• Chichester Festival Theatre’s transfer of Gypsy wins the most awards this year for a single production, including Best Actress in a Musical for Imelda Staunton and Best Musical Revival
• Kinky Boots named MasterCard Best New Musical and In The Heights wins Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music
• The Phantom Of The Opera wins the Magic Radio Audience Award

The winners of the Olivier Awards 2016 with MasterCard, the most prestigious event in the UK theatrical calendar, were announced tonight (Sunday 3 April 2016) at the star-studded ceremony held at London’s Royal Opera House. This year the awards celebrated its 40th anniversary and reflected the diversity shown on the London stage. SCROLL DOWN FOR FULL LIST OF WINNERS.

Hosted by two-time Oliver Award winner Michael Ball, the ceremony featured incredible performances from Grammy and Tony Award winner Cyndi Lauper, Michael Feinstein, Joe Stilgoe and Jack Savoretti. For the finale, the awards welcomed back 15 past Olivier Award winners including Maria Friedman, Ruthie Henshall and Jill Halfpenny who performed What I Did For Love from A Chorus Line – winner of Best New Musical at the 1976 awards.

There were also special performances from all the nominated productions in both the MasterCard Best New Musical and Best Musical Revival categories. The ceremony was opened by Imelda Staunton who performed Everything’s Coming Up Roses from Gypsy. Imelda Staunton went on to win Best Actress in a Musical.

Chichester Festival Theatre’s West End transfer of Gypsy was the big winner on the night. In addition to the Best Actress in a Musical win, the show collected Best Musical Revival, White Light Award For Best Lighting Design and Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Lara Pulver. In total the production won four prizes, the most for a single production.

Kinky Boots took home three prizes with Matt Henry collecting Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Lola and Gregg Barnes winning Best Costume Design. The musical, with music and lyrics by Cyndi Lauper, went on to win the coveted award for MasterCard Best New Musical.

In The Heights won three Olivier Awards. Lin-Manuel Miranda, Alex Lacamoire and Bill Sherman won Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music. Drew McOnie was named Best Theatre Choreographer and David Bedella collected Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical. The award for Best Entertainment and Family went to Showstopper! The Improvised Musical. 

The Magic Radio Audience Award, the only award voted for solely by members of the public, was won by The Phantom Of The Opera. The award celebrates London's long-running productions.

The guests presenting this year’s awards were Uzo Aduba, Zawe Ashton, Dame Shirley Bassey, Matthew Bourne, Rob Brydon, Jessie Buckley, Stephen Campbell Moore, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Adam Cooper, Paul Copley, Noma Dumezweni, Alfred Enoch, Luke Evans, David Gandy, Kit Harington, Emma Hatton, Lenny Henry, Eddie Izzard, Rory Kinnear, Beverley Knight, Lesley Manville, Julia McKenzie, James Norton, Vanessa Redgrave, Amber Riley, Juliet Stevenson, Savannah Stevenson, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Luke Treadaway, Zoë Wanamaker and Dame Barbara Windsor.

On the night the BBC Concert Orchestra performed with orchestrations and original music by conductor Larry Blank, and further orchestrations by Mark Cumberland.

The evening’s show also included a live link to a free public Olivier Awards celebration on the ITV Stage in Covent Garden Piazza hosted by leading West End performers Carrie Hope Fletcher and Daniel Boys, where thousands of theatre-lovers enjoyed West End performances and a live big screen relay of the ceremony.

ITV broadcast extensive highlights at 22:15 shortly following the ceremony. The full ceremony will be broadcast on ITV3 on Monday 4 April at 23:00. The highlights and full ceremony will be available to watch on ITV Hub for 30 days following the broadcasts. This year’s voiceover was provided by Zoë Wanamaker. Next year the Olivier Awards with MasterCard will be on Sunday 9 April 2017 and in a new venue: the Royal Albert Hall.

OLIVIER AWARDS 2016 WINNERS

Musical winners 

Best Entertainment and Family

• Showstopper! The Improvised Musical at Apollo Theatre

Best Costume Design

• Gregg Barnes for Kinky Boots at Adelphi Theatre

White Light Award For Best Lighting Design

• Mark Henderson for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Magic Radio Audience Award

• The Phantom Of The Opera

Autograph Sound Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music

• In The Heights – Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Orchestrated and Arranged by Alex Lacamoire and Bill Sherman at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Theatre Choreographer

• Drew McOnie for In The Heights at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical

• David Bedella for In The Heights at King’s Cross Theatre

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical

• Lara Pulver for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Best Musical Revival

• Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Best Actor in a Musical

• Matt Henry for Kinky Boots at Adelphi Theatre

Best Actress in a Musical

• Imelda Staunton for Gypsy at Savoy Theatre

Other (non-musical) winners

Best Revival

• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at National Theatre, Lyttelton

Blue-i Theatre Technology Award for Best Set Design

• Anna Fleischle for Hangmen at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre and Wyndham’s Theatre

Best Sound Design

• Tom Gibbons for People, Places And Things at National Theatre, Dorfman

Best New Opera Production

• Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci at Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Opera

• English National Opera Chorus and Orchestra for The Force Of Destiny, Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk and The Queen Of Spades at London Coliseum

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

• Mark Gatiss for Three Days In The Country at National Theatre, Lyttelton

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

• Dame Judi Dench for The Winter’s Tale at Garrick Theatre

Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre

• Pat Kinevane and Fishamble for Silent at Soho Theatre

Virgin Atlantic Best New Play

• Hangmen at Jerwood Theatre Downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre and Wyndham’s Theatre

Best Actor

• Kenneth Cranham for The Father at Wyndham’s Theatre

Best Actress

• Denise Gough for People, Places And Things at National Theatre, Dorfman

Best New Comedy

• Nell Gwynn at Apollo Theatre

Best New Dance Production

• Woolf Works by Wayne McGregor at Royal Opera House

Outstanding Achievement in Dance

• Alessandra Ferri for her performances in Chéri and Woolf Works at Royal Opera House

Best Director

• Robert Icke for Oresteia at Almeida Theatre