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The WhatsOnStage Awards 2022: Winners
Rounding up the performers and shows who won big on one of the West End’s most prestigious nights of awards
The brightest lights of the West End came together on February 27 for the WhatsOnStage awards – an annual celebration of theatre talent that has been running since 2001. Unlike the Tonys, Oliviers and Critics’ Circle awards, the WhatsOnStage winners are picked by the audience, with theatregoers voting for their favourites in 28 individual categories.
The 2022 awards took place in the Prince of Wales Theatre (currently home to The Book Of Mormon), including performances from shows like Cinderella, Back To The Future The Musical, Frozen, Pretty Woman: The Musical and Moulin Rouge! The Musical. Disney’s Frozen led the nominations going into the night, coming home with seven out of 13 nominated awards. The biggest performing awards went to Eddie Redmayne (Cabaret), Carrie Hope Fletcher (Cinderella), James McAvoy (Cyrano de Bergerac) and Lily Allen (2:22 A Ghost Story), while Six The Musical took home the prestigious Best West End Show gong. Read the full list of winners below.
Best West End Show
WINNER:
Six the Musical – Vaudeville Theatre
NOMINEES:
Come From Away – Phoenix Theatre
Hamilton – Victoria Palace Theatre
Les Misérables – Sondheim Theatre
The Play That Goes Wrong – Duchess Theatre
Wicked – Apollo Victoria Theatre
Best Direction
WINNER:
Michael Grandage – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Clint Dyer – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Yaël Farber – The Tragedy of Macbeth, Almeida Theatre
Rebecca Frecknall – Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
Jamie Lloyd – Cyrano de Bergerac, Playhouse Theatre
Katy Rudd – The Ocean at the End of the Lane, National Theatre & Duke of York’s Theatre
Best New Musical
WINNER:
Back to the Future the Musical – Adelphi Theatre
NOMINEES:
Cinderella – Gillian Lynne Theatre
Frozen – Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical – Lyric Theatre
Pretty Woman the Musical – Piccadilly Theatre & Savoy Theatre
Moulin Rouge! The Musical – Piccadilly Theatre
Best Musical Revival
WINNER:
Anything Goes – Barbican Centre
NOMINEES:
Cabaret – Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
Carousel – Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Rent – Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
South Pacific – Chichester Festival Theatre
West Side Story – Curve, Leicester
Best New Play
WINNER:
2:22 A Ghost Story – Noël Coward Theatre
NOMINEES:
J’Ouvert – Harold Pinter Theatre, Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Leopoldstadt – Wyndham’s Theatre
Magic Goes Wrong – Vaudeville Theatre & Apollo Theatre
Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) – Criterion Theatre
The Ocean at the End of the Lane – National Theatre & Duke of York’s Theatre
Best Play Revival
WINNER:
Cyrano de Bergerac – Playhouse Theatre
NOMINEES:
Constellations – Vaudeville Theatre
My Night with Reg – The Turbine Theatre
The Normal Heart – National Theatre
The Tragedy of Macbeth – Almeida Theatre
Uncle Vanya – Harold Pinter Theatre
Best Performer In A Male Identifying Role In A Musical
WINNER:
Eddie Redmayne – Cabaret, Playhouse Theatre – Kit Kat Club
NOMINEES:
Roger Bart – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
Olly Dobson – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
Arinzé Kene – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Julian Ovenden – South Pacific, Chichester Festival Theatre
Ivano Turco – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
Best Performer In A Female Identifying Role In A Musical
WINNER:
Carrie Hope Fletcher – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
NOMINEES:
Aimie Atkinson – Pretty Woman, Piccadilly Theatre & Savoy Theatre
Samantha Barks – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Jessie Buckley – Cabaret, Playhouse Theatre – Kit Kat Club
Beverley Knight – The Drifters Girl, Garrick Theatre
Stephanie McKeon – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Best Supporting Performer In A Male Identifying Role In A Musical
WINNER:
Hugh Coles – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
NOMINEES:
Blake Patrick Anderson – Be More Chill, The Other Palace & Shaftesbury Theatre
Robert Lindsay – Anything Goes, Barbican Centre
Cedric Neal – Back to the Future the Musical – Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
Oliver Ormson – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Obioma Ugoala – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Best Supporting Performer In A Female Identifying Role In A Musical
WINNER:
Carly Mercedes Dyer – Anything Goes, Barbican Centre
NOMINEES:
Joanna Ampil – South Pacific, Chichester Festival Theatre
Gabrielle Brooks – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Victoria Hamilton–Barritt – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
Millie O’Connell – Rent, Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
Rebecca Trehearn – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
Best Performer In A Male Identifying Role In A Play
WINNER:
James McAvoy – Cyrano de Bergerac, Playhouse Theatre
NOMINEES:
Richard Armitage – Uncle Vanya, Harold Pinter Theatre
Ben Daniels – The Normal Heart, National Theatre
Omari Douglas – Constellations, Vaudeville Theatre
Hadley Fraser – 2:22 A Ghost Story, Noël Coward Theatre
Henry Lewis – Magic Goes Wrong, Vaudeville Theatre & Apollo Theatre
Best Performer In A Female Identifying Role In A Play
WINNER:
Lily Allen – 2:22 A Ghost Story, Noël Coward Theatre
NOMINEES:
Gemma Arterton – Walden, Harold Pinter Theatre
Sheila Atim – Constellations, Vaudeville Theatre
Emma Corrin – Anna X, Harold Pinter Theatre, The Lowry, Salford
Patsy Ferran – Camp Siegfried, The Old Vic
Saoirse Ronan – The Tragedy of Macbeth, Almeida Theatre
Best Supporting Performer In A Male Identifying Role In A Play
WINNER:
Jake Wood – 2:22 A Ghost Story, Noël Coward Theatre
NOMINEES:
Stephen K Amos – My Night with Reg, The Turbine Theatre
Dino Fetscher – The Normal Heart, National Theatre
Nathaniel Parker – The Mirror and the Light, Gielgud Theatre
Richard Rankin – The Tragedy of Macbeth, Almeida Theatre
Jonathan Sayer – Magic Goes Wrong, Vaudeville Theatre & Apollo Theatre
Best Supporting Performer In A Female Identifying Role In A Play
WINNER:
Akiya Henry – The Tragedy of Macbeth, Almeida Theatre
NOMINEES:
Michelle Fox – Shining City, Theatre Royal Stratford East
Penny Layden – The Ocean at the End of the Lane, National Theatre & Duke of York’s Theatre
Isobel McArthur – Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of), Criterion Theatre
Aimee Lou Wood – Uncle Vanya, Harold Pinter Theatre
Nancy Zamit – Magic Goes Wrong, Vaudeville Theatre & Apollo Theatre
Best Off–West End Production
WINNER:
My Son’s A Queer (But What Can You Do?) – The Turbine Theatre
NOMINEES:
Anything is Possible if You Think About it Hard Enough – Southwark Playhouse
Old Bridge – Bush Theatre
Pippin – Charing Cross Theatre
Saving Britney – Old Red Lion Theatre
The Last Five Years – Southwark Playhouse
Best Regional Theatre Production
WINNER:
Rent – Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
NOMINEES:
Bedknobs and Broomsticks the Musical – UK tour
Bloody Elle – A Gig Musical – Manchester Royal Exchange
South Pacific – Chichester Festival Theatre
West Side Story – Curve, Leicester
What’s New Pussycat? – Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Best Choreography
WINNER:
Rob Ashford – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Drew McOnie – Carousel, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Kathleen Marshall – Anything Goes, Barbican Centre
Shelley Maxwell – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Sonya Tayeh – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Ann Yee – South Pacific, Chichester Festival Theatre
Best Set Design
WINNER:
Christopher Oram – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Fly Davis and Samuel Wyer (Puppetry) – The Ocean at the End of the Lane, National Theatre & Duke of York’s Theatre
Jamie Harrison – Bedknobs and Broomsticks the Musical, UK tour
Tim Hatley – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
Derek McLane – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Tom Scutt – Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
Best Costume Design
WINNER:
Christopher Oram – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Lisa Duncan – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Tom Scutt – Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
Gabriella Slade – Bedknobs and Broomsticks the Musical, UK tour
Gabriela Tylesova – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
Catherine Zuber – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Best Lighting Design
WINNER:
Tim Lutkin – Back to the Future the Musical, Adelphi Theatre
NOMINEES:
Neil Austin – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Charles Balfour – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Isabella Byrd – Cabaret, Playhouse Theatre, Kit Kat Club
Bruno Poet – Cinderella, Gillian Lynne Theatre
Justin Townsend – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Best Musical Direction
WINNER:
Stephen Oremus – Frozen – Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES
Leo Munby – The Last Five Years, Vaudeville Theatre
Tom Deering – Carousel, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Sean Green – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Justin Levine – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Katy Richardson – Rent, Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
Best Sound Design
WINNER:
Gareth Owen – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
NOMINEES:
Adam Cork – Leopoldstadt, Wyndham’s Theatre
Adam Fisher – The Last Five Years, Southwark Playhouse & Vaudeville Theatre
Paul Groothuis – South Pacific, Chichester Festival Theatre
Peter Hylenski – Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
Ben and Max Ringham – Cyrano de Bergerac, Playhouse Theatre
Best Video Design
WINNER:
Finn Ross – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Nina Dunn – The Shark is Broken, Ambassadors Theatre
Akhila Krishnan – What’s New Pussycat?, Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Mikaela Liakata and Tal Yarden – Anna X, Harold Pinter Theatre & The Lowry, Salford
Finn Ross – Back to the Future the Musical, Manchester Opera House & Adelphi Theatre
Tal Yarden – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
Best Graphic Design
WINNER:
Bob King Creative – Frozen, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
NOMINEES:
Christopher D Clegg – The Wiz, Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
Feast Creative – Romeo and Juliet, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Feast Creative – Rent, Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
Muse Creative Communications – RE:EMERGE Season, Harold Pinter Theatre
Michael Nash Associates – Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, Lyric Theatre
