Olivier Awards 2015 – Memphis the Musical and Beautiful lead nominations

Memphis the Musical receives nine Olivier Award nominations, including one for actress and singer Beverley Knight. Picture: Roy Tan

New productions Memphis the Musical and Beautiful – The Carole King Musical lead the nominations for individual productions, receiving nine and eight nods respectively, at the Olivier Awards 2015 with MasterCard. The nominations were announced today (Monday 9 March) by actors James McAvoy and Lesley Manville.

Among the shows’ nominations are those for the MasterCard Best New Musical Award, where the productions are in competition with first-time Olivier Award nominees Fatboy Slim and David Byrne for Here Lies Love and Ray Davies for Sunny Afternoon. The Donmar Warehouse’s City of Angels also receives five nominations, including Best Director for artistic director Josie Rourke.

Nominees for the Magic Radio Best Musical Revival include Cats, City of Angels, Miss Saigon and The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, with notable performance nods to Nicole Scherzinger for her first major theatrical role in Cats and Jon Jon Briones for his role as the Engineer in Miss Saigon.

The final shortlist of four for the much-coveted This Morning Audience Award, the only category to be voted for solely by the public, is Billy Elliot the Musical, Jersey Boys, Matilda the Musical and Wicked. The second round of voting is now open at www.olivierawards.com and will close at 17:00 on Friday 10 April.

The Olivier Awards 2015 ceremony will take place at the Royal Opera House on Sunday 12 April with a full television highlights package broadcast on ITV later that evening. MasterCard will make tickets for the 2015 ceremony available to the public on Monday 9 March at www.pricelesslondon.co.uk.

Caro Newling, president of the Society of London Theatre, said: “2015 has been another incredible year for London theatre. I would like to congratulate the exceptionally talented nominees we are celebrating today. Thank you, also, to MasterCard and all of our sponsors for ensuring the Olivier Awards are such a wonderful celebration of London theatre.”

Here are the MUSICAL THEATRE nominations for the Olivier Awards 2015: 

WHITE LIGHT AWARD FOR BEST LIGHTING DESIGN:

Howard Harrison for City of Angels at Donmar Warehouse

BEST SOUND DESIGN:

Matt McKenzie for Sunny Afternoon at Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre

Gareth Owen for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

Brian Ronan for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

BEST COSTUME DESIGN:

Rob Jones for City of Angels at Donmar Warehouse

Paul Tazewell for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

Alejo Vietti for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

Olivier-nomiated for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical, Katie Brayben. Picture: Brinkhoff/Moegenburg

XL VIDEO AWARD FOR BEST SET DESIGN:

Bunny Christie for Made in Dagenham at Adelphi Theatre

Rob Jones for City of Angels at Donmar Warehouse

THIS MORNING AUDIENCE AWARD:

Billy Elliot the Musical at Victoria Palace Theatre

Jersey Boys at Piccadilly Theatre

Matilda the Musical at Cambridge Theatre

Wicked at Apollo Victoria Theatre

MAGIC RADIO BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL:

Cats at London Palladium

City of Angels at Donmar Warehouse

The Gershwins’ Porgy And Bess at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

Miss Saigon at Prince Edward Theatre

BEST THEATRE CHOREOGRAPHER:

Jerry Mitchell for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels the Musical at Savoy Theatre

Annie-B Parsons for Here Lies Love at National Theatre, Dorfman

Josh Prince for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

Sergio Trujillo for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

BEST DIRECTOR:

Josie Rourke for City of Angels at Donmar Warehouse

AUTOGRAPH SOUND AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC:

The Orchestra for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

David Byrne and Fatboy Slim for Here Lies Love at National Theatre, Dorfman

David Bryan, Joe DiPietro, Tim Sutton and the Memphis Band for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

Ray Davies for Sunny Afternoon at Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL:

Rolan Bell for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

George Maguire for Sunny Afternoon at Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre

Ian McIntosh for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

Jason Pennycooke for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MUSICAL:

Samantha Bond for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels the Musical at Savoy Theatre

Haydn Gwynne for Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown the Musical at Playhouse Theatre

Nicole Scherzinger for Cats at London Palladium

Lorna Want for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL:

Jon Jon Briones for Miss Saigon at Prince Edward Theatre

John Dagleish for Sunny Afternoon at Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre

Killian Donnelly for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

Brandon Victor Dixon for The Scottsboro Boys at Garrick Theatre

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL:

Gemma Arterton for Made in Dagenham at Adelphi Theatre

Katie Brayben for Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

Tamsin Greig for Women On the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown the Musical at Playhouse Theatre

Beverley Knight for Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

MASTERCARD BEST NEW MUSICAL:

Beautiful – The Carole King Musical at Aldwych Theatre

Here Lies Love at National Theatre, Dorfman

Memphis the Musical at Shaftesbury Theatre

Sunny Afternoon at Hampstead Theatre and Harold Pinter Theatre