2013 Sydney Theatre Awards Nominations Announced!

Nominations were announced today for the Sydney Theatre Awards for 2013, which will be presented at a gala ceremony on Monday January 20, 2014 at 6pm at the Paddington RSL.

Leading the list with seven nominations each are Sydney Theatre Company and Sydney Festival's The Secret River and New Theatre's Jerusalem, followed by STC's Waiting for Godot and the musical Dirty Rotten Scoundrels with six nominations. Belvoir's Angels in America, Sport for Jove's Cyrano de Bergerac, Griffin's The Floating World and Tamarama Rock Surfers' The Removalists all have five. Nominations were spread across 37 different productions which played on Sydney stages during the calendar year of 2013.

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 (Sun Herald), Jason Blake (Sydney Morning Herald), Deborah Jones (The Australian), Jo Litson (The SundayTelegraph), John McCallum (The Australian), Diana Simmonds (Stagenoise website), Polly Simons (Daily Telegraph) and Brad Syke (Crikey).

Additional categories have been added this year in the Independent sector, commending stage design, costume design and score or sound design.

The reviewers all felt 2013 was an extraordinary year for theatre in Sydney. Jason Blake said, "We have been overwhelmed by the number and quality of nominees in this year's Sydney Theatre Awards. Agreeing on a winner in many categories this year has been a challenge. What it all points to is a widening band of what is loosely termed "excellence" in all fields and a willingness to go out on a limb to achieve it. Looking at the nominees this year, you'd be hard pressed to point to anyone playing safe. There's a real spirit of adventure in Sydney theatre right now and a sense that a recent period of renewal and generational change has paid off. Sydney's theatregoers are the real winners here."

Jo Litson added, "Acting-wise 2013 was a very exciting year. There were a remarkable number of exceptional performances in both mainstage and independent theatre - so many, in fact, that after much debate we have taken the unusual step of having five nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role and six nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role in mainstage theatre instead of the customary four. It's not something we do lightly but we believe that in this instance it reflects the extraordinary strength in those categories."

Vying for Best Mainstage Production are Angels In America (Belvoir), The Floating World (Griffin), The Secret River (Sydney Theatre Company and Sydney Festival) and Waiting for Godot (Sydney Theatre Company). The nominees for Best Independent Production are Cyrano de Bergerac (Sport for Jove), Jerusalem (New Theatre),The Motherf**ker with the Hat (Workhorse Theatre Company) and Penelope (Siren Theatre Company).

2013 SYDNEY THEATRE AWARD NOMINATIONS

BEST MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Angels In America (Belvoir)

The Floating World (Griffin)

The Secret River (Sydney Theatre Company and Sydney Festival)

Waiting for Godot (Sydney Theatre Company)

BEST INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Cyrano de Bergerac (Sport for Jove)

Jerusalem (New Theatre)

The Motherf**ker with the Hat (Workhorse Theatre Company)

Penelope (Siren Theatre Company)

BEST DIRECTION OF A MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Neil Armfield (The Secret River)

Eamon Flack (Angels in America)

Sam Strong (The Floating World)

Andrew Upton (Waiting for Godot)

BEST DIRECTION OF AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Kate Gaul (Penelope)

Damien Ryan (Cyrano de Bergerac)

Iain Sinclair (All My Sons)

Helen Tonkin (Jerusalem)

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Valerie Bader (The Floating World)

Cate Blanchett (The Maids)

Harriet Dyer (Machinal)

ShaRon Millerchip (Bombshells)

Helen Thomson (Mrs Warren's Profession)

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Paul Blackwell (Vere)

Lee Jones (Frankenstein)

Peter Kowitz (The Floating World)

Luke Mullins (Small and Tired)

Richard Roxburgh (Waiting for Godot)

Hugo Weaving (Waiting for Godot)

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Abigail Austin (Twelfth Night)

Diana McLean (4000 Miles)

Toni Scanlan (All My Sons)

Zoe Trilsbach (The Motherf**ker with the Hat)

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Laurence Coy (The Removalists)

Nicholas Eadie (Jerusalem)

Marshall Napier (All My Sons)

Yalin Ozucelik (Cyrano de Bergerac)

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Lynette Curran (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof)

Elizabeth Debicki (The Maids)

Amber McMahon (Angels in America)

Susan Prior (Small and Tired)

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Marcus Graham (Angels in America)

Ewen Leslie (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead)

Luke Mullins (Waiting for Godot)

Philip Quast (Waiting for Godot)

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Megan O'Connell (The Motherf**ker with the Hat)

Eloise Snape (4000 Miles)

Eloise Winestock (The Comedy of Errors)

Lizzie Schebesta (Cyrano de Bergerac)

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Justin Stewart Cotta (The Removalists)

Andrew Henry (All My Sons)

Damien Ryan (Othello)

Jeremy Waters (Jerusalem)

BEST STAGE DESIGN IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Alice Babidge with Sean Bacon (The Maids)

Stephen Curtis (The Secret River)

Michael Hankin (Angels in America)

Gabriela Tylesova (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Renee Mulder (Mrs Warren's Profession)

Teresa Negroponte (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

Tess Schofield (The Secret River)

Gabriela Tylesova (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead)

BEST LIGHTING DESIGNIN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Verity Hampson (Machinal)

Nicholas Higgins (Frankenstein)

Mark Howett (The Secret River)

Nick Schlieper (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead)

BEST SCORE OR SOUND DESIGN IN A MAINSTREAM PRODUCTION

Steve Francis and Iain Grandage (The Secret River)

Elena Kats-Chernin and Daryl Wallis (Frankenstein)

Kelly Ryall (The Floating World)

Luke Smiles (School Dance)

BEST STAGE DESIGNIN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Tom Bannerman (Jerusalem)

Tom Bannerman and Kate Gaul (Penelope)

Marg Horwell (Summertime in the Garden of Eden)

Ally Mansell (The Removalists)

BEST COSTUME DESIGNIN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Rita Carmody (The Removalists)

Anna Gardiner (Cyrano de Bergerac)

Marg Horwell (Summertime in the Garden of Eden)

Jennifer Ham (Jerusalem)

BEST SCORE OR SOUND DESIGNIN AN INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Benny Davis and Alister Mew (Delectable Shelter)

Jed Silver (The Removalists)

Alistair Wallace (Jerusalem)

Darryl Wallis (Penelope)

BEST NEW AUSTRALIAN WORK

Andrew Bovell (The Secret River)

Kit Brookman (Small and Tired)

John Doyle (Vere)

Matthew Whittet (School Dance)

BEST NEWCOMER

Elizabeth Debicki (The Maids)

Taylor Ferguson (Miss Julie)

Harry Greenwood (Fury)

Elizabeth Nabben (Dance Better at Parties)

BEST PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL

Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson

Carrie the Musical

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

The Lion King

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL

Hilary Cole (Carrie the Musical)

Amy Lehpamer (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

Lucy Maunder (Grease)

Katrina Retallick (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

JUDITH JOHNSON AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MUSICAL

Russell Dykstra (The Lion King)

Matt Hetherington (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

Tim Minchin (Jesus Christ Superstar)

Tony Sheldon (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels)

BEST PRODUCTION FOR CHILDREN

Compass (atyp)

The Listies in 6D (Sydney Opera House)

Random Musical (Spontaneous Broadway and Sydney Opera House)

The 13-Storey Treehouse (CDP and Sydney Opera House)

BEST PRODUCTION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

Peter Pan (Belvoir)

School Dance (Windmill Theatre and Sydney Theatre Company in association with Sydney Festival)

Spur of the Moment (atyp)

Storm Boy (Sydney Theatre Companyand Barking Gecko Theatre Company)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

To be announced at the ceremony

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