Theater News

Rachel Tucker, Come From Away, and More Win 2020 WhatsOnStage Awards

Find out the complete list of winners.

Rachel Tucker in Come From Away.
Rachel Tucker in Come From Away.
(© Matthew Murphy)

The 20th annual WhatsOnStage Award winners were announced on Sunday, March 1.

Taking home top honors were actors Andrew Scott (Best Actor) and Sophie Thompson (Best Supporting Actress) for their performances in Noël Coward's Present Laughter at the Old Vic, with Claire Foy earning the Best Actress Award for Lungs, which comes to Brooklyn Academy of Music later this month.

The West End production of Come From Away took home five awards, including Best New Musical and Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for Rachel Tucker, who begins performances as Beverley in the Broadway staging of Come From Away this week. The West End production of Dear Evan Hansen earned acting awards for stars Sam Tutty (Best Actor in a Musical) and Jack Loxton (Best Supporting Actor).

The full list of winners (in bold) and nominees:

The Equity Award for Services to Theatre
ERA 50:50

The BBC Radio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical
Six the Musical

Best Actor in a Play, sponsored by Edwardian Hotels
Tom Hiddleston – Betrayal – Harold Pinter Theatre
Andrew Scott – Present Laughter – The Old Vic
Matt Smith – Lungs – The Old Vic
Wendell Pierce – Death of a Salesman – Young Vic / Piccadilly Theatre
Laurie Kynaston – The Son – Kiln Theatre / Duke of York's Theatre

Best Actress in a Play, sponsored by Tonic Theatre
Claire Foy – Lungs – The Old Vic
Zawe Ashton – Betrayal – Harold Pinter Theatre
Hayley Atwell – Rosmersholm – Duke of York's Theatre
Sharon D. Clarke – Death of a Salesman – Young Vic / Piccadilly Theatre
Juliet Stevenson – The Doctor – Almeida Theatre

Best Supporting Actor in a Play
Alexander Vlahos – Peter Pan – Park Theatre
Charlie Cox – Betrayal – Harold Pinter Theatre
Hareet Deol – My Beautiful Laundrette – A Curve Leicester, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Leeds Playhouse co-production
Hammed Animashaun – A Midsummer Night's Dream – Bridge Theatre
Giles Terera – Rosmersholm – Duke of York's Theatre

Best Supporting Actress in a Play
Ria Zmitrowicz – The Doctor – Almeida Theatre
Isabella Pappas – Appropriate – Donmar Warehouse
Monica Dolan – All About Eve – Noël Coward Theatre
Sophie Thompson – Present Laughter – The Old Vic
Indira Varma – Present Laughter – The Old Vic

Best Actor in a Musical, sponsored by Dewynters
David Hunter – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Sam Tutty – Dear Evan Hansen – Noël Coward Theatre
Jac Yarrow – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – The London Palladium
Oliver Tompsett – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Charlie Stemp – Mary Poppins – Prince Edward Theatre

Best Actress in a Musical, sponsored by Café de Paris
Lucie Jones – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Katharine McPhee – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Miriam-Teak Lee – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Tracie Bennett – Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
Zizi Strallen – Mary Poppins – Prince Edward Theatre

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical
Joe Sugg – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Jack Loxton – Dear Evan Hansen – Noël Coward Theatre
Jordan Luke Gage – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Oscar Conlon-Morrey – Only Fools and Horses the Musical – Theatre Royal Haymarket
Jason Donovan – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – The London Palladium

Best Supporting Actress in a Musical, sponsored by Newman Displays
Laura Baldwin – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Marisha Wallace – Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
Cassidy Janson – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Melanie La Barrie – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Rachel Tucker – Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre

Best New Play, sponsored by Ticketmaster
The Doctor – Robert Icke – Almeida Theatre
The Son – Florian Zeller – Kiln Theatre / Duke of York's Theatre
My Beautiful Laundrette – Hanif Kureishi – A Curve Leicester, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Leeds Playhouse co-production
Life of Pi – Lolita Chakrabarti – Sheffield Theatres
Appropriate – Branden Jacobs-Jenkins – Donmar Warehouse

Best Play Revival, sponsored by JHI Marketing
Betrayal – Harold Pinter Theatre
Death of a Salesman – Young Vic / Piccadilly Theatre
Present Laughter– The Old Vic
A Midsummer Night's Dream – Bridge Theatre
Lungs – The Old Vic

Best New Musical, sponsored by h Club London
Waitress – Adelphi Theatre
& Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre and Opera House, Manchester
Dear Evan Hansen – Noël Coward Theatre
Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre
Only Fools and Horses the Musical – Theatre Royal Haymarket

Best Musical Revival, sponsored by Concord Theatricals
Mary Poppins – Prince Edward Theatre
Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – The London Palladium
Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
9 to 5 the Musical – Savoy Theatre

Best Off-West End Production, sponsored by Les Misérables
Fiver – Southwark Playhouse
The View UpStairs – Soho Theatre
High Fidelity – The Turbine Theatre
Preludes – Southwark Playhouse
Falsettos – The Other Palace

Best Regional Production, sponsored by MTI Europe
Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
The Color Purple – A Curve Leicester and Birmingham Hippodrome co-production
Life of Pi – Sheffield Theatres
My Beautiful Laundrette – A Curve Leicester, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Leeds Playhouse co-production
West Side Story – Royal Exchange, Manchester

Best Choreography
Fabian Aloise – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Matthew Bourne – Romeo and Juliet – UK tour
Kelly Devine – Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre
Jennifer Weber – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Nick Winston – Mame – Hope Mill Theatre

Best Costume Design
Lez Brotherston – Romeo and Juliet – UK tour
Katrina Lindsay – Small Island – National Theatre
Rob Howell – Present Laughter – The Old Vic
Philip Witcomb – Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
Paloma Young – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre

Best Direction, sponsored by LOVEtheatre
Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell – Death of a Salesman – Young Vic / Piccadilly Theatre
Robert Icke – The Doctor – Almeida Theatre
Jamie Lloyd – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Matthew Warchus – Lungs – The Old Vic
Matthew Warchus – Present Laughter – The Old Vic

Best Graphic Direction, sponsored by Hexagon Print
& Juliet – Dewynters
Captain Corelli's Mandolin – Muse Creative Communications
Equus – Feast Creative
Evita – Feast Creative
Rosmersholm – Bob King Creative

Best Lighting Design, sponsored by White Light
Jon Clark – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Ben Cracknell – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – The London Palladium
Howard Hudson – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Jessica Hung Han Yun – Equus – UK tour
Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone – Present Laughter – The Old Vic

Best Musical Direction, sponsored by AKA
Ian Eisendrath, Alan Berry and team – Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre
Kimberly Grigsby – The Light in the Piazza – Southbank Centre
Alex Parker – Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
John Rigby – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – The London Palladium
Alan Williams – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

Best Set Design, sponsored by Sine Digital
Soutra Gilmour – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Soutra Gilmour – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Rob Howell – Present Laughter – The Old Vic
Robert Jones – The Light in the Piazza – Southbank Centre
Rae Smith – The Night of the Iguana – Noël Coward Theatre

Best Sound Design, sponsored by Stage Sound Services
Ben Harrison – Mame – Hope Mill Theatre
Nick Lidster – Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
Gareth Owen – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
Gareth Owen – Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre
Mick Potter – The Light in the Piazza – Southbank Centre

Best Video Design, sponsored by PRG
Jon Driscoll – Small Island – National Theatre
Will Duke – Grief is the Thing With Feathers – Barbican Theatre
Andrzej Goulding – & Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre
P.J. McEvoy – Falsettos – The Other Palace
Ewan Jones Morris – A Very Expensive Poison – The Old Vic