John Boyega and Amber Riley Among Newcomers on Shortlist for The Stage Debut Awards; Nominees Announced!

The Stage today announced the shortlist for its inaugural The Stage Debut Awards. The awards recognise the best breakthrough actors and creatives in theatre.

First-time performances from actors as young as 16 and established stars making their theatre debuts such as The Feeling's Dan Gillespie Sells are among the nominations. Meanwhile in The Joe Allen Best West End Debut category, nominees include Star Wars' John Boyega, Glee'sAmber Riley, and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child's Anthony Boyle. The shortlist highlights the breadth of new talent on and off stage with categories celebrating performers, writers, composers and directors. The shortlist includes actors and creatives working in Manchester, Belfast, Bristol, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Chichester, Liverpool, Derby, Stratford-upon-Avon and London.

Lyn Gardner, The Stage's associate editor and one of the judges, said: "The Stage Debut Awards are a unique chance to celebrate emerging theatre talent. With so much great theatre taking place across the country, we have a really strong and diverse set of nominees - from young actors making their debuts in small fringe theatres to designers, writers and directors at major regional and national producing theatres. It's great to see such a great range of talented theatremakers and gives cause for great optimism about the future of theatre in the UK."

The Joe Allen Best West End Debut category is the only award to have the winner decided by public vote, and voting is now open. The Joe Allen Best West End Debut celebrates a first performance in London's West End (rather than their professional debut). The public can vote on the winner here.

The shortlist for The Joe Allen Best West End Debut is:

John Boyega, Woyzeck

Anthony Boyle, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Andy Karl, Groundhog Day

Audra McDonald, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill

Andrew Polec, Bat Out of Hell

Imogen Poots, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Amber Riley, Dreamgirls

Charlie Stemp, Half A Sixpence

Mark Shenton, The Stage's associate editor, joint lead critic and one of the judges, said: "While the other categories in The Stage Debut Awards only recognise complete newcomers, the Joe Allen Best West End Debut Award is a chance to celebrate talent making their mark in the West End for the first time. We have a really great shortlist that ranges from genuine newcomers like Anthony Boyle, who made his professional debut in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, to Audra McDonald, a legend on Broadway making her belated West End debut in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill. This is also the only category that will be put to the public vote, but whoever they chose will be a worthy winner."

Shortlisted nominees will be invited to an invitation-only ceremony in central London on September 17, 2017, when the winners will be revealed.

Shortlist in full

Best Actor in a Play
Jack Archer for Nivelli's War at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast
TJ Jones for The Seven Acts of Mercy at the Swan Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon
Kenneth Omole for Assata Taught Me at the Gate Theatre, London
Abraham Popoola for Othello at Tobacco Factory, Bristol

Best Actress in a Play
sponsored by Pauline Quirke Academy at PQA Studios London
Anya Chalotra for Much Ado About Nothing at Shakespeare's Globe, London
Kellan Frankland for The House of Bernarda Alba at the Royal Exchange, Manchester
Grace Molony for The Country Girls at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester
Jess Peet for Alice in Wonderland at the Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

Best Actor in a Musical
sponsored by Encore Radio
Adam J Bernard for Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre, London
Ben Hunter for The Girls at the Phoenix Theatre, London
Samuel Thomas for Allegro at Southwark Playhouse, London
Daniel Urch for 110 in the Shade at Ye Olde Rose and Crown, London

Best Actress in a Musical
sponsored by The Other Palace
Chloe Carrington for Hair at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester
Emily Hughes for Fiddler on the Roof at Everyman Theatre, Liverpool
Siena Kelly for On the Town at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London
Miriam-Teak Lee for On the Town at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London

Best Director
sponsored by See Tickets
Sean Aydon for Richard III at the Rosemary Branch, London
Alexander Lass for 46 Beacon at Trafalgar Studios 2, London
Lekan Lawal for Betrayal at Derby Theatre, Derby
Lynette Linton for Assata Taught Me at the Gate Theatre, London

Best Designer
sponsored by Robe
Rosie Elnile for The Convert at the Gate Theatre, London
Joshua Gadsby for Dreamplay at the Vaults, London
Simon Spencer for The Tempest at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon
Jessica Staton for Extra Yarn at the Orange Tree Theatre, London

Best Composer
sponsored by Trafalgar Entertainment Group
Jonah Brody for Removal Men at the Yard, London
Ruth Chan for Snow in Midsummer at the Swan Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon
Dan Gillespie Sells for Everybody's Talking About Jamie at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Stephen Jackson for Roller Diner at the Soho Theatre, London

Best Writer
Titas Halder for Run the Beast Down at the Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury and Finborough Theatre, London
Asif Khan for Combustion at Tara Arts, London
Katherine Soper for Wish List at the Royal Exchange, Manchester
Victoria Willing for Spring Offensive at the Clapham Omnibus, London

The Joe Allen Best West End Debut
John Boyega for Woyzeck at the Old Vic
Anthony Boyle for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre
Andy Karl for Groundhog Day at the Old Vic
Audra McDonald for Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill at Wyndhams Theatre
Andrew Polec for Bat Out of Hell at the London Coliseum
Imogen Poots for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at the Harold Pinter Theatre
Amber Riley for Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre
Charlie Stemp for Half a Sixpence at the Noel Coward Theatre

The Stage Debut Awards ceremony will also include a presentation for the Alan Bates Award for best drama school graduate.

For full details on eligibility and the judging process see The Stage Debut Awards website.

The Stage Debut Awards is the flagship event of The Stage Supports. The Stage Supports is a series of groundbreaking interventions launched by The Stage, all with one aim: to nurture on and off-stage talent in theatre and the performing arts. The Stage Supports includes The Stage Scholarships which gives away more than £500,000 worth of drama training every year.

To find out more about The Stage Supports visit thestage.co.uk/supports.

Photo credit: Manual Harlan