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2008 Laurence Olivier Awards
The 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards were held in 2008 in London celebrating excellence in West End theatre by the Society of London Theatre. Winners and nominees Details of winners (in bold) and nominees, in each award category, per the Society of London Theatre. Productions with multiple nominations and awards The following 20 productions, including one ballet and four operas, received multiple nominations: * 11: ''Hairspray'' * 7: '' Parade'' * 6: ''War Horse'' * 5: '' Macbeth'', ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' and ''The Lord of the Rings'' * 4: '' Othello'' * 3: '' Little Shop of Horrors'', ''Pelléas and Mélisande'' and '' Saint Joan'' * 2: '' Agrippina'', '' Boeing-Boeing'', ''Dealer's Choice'', '' Elling'', '' Fiddler on the Roof'', ''Jewels'', ''La fille du régiment'', ''The Man of Mode'', ''The Seagull'' and ''The Turn of the Screw'' The following six productions, including one ballet, received multiple awards: * 4: ''Hairspray'' * 2: ''Jewels'', '' Macbeth'', '' Saint Joan' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laurence Olivier Award
The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known as the Society of West End Theatre Awards, but they were renamed in honour of the British actor of the same name in 1984. The awards are given to individuals involved in West End productions and other leading non-commercial theatres based in London across a range of categories covering plays, musicals, dance, opera and affiliate theatre. A discretionary non-competitive Special Olivier Award is also given each year. The Olivier Awards are recognised internationally as the highest honour in British theatre, equivalent to the BAFTA Awards for film and television, and the BRIT Awards for music. The Olivier Awards are considered equivalent to Broadway's Tony Awards and France's Molière Award. Since inception, the awards have been held at va ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Drowsy Chaperone
''The Drowsy Chaperone'' is a Canadian musical theatre, musical with music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, and a book by Bob Martin (comedian), Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The story concerns a middle-aged, asocial musical theater fan who, feeling "blue", decides to play for the audience an LP of his favorite musical, the fictional 1928 show ''The Drowsy Chaperone''. As the record plays, the show - a parody of 1920s American musical comedy - comes to life onstage, as the man wryly comments on the music, story and actors. ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' debuted in 1998 at The Rivoli in Toronto, and, after a 2005 run in Los Angeles, opened on Broadway theatre, Broadway on May 1, 2006. The show was nominated for multiple Broadway and West End theatre, West End theatre awards, winning five Tony Awards and seven Drama Desk Awards. The show has had major productions in Toronto, Los Angeles, New York, London, Melbourne and Japan, as well as two North American tours as well as Bate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rafta, Rafta
''Rafta, Rafta...'' is a comedy by British Pakistani playwright Ayub Khan-Din adapted from the 1963 Bill Naughton play, ''All in Good Time''. The play is set in the working class English town of Bolton, and examines a story of marital difficulties within an immigrant Indian family. Ishwar Dutt is a first-generation immigrant and patriarch of the family. He has a troubled relationship with his newlywed son Atul, whose married life with Vina Patel has got off to a rocky start. The play deals with setting out and resolving these various conflicts. Productions London and New York City ''Rafta, Rafta...'' opened at the National Theatre, Lyttelton in April 2007. Nicholas Hytner directed the inaugural production. Harish Patel played the central role of Eeshwar Dutt, with Meera Syal in the role of his sharp-tongued wife Lopa. The play had a successful run, receiving acclaim from both critics and theatre-goers. An Off Broadway production of ''Rafta, Rafta...'' opened in New York on 8 M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laurence Olivier Award For Best New Comedy
The Laurence Olivier Award for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in 1976, and renamed in 1984 in honour of English actor and director Laurence Olivier. The award was titled Comedy of the Year from its establishment in 1976 until 1990, was renamed to Best Comedy starting in 1991, Best New Comedy starting in 1999, then retitled to its current name for the 2020 Olivier Awards – when "Entertainment" was moved to join Best Comedy Play from the Best Entertainment and Family award, which was renamed Best Family Show at that same time. Winners and nominees 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s See also * Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best New Play * Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Play * Tony Award for Best Play References * External links * {{OlivierAward Entert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Little Shop Of Horrors (musical)
''Little Shop of Horrors'' is a horror comedy rock musical with music by Alan Menken and lyrics and a book by Howard Ashman. The story follows a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood and flesh. The musical is loosely based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film ''The Little Shop of Horrors''. The music, composed by Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, includes several well-known tunes, including the title song, "Skid Row (Downtown)", "Somewhere That's Green", and "Suddenly, Seymour". The musical premiered Off-Off-Broadway in 1982 before moving to the Orpheum Theatre Off-Broadway, where it had a five-year run. It later received numerous productions in the U.S. and abroad, and a subsequent Broadway production. Because of its small cast, it has become popular with community theatre, school and other amateur groups. The musical was also made into a 1986 film of the same name, directed by Frank Oz. Syn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiddler On The Roof
''Fiddler on the Roof'' is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on ''Tevye and his Daughters'' (or ''Tevye the Dairyman'') and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village. The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. ''Fiddler'' held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until '' Grease'' surpassed its run. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Magic Flute (musical)
''The Magic Flute'' (''Impempe Yomlingo)'' is a musical theatre work adapted from the Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart opera of the same title by Mark Dornford-May, with words and music by Mandisi Dyantyis, Mbali Kgosidintsi, Pauline Malefane and Nolufefe Mtshabe. Mozart's score is transposed for an orchestra of marimbas, drums and township percussion. The musical, set in contemporary South Africa, re-interprets the story from a South African perspective, telling of Prince Tamino's quest to rescue Pamina (both of them are Xhosa-speaking teenagers), daughter of the Queen of the Night, from the Priest of the Sun. The musical premiered in 2007 at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town, South Africa, before beginning a tour to the United Kingdom. The production opened at the Young Vic Theatre in London over the festive season, 2007. The cast performed ''The Magic Flute'' and an adaptation of Charles Dickens' '' A Christmas Carol'' on alternate days for a nine-week run. The production won the Whatson ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Seagull
''The Seagull'' ( rus, Ча́йка, r=Cháyka, links=no) is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. ''The Seagull'' is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramatises the romantic and artistic conflicts between four characters: the famous middlebrow story writer Boris Trigorin, the ingenue Nina, the fading actress Irina Arkadina, and her son the symbolist playwright Konstantin Treplev. Like Chekhov's other full-length plays, ''The Seagull'' relies upon an ensemble cast of diverse, fully developed characters. In contrast to the melodrama of mainstream 19th-century theatre, lurid actions (such as Konstantin's suicide attempts) are not shown onstage. Characters tend to speak in subtext rather than directly. The character Trigorin is considered one of Chekhov's greatest male roles. The opening night of the first production was a famous failure. Vera Komissarzhevskaya, playing Nina, was so intimidated b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Macbeth
''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power. Of all the plays that Shakespeare wrote during the reign of James I, ''Macbeth'' most clearly reflects his relationship with King James, patron of Shakespeare's acting company. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book, and is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy. A brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. He is then wracked with guilt and paranoia. Forced to commit more and more murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, he soon becomes a tyrannical ruler. The bloodbath and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dealer's Choice (play)
''Dealer's Choice'' is a play by Patrick Marber first performed at the Royal National Theatre (Cottesloe) in London in February 1995 where it won both the 1995 Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy and the Writers' Guild Award for Best West End Play. It is set in a restaurant in London in the mid-1990s. The action takes place over three acts. The third act centres on a game of poker. The original cast included Nicholas Day, Nigel Lindsay, Phil Daniels, Tom Georgeson, David Bark-Jones and Ray Winstone. Acts 1 & 2 Stephen owns a small restaurant which employs Sweeney (the cook), Mugsy and Frankie (waiters). A third waiter, Tony, is mentioned but never appears in the play. Every Sunday after closing, the staff and Stephen's son, Carl, play a poker game in the basement. At the start of the play, we learn Mugsy is attempting to buy a public toilet in Mile End and convert it into a restaurant. Mugsy doesn't have the money - he lost £3,000 at poker to Stephen several week ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing-Boeing (play)
''Boeing-Boeing'' is a farce written by the French playwright Marc Camoletti. The English-language adaptation, translated by Beverley Cross, was first staged in London at the Apollo Theatre in 1962 and transferred to the Duchess Theatre in 1965, running for seven years. In 1991, the play was listed in the ''Guinness Book of Records'' as the most performed French play throughout the world. Synopsis The play is set in the 1960s, and centres on bachelor Bernard, who has a flat in Paris and three airline stewardesses all engaged to him without knowing about each other. Bernard's life gets bumpy, though, when his friend Robert comes to stay, and complications such as weather and a new, speedier Boeing jet disrupt his careful planning. Soon, all three stewardesses are in the city simultaneously and catastrophe looms. Characters * Bernard– a Parisian architect and lothario (turned into an American who resides in Paris in the most recent Broadway production) * Berthe– Bernard's Fren ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saint Joan (play)
''Saint Joan'' is a play by George Bernard Shaw about 15th-century French military figure Joan of Arc. Premiering in 1923, three years after her canonization by the Roman Catholic Church, the play reflects Shaw's belief that the people involved in Joan's trial acted according to what they thought was right. He wrote in his preface to the play: There are no villains in the piece. Crime, like disease, is not interesting: it is something to be done away with by general consent, and that is all here isabout it. It is what men do at their best, with good intentions, and what normal men and women find that they must and will do in spite of their intentions, that really concern us. Michael Holroyd has characterised the play as "a tragedy without villains" and also as Shaw's "only tragedy". John Fielden has discussed further the appropriateness of characterising ''Saint Joan'' as a tragedy. The text of the published play includes a long Preface by Shaw. Characters * Robert de Baud ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
