UK Theatre Awards 2022
The UK Theatre Awards 2022 took take place at London’s historic Guildhall on Sunday 23 October 2022. Hosted by Courtney Bowman, presenters included Rakie Ayola, Joel Harper-Jackson, Isabella Pappas, and Dame Arlene Philips. There were live performances by Courtney Bowman and Max Runham.
Thank you to our 2022 Awards sponsors Harbottle and Lewis, John Good, Nyman Libson Paul, Setting Line Production Management, Spektrix, Theatre Tokens, Tysers in association with Ecclesiastical, Unusual Rigging and White Light.
Winners & Nominees
The winners of each award are highlighted in bold.
On Stage Awards
Best Design
- Laura Hopkins and Simon Wainwright for Dracula: The Untold Story – a Leeds Playhouse and imitating the dog co-production
- Jon Bausor, Will Duke and Antony McDonald for Into The Woods – a Scenario Two and Theatre Royal Bath Production
- Georgia McGuinness for Life is a Dream – a Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh production
Best Director
- Robert Hastie, Anthony Lau, Elin Schofield for Rock/Paper/Scissors – a Sheffield Theatres production
- Jessica Daniels for The Mozart Question – A Barn Theatre production in association with Bob & Marianne Benton for Anthology Theatre and The Everyman Theatre Cheltenham
- Natalie Ibu for The White Card – a Northern Stage, Birmingham Rep, Leeds Playhouse & Soho Theatre co-production in association with HOME Manchester
- Róisín McBrinn for Typical Girls, a Clean Break and Sheffield Theatres co-production
Best Musical Production sponsored by Tysers in association with Ecclesiastical
- Billy Elliot the Musical – A Made at Curve production
- Now is Good – a Storyhouse, Chester production
- Whistle Down the Wind – a The Watermill Theatre production
Best New Play
- Mugabe, My Dad & Me – a co-production by ETT, Brixton House & York Theatre Royal in association with Alison Holder
- Cherry Jezebel – a Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse production
- How to Bury a Dead Mule – a Lyric Theatre Belfast Production
Best Performance in a Musical
- Divina de Campo for Hedwig and the Angry Inch – A Leeds Playhouse and HOME co-production
- Charlie Stemp for Crazy for You – a Chichester Festival Theatre production
- Nicole & Kyla Fox, Emme & Eden Patrick, Sienna & Savannah Robinson for Identical – a Nottingham Playhouse and Kenny Wax Ltd co-production
Best Performance in a Play
- Giles Terera for The Meaning of Zong – a Bristol Old Vic Production
- Eithne Browne for Maggie May – a Curve, Leeds Playhouse and Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch co-production
- Henry Goodman for Murder on the Orient Express – a Chichester Festival Theatre production
- Leah St Luce for Black Love – a Paines Plough and Belgrade Theatre Coventry production, in association with tiata fahodzi
Best Play Revival
- Translations – an Abbey Theatre and Lyric Theatre Belfast Co-Production
- Jitney – a Headlong, Leeds Playhouse and Old Vic co-production
- The Mountaintop – a Royal Exchange Theatre Production
Best Show for Children and Young People
- Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World – a Kenny Wax Family Entertainment in association with MAST Mayflower Studios
- Beauty and the Beast – a New Vic Production
- Petula – a National Theatre Wales, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru and August012 co-production
Best Supporting Performance in a Musical or Play
- Nishla Smith for Kes – an Octagon Theatre and Theatre By The Lake co-production
- Nicola Hughes for Into The Woods – a Scenario Two and Theatre Royal Bath Production
- Robert Jackson for Brief Encounter – a Stephen Joseph Theatre, Octagon Theatre and Theatre By The Lake co-production
Achievement in Opera
- Richard Mantle for the last year at Opera North, which epitomizes the work Richard has achieved over his tenure
- Scottish Opera for Candide
- Glyndebourne for the Poulenc Double Bill
- Music Theatre Wales and Britten Pears Arts production of Violet at Buxton International Festival at Buxton Opera
Achievement in Dance
- The dancers of Rambert for their ability to inhabit any choreographer’s vision, as a company of unique, versatile, incredibly skilled performers
- Will Tuckett’s Then or Now for Ballet Black, exquisitely melding poetry, dance, light and sound into an intimate work that gently touches big themes of our times
- Dan Daw for The Dan Daw Show, a kinky, joyful, unapologetic and vulnerable celebration of oneself and one’s body
Off Stage Awards
Excellence in Touring
- Graeae Theatre Company
- Northern Ballet
- Scottish Opera
Digital Innovation sponsored by Spektrix
- Chichester Festival Theatre
- ETT with The National Theatre Immersive Storytelling Studio and Trial and Error
- Sadler’s Wells
Excellence in Inclusivity
- English Touring Theatre
- Graeae Theatre Company
- Scottish Opera
Excellence in Arts Education
- Lyric Theatre Belfast
- Storyhouse
- Ambassador Theatre Group in partnership with Altru CIC
Workforce Award
- The Marlowe
- Ambassador Theatre Group
- Mercury Theatre
UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre
Sponsored by Theatre Tokens
- Leeds Playhouse
- Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre
- New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich
Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre
- Sarah Holmes