The Stage is delighted to announce the 2019 winners of The Stage Debut Awards, in association with Access Entertainment which took place at The Brewery, London on Sunday, September 15.

The public crowned Jac Yarrow as the winner of the Joe Allen Best West End Debut Award for his performance in the title role of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium. Fresh out of drama school, this is Yarrow’s full professional debut, triumphing over Hollywood star Matthew Broderick, On Your Feet! star Christie Prades and The Inheritance’s Andrew Burnap and Samuel H Levine.

Presenters at the awards ceremony, hosted by Cush Jumbo, included Mark Gatiss, Giles Terera, Inua Ellams, Jenna Russell, Caroline Sheen, Rufus Norris, Jonathan Bailey, Rosalie Craig, Michael Xavier and Janie Dee.

Actors and creatives were recognised for productions large and small, across the UK. Winners taking home awards this year include:
Lauren O'Leary for her authentic and witty performance in the one woman show The Awkward Years at The Other Room, Cardiff.
David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoe Roberts of SpitLip for composing the achingly funny madcap parody Operation Mincemeat at the New Diorama in London.
Adam Hugill for his charismatic stand-out performance in Standing at the Sky’s Edge at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield.
Atri Banerjee for directing an exemplary and imaginative revival of Hobson’s Choice at the Royal Exchange, Manchester.
Child actor Taya Tower for delivering a stunning performance in The Hunt at the Almeida, a role described by the judges as "difficult, especially for such a young performer".
Designer Frankie Bradshaw and director Lynette Linton for their combined creation of crafting a vivid representation of small-town Pennsylvania on a West End stage for Sweat at the Donmar Warehouse and the Gielgud Theatre.
Deaf performer Jamal Ajala for his powerful performance delivered using British Sign Language in Ear for Eye at London's Royal Court.
Evie Gurney for her impressive costume designs on Antony and Cleopatra at the National Theatre and The Hunt at the Almeida. Having previously worked for the likes of Ralph Lauren and Alexander McQueen, Evie is no newcomer to design, but this marks her debut in theatre.
Jasmine Lee-Jones for her playful and imaginative script for Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner at the Royal Court, which was composed partly from emojis, GIFs, memes and online acronyms.
Danielle Fiamanya for her stunning performance in a supporting role in The Color Purple at Curve, Leicester and Birmingham Hippodrome.

Alistair Smith, editor of The Stage, says, “Congratulations to all our supremely talented winners. This is our third Debut Awards and I’m delighted to say that they are now firmly established in the industry calendar. British theatre’s support for the awards and our winners has been phenomenal. We’re delighted to see previous winners and nominees going on to even bigger and better things – whether starring in the West End, being nominated for Olivier awards or even taking over the running of theatres.”

The Stage Debut Awards recognise outstanding emerging talent from actors and directors to designers, writers, composers and lyricists, all of whom have made their professional debuts in the past year. As well as 350 guests in attendance, the event was also streamed live on The Stage’s Facebook Page.

Danny Cohen, president of headline sponsor Access Entertainment, said: “Access Entertainment is delighted to continue its support for The Stage Debut Awards as part of our ongoing commitment to nurturing new talent across the creative industries.”

THE STAGE DEBUT AWARDS’ 2019 WINNERS IN FULL

Best Actress in a Play - Sponsored by Audible
WINNER: Lauren O’Leary for The Awkward Years at the Other Room, Cardiff
Liv Hill for Top Girls at the National Theatre, London
Urielle Klein-Mekongo for Yvette at the Bush Theatre, London
Bea Webster for Mother Courage at the Albion Electric Warehouse, Leeds

Best Actor in a Play - Sponsored by Audible
WINNER: Jamal Ajala for Ear for Eye at the Royal Court, London
Stuart Campbell for The Hunt at the Almeida Theatre, London
Patrick Gibson for Sweat at the Donmar Warehouse and Gielgud Theatre, London
Ivan Oyik for Blue/Orange at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham

Best Actress in a Musical - Sponsored by Really Useful Group
WINNER: Danielle Fiamanya for The Color Purple at Curve, Leicester and Birmingham Hippodrome
Georgina Ambrey for The Rise and Fall of Little Voice at the Theatre by the Lake, Keswick
Maiya Quansah-Breed for Six at the Arts Theatre, London
Jarneia Richard-Noel for Six at the Arts Theatre, London

Best Actor in a Musical - Sponsored by Encore Radio
WINNER: Adam Hugill for Standing at the Sky’s Edge at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Ryan Hutton for Only Fools and Horses the Musical at Theatre Royal Haymarket, London
Jac Yarrow for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium, London

Best Director - Sponsored of Smith & Williams
WINNER: Atri Banerjee for Hobson’s Choice at the Royal Exchange, Manchester
Tyrone Huntley for Ain’t Misbehavin’ at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester
Jade Lewis for Superhoe at the Royal Court, London
Tom Scutt for Berberian Sound Studio at the Donmar Warehouse, London

Best Designer - Sponsored by Robe Lighting
WINNER: Evie Gurney for Antony and Cleopatra at the National Theatre, London, and The Hunt at the Almeida Theatre, London
Abby Clarke for Beauty and the Beast at Theatre by the Lake, Keswick
Maxwell Nicholson-Lailey for Huddle at the Unicorn Theatre, London

Best Composer or Lyricist - Sponsored by Trafalgar Entertainment Group
WINNER: David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoe Roberts for Operation Mincemeat at the New Diorama Theatre, London
Oran Eldor and Marcus Stevens for Mythic the Musical at the Charing Cross Theatre, London
Anais Mitchell for Hadestown at the National Theatre, London
Femi Temowo for Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic, London

Best Writer - Sponsored by Sonia Friedman Productions
WINNER: Jasmine Lee-Jones for Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner at the Royal Court, London
Nicôle Lecky for Superhoe at the Royal Court, London
Holly Robinson for Soft Animals at Soho Theatre, London
Ross Willis for Wolfie at Theatre503, London

The Joe Allen Best West End Debut
WINNER: Jac Yarrow for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium
Matthew Broderick for The Starry Messenger at Wyndham’s Theatre
Andrew Burnap for The Inheritance at the Noël Coward Theatre
Nathanael Campbell for Come From Away at the Phoenix Theatre
Saffron Coomber for Emilia at the Vaudeville Theatre
Sarah Gordy for Jellyfish at the National Theatre
Ryan Hutton for Only Fools and Horses the Musical at the Theatre Royal Haymarket
Samuel H Levine for The Inheritance at the Noël Coward Theatre
Pericles community cast for Pericles at the National Theatre
Christie Prades for On Your Feet! at the London Coliseum

Best Creative West End Debut - Sponsored by Noël Coward Foundation
WINNER: Frankie Bradshaw (designer) and Lynette Linton (director) for Sweat at Donmar Warehouse and the Gielgud Theatre
Arinzé Kene for Misty at Trafalgar Studios
Matthew Lopez for The Inheritance at the Noël Coward Theatre
Morgan Lloyd Malcolm for Emilia at the Vaudeville Theatre
Irene Sankoff and David Hein for Come from Away at the Phoenix Theatre

Child Performer of the Year – Sponsored by Stagecoach
WINNER: Taya Tower for The Hunt at the Almeida Theatre, London
Caelan Edie for The Bodyguard at the Theatre Royal, Glasgow and tour
Jack Meredith for Caroline, Or Change at the Playhouse Theatre, London
Clara Read for The Wild Duck at the Almeida Theatre, London

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