The WhatsOnStage Awards, founded in 2001 as the Theatregoers' Choice Awards, are a fan-driven set of awards organised by the theatre website WhatsOnStage.com, based on a popular vote recognising performers and productions of English theatre, with an emphasis on London's West End theatre.
The 2020 WhatsOnStage Awards, the 20th, took place on Sunday, 1 March 2020 at the Prince of Wales Theatre. It was hosted by theatre star Jodie Prenger and Tom Read Wilson and featured performances from all five nominees for Best New Musical, as well as the cast of The Color Purple.
For the first time in the history of the awards show, the ceremony was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 with hosts Elaine Paige and Ken Bruce providing backstage commentary and exclusive interviews with the winners, nominees and special guests. Additionally, a new category was introduced that was voted for by Radio 2 listeners which replaced the previous Best West End Show category. The Audience Award for Best Musical, was open to any musical has run for longer than one year in the West End.
Max Martin's jukebox musical & Juliet at the received a record-breaking thirteen nominations at the ceremony and was the night's biggest winner, receiving six awards. For plays, the revival of Noël Coward's Present Laughter received the most nominations with eight, winning two. Musical Come from Away was also notable for winning all five of the awards it was nominated for.
Productions The following productions received nominations at the 2020 WhatsOnStage Awards:
& Juliet – Shaftesbury Theatre 9 to 5 – Savoy Theatre Appropriate – Donmar Warehouse Betrayal – Harold Pinter Theatre The Book of Mormon – Prince of Wales Theatre The Color Purple – Curve Come from Away – Phoenix Theatre Dear Evan Hansen – Noël Coward Theatre Death of a Salesman – Young Vic/Piccadilly Theatre The Doctor – Almeida Theatre Everybody's Talking About Jamie – Apollo Theatre Evita – Regent's Park Open Air Theatre Falsettos – The Other Palace Fiver – Southwark Playhouse Grief Is the Thing with Feathers – Barbican Theatre Hamilton – Victoria Palace Theatre High Fidelity – Turbine Theatre Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – London Palladium Les Misérables – Sondheim Theatre Life of Pi – Sheffield Theatres The Light in the Piazza – Southbank Centre The Lion King – Lyceum Theatre Lungs – The Old Vic Mamma Mia! – Novello Theatre Mame – Hope Mill Theatre Matilda the Musical – Cambridge Theatre Mary Poppins – Prince Edward Theatre A Midsummer Night's Dream – Bridge Theatre My Beautiful Laundrette – Curve/Belgrade Theatre The Night of the Iguana – Noël Coward Theatre Peter Pan – Park Theatre The Phantom of the Opera – Her Majesty's Theatre Only Fools and Horses The Musical – Theatre Royal Haymarket Preludes – Southwark Playhouse Present Laughter – The Old Vic Romeo & Juliet – UK Tour Rosmersholm – Duke of York's Theatre School of Rock – Gillian Lynne Theatre Six – Lyric Theatre Small Island – National Theatre Live Thriller – Live – Lyric Theatre Tina – Aldwych Theatre A Very Expensive Poison – The Old Vic The View UpStairs – Soho Theatre The Son – Kiln Theatre/Duke of York's Theatre Waitress – Adelphi Theatre West Side Story – Royal Exchange Wicked – Apollo Victoria Theatre
Winners and nominees The nominees for the 20th WhatsOnStage Awards were announced on 5 December 2019.
Best New PlayBest New Musical Life of Pi Appropriate The Doctor My Beautiful Laundrette The Son Come from Away & Juliet Dear Evan Hansen Only Fools and Horses The Musical WaitressBest Play RevivalBest Musical Revival Betrayal A Midsummer Night's Dream Death of a Salesman Lungs Present Laughter Mary Poppins 9 to 5 Evita Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat MameBest Actor in a PlayBest Actress in a Play Andrew Scott for Present Laughter Tom Hiddleston for Betrayal Laurie Kynaston for The Son Wendell Pierce for Death of a Salesman Matt Smith for Lungs Claire Foy for Lungs Zawe Ashton for Betrayal Hayley Atwell for Rosmersholm Sharon D. Clarke for Death of a Salesman Juliet Stevenson for The DoctorBest Actor in a MusicalBest Actress in a Musical Sam Tutty for Dear Evan Hansen David Hunter for Waitress Charlie Stemp for Mary Poppins Oliver Tompsett for & Juliet Jac Yarrow for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Miriam-Teak Lee for & Juliet Tracie Bennett for Mame Lucie Jonesfor Waitress Katharine McPhee for Waitress Zizi Strallen for Mary PoppinsBest Supporting Actor in a PlayBest Supporting Actress in a Play Hammed Animashaun for A Midsummer Night's Dream Charlie Cox for Betrayal Hareet Deol for My Beautiful Laundrette Giles Terera for Rosmersholm Alexander Vlahos for Peter Pan Sophie Thompson for Present Laughter Monica Dolan for All About Eve Isabella Pappas for Appropriate Indira Varma for Present Laughter Ria Zmitrowicz for The DoctorBest Supporting Actor in a MusicalBest Supporting Actress in a Musical Jack Loxton for Dear Evan Hansen Oscar Conlon-Morrey for Only Fools and Horses The Musical Jason Donovan for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Jordan Luke Gage for & Juliet Joe Sugg for Waitress Rachel Tucker for Come from Away Laura Baldwin for Waitress Cassidy Janson for & Juliet Melanie La Barrie for & Juliet Marisha Wallace for WaitressBest Direction Best Musical Direction Jamie Lloyd for Evita Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell for Death of a Salesman Robert Icke for The Doctor Matthew Warchus for Lungs Matthew Warchus for Present Laughter Ian Eisendrath, Alan Berry and team for Come from Away Kimberly Grigsby for The Light in the Piazza Alex Parker for Mame John Rigby for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Alan Williams for EvitaBest ChoreographyBest Sound DesignKelly Devine for Come from Away Fabian Aloise for Evita Matthew Bourne for Romeo & Juliet Jennifer Weber for & Juliet Nick Winston for Mame Gareth Owen for Come from Away Ben Harrison for Mame Nick Lidster for Evita Gareth Owen for & Juliet Mick Potter for The Light in the PiazzaBest Set DesignBest Costume Design Soutra Gilmour for & Juliet Soutra Gilmour for Evita Rob Howell for Present Laughter Robert Jones for The Light in the Piazza Rae Smith for The Night of the Iguana Paloma Young for & Juliet Lez Brotherston for Romeo & Juliet Rob Howell for Present Laughter Katrina Lindsay for Small Island Philip Whitcomb for MameBest Lighting DesignBest Graphic Design Howard Hudson for & Juliet Jon Clark for Evita Ben Cracknell for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Jessica Hung Han Yun for Equus Tim Lutkin and Hugh Vanstone for Present Laughter & Juliet (DeWynters) Captain Corelli's Mandolin (Muse Communication) Equus (Feast Creative) Evita (Feast Creative) Rosmersholm (Bob King Creative) |- !Best Video Design ! |- | valign="top" | Andrzej Goulding for & Juliet Jon Driscoll for Small Island Will Duke for Grief Is the Thing with Feathers P.J. McEvoy for Falsettos Ewan Jones Morris for A Very Expensive PoisonBest Off-West End ProductionBest Regional Production Falsettos Fiver High Fidelity Preludes The View UpStairs The Color Purple Life of Pi Mame My Beautiful Laundrette West Side StoryRadio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical Six The Book of Mormon Everybody's Talking About Jamie Hamilton Les Misérables The Lion King Mamma Mia! Matilda the Musical The Phantom of the Opera School of Rock Tina Thriller – Live WickedEquity Award for Services to Theatre Society Special Award Lizzie Berrington and Polly Kemp (ERA 50:50)
Productions with multiple wins and nominations Multiple wins 6 wins: & Juliet 5 wins: Come from Away 2 wins: Dear Evan Hansen, Falsettos, Present Laughter
Multiple nominations 13 nominations: & Juliet 8 nominations: Evita, Present Laughter 7 nominations: Mame, Waitress 5 nominations: Come from Away, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat 4 nominations: Betrayal, Death of a Salesman, Lungs, The Doctor 3 nominations: Dear Evan Hansen, Mary Poppins, My Beautiful Laundrette, Rosmersholm, The Light in the Piazza 2 nominations: Appropriate, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Equus, Falsettos, Life of Pi, Only Fools and Horses The Musical, Small Island, The Son
References