MATILDA BREAKS RECORDS AT THE HELPMANN AWARDS - 26 July 2016
The Royal Shakespeare Company’s Australian Production of Matilda The Musical has been awarded with a record number of Helpmann Awards, winning in all thirteen categories it was nominated in, including Best Musical and breaking the previous record of eight Helpmanns awarded to a single production.
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The thirteen awards make Matilda the most-awarded musical as well as most-awarded production in the sixteen-year history of the Helpmann Awards across all eligible categories and genres.
Matilda The Musical received Helpmann Awards in the following categories:
Best Musical, Best Direction of a Musical (Matthew Warchus), Best Female Actress in a Musical (Molly Barwick, Dusty Bursill, Tiana Mirra, Alannah Parfett, Sasha Rose, Georgia Taplin, Bella Thomas and Ingrid Torelli), Best Male Actor in a Musical (James Millar), Best Choreography in a Musical (Peter Darling), Best Music Direction (Stephen Amos), Best Original Score (Tim Minchin), Best Sound Design (Simon Baker), Best Lighting Design (Hugh Vanstone), Best Scenic Design (Rob Howell), Best Costume Design (Rob Howell), Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical (Elise McCann) and Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical (Daniel Frederiksen).
Winner of now over 60 major international awards, including 14 for Best Musical, Matilda continues to thrill audiences in London, on Broadway, on tour around the USA, in Canada and at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre, where the Australian Production is currently playing to capacity houses.
Matilda will play Brisbane’s Lyric Theatre at QPAC from November 2016 and Perth’s Crown Theatre from February 2017 before playing at the Adelaide Festival Centre’s Festival Theatre from May 2017.
Matilda The Musical is based on the beloved novel by best-selling author Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox). It is the story of an extraordinary girl who armed with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny.
Having proven an enormous success internationally, where productions continue to play to packed houses and capture the imagination of young and old alike, the Australian Production of Matilda The Musical opened to unqualified rave reviews in Sydney last year. The Daily Review described the production as “nothing short of a miracle”. The Australian said the show “makes you want to punch the air with delight.” and Time Out Sydney pronounced the show “a freaking masterpiece”.
Matilda The Musical is directed by Tony Award® winner Matthew Warchus (God of Carnage), who helms this production with a book by Tony Award®-winning playwright Dennis Kelly and music and lyrics by Australian Tim Minchin.
The production has sets and costumes by Tony Award® winner Rob Howell, with choreography by Tony Award® winner Peter Darling (Billy Elliot), orchestrations, additional music and musical supervision by Christopher Nightingale, lighting by Tony Award® winner Hugh Vanstone, and sound by Simon Baker.
Matilda The Musical was commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company and played to sold-out audiences at the Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon for twelve weeks from November 2010 to January 2011. It transferred to London’s West End on Tuesday 25 October 2011 where it opened to rave reviews.
The New York production of Matilda The Musical opened on 11 April 2013 at Broadway’s Shubert Theatre to rapturous reviews and was celebrated on 10 “Top Ten” lists for 2013, including TIME Magazine’s #1 Show of the Year.
Matilda The Musical’s award-wining success includes sweeping the board at the 2012 Laurence Olivier Awards in London with a record-breaking seven awards, and winning four Tony Awards® and a Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theater for each of the four girls sharing the title role on Broadway in 2013.
Matilda The Musical is produced in Australia by the Royal Shakespeare Company, Louise Withers, Michael Coppel & Michael Watt with André Ptaszynski and Denise Wood as Executive Producers.
This production was originally developed with the support of the RSC Literary Department.
The RSC Literary Department is generously supported by THE DRUE HEINZ TRUST.
The RSC Ensemble is generously supported by THE GATSBY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION and THE KOVNER FOUNDATION.
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