fletcher, The Addams Family
- Christina Bennington, Bat Out of Hell
- Janie Dee, Follies
- Josie Walker, Everybody's Talking About Jamie
- Ria Jones, Sunset Boulevard
Best Supporting Actor in a Play
- Fra Fee, The Ferryman
- Adrian Scarborough, Don Juan in Soho
- Nathan Lane, Angels in America
- Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Angels in America
- Peter Polycarpou, Oslo
Best Supporting Actress in a Play
- Juliet Stevenson, Hamlet
- Denise Gough, Angels in America
- Imogen Poots, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
- Jessica Brown Findlay, Hamlet
- Sheila Atim, Girl from the North Country
Best Supporting Actor in a Musical
- Ross Noble, Young Frankenstein
- Chris Howell, 42nd Street
- Dex Lee, Five Guys Named Moe
- George Sampson, Our House
- Rob Fowler, Bat Out of Hell
Best Supporting Actress in a Musical
- Lucie Shorthouse, Everybody's Talking About Jamie
- Clare Halse, 42nd Street
- Danielle Steers, Bat Out of Hell
- Tracie Bennett, Follies
- Zoe Rainey, An American in Paris
Best New Play
- The Ferryman
- Gloria
- Ink
- Labour of Love
- Oslo
Best New Musical
- Everybody's Talking About Jamie
- Bat Out of Hell
- Cilla the Musical
- The Band
- Young Frankenstein
Best Play Revival
- Hamlet
- Angels in America
- Don Juan in Soho
- Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
- Witness for the Prosecution
Best Musical Revival
- 42nd Street
- Fiddler on the Roof
- Five Guys Named Moe
- Follies
- Hair
Best Direction
- Sam Mendes, The Ferryman
- Dominic Cooke, Follies
- Jay Scheib, Bat Out of Hell
- Marianne Elliott, Angels in America
- Robert Icke, Hamlet
Best Choreography
- Randy Skinner, 42nd Street
- Andrew Wright, Five Guys Named Moe
- Christopher Wheeldon, An American in Paris
- Drew McOnie, On the Town
- Fabian Aloise, Our House
Best Costume Design
- Roger Kirk, 42nd Street
- Bob Crowley, An American in Paris
- Gary McCann, La Cage Aux Folles
- Peter McKintosh, On the Town
- Vicki Mortimer, Follies
Best Set Design
- Douglas W. Schmidt, 42nd Street
- Bob Crowley, An American in Paris
- Bunny Christie, Ink
- Jon Bausor, Bat Out of Hell
- Vicki Mortimer, Follies
Best Lighting Design
- Patrick Woodroffe, Bat Out of Hell
- Natasha Katz, An American in Paris
- Paule Constable, Angels in America
- Paule Constable, Follies
- Peter Mumford, 42nd Street
Best Video Design
- 59 Productions, An American in Paris
- Duncan McLean, Big Fish
- Duncan McLean, Labour of Love
- Tal Yarden, Hamlet
- Tal Yarden, Network
Best Off-West End Production
- Hair
- La Ronde
- The Wild Party
- Working
- Yank!
Best Regional Production
- Sunset Boulevard
- Our House
- The Addams Family
- The Band
- The Hypocrite
Best Original Cast Recording
- Les Misérables
- Dear Evan Hansen
- Dreamgirls
- Girl from the North Country
- Hamilton
Best Show Poster
- Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
- Cats
- Hamilton
- The Phantom of the Opera
- Wicked
Best West End Shows
- Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
- Kinky Boots
- Les Misérables
- The Phantom of the Opera
- Wicked
Equity Award for Services to the Theatre
- Sonia Friedman