Starlight Express’ wins include Best Musical Revival and Best Professional Debut Performance, with Macbeth, Hadestown and Spirited Away among other winners.
The winners of the 25th annual WhatsOnStage Awards have been announced, with Starlight Express emerging as the frontrunner. The awards, hosted this year by Mazz Murray and Gina Murray at the London Palladium, are the only major theatre awards nominated and voted for by the public – giving us keen theatre-goers a chance to celebrate our favourite shows of 2024.
It was full steam ahead for Starlight Express with seven wins, including Best Musical Revival, Best Professional Debut Performance for Spotlight member Jeevan Braich (who played lead ‘Rusty’), Best Costume Design and Best Set Design. Hadestown also won multiple awards for Best Supporting Performer in a Musical for Spotlight member Melanie La Barrie (who played ‘Hermes’) and Best Musical Direction/Supervision.
In the play categories, Macbeth was the multi-award winner. Spotlight member David Tennant won Best Performer in a Play for his portrayal of ‘Macbeth’ – the actor’s fifth WhatsOnStage Award win. The play also took home the awards for Best Play Revival and Best Sound Design.
Spotlight are proud to see many of our other members also winning awards, including Imelda Staunton (Best Performer in a Musical for ‘Dolly’ in Hello, Dolly! – her third WhatsOnStage award!), Freema Agyeman (Best Supporting Performer in a Play for ‘Nurse’ in Romeo & Juliet), Layton Williams (Best Takeover Performance for ‘Emcee’ in Cabaret) and casting directors Harry Blumenau and Sarah-Jane Price (Best Casting Direction for Why Am I So Single?). Other Spotlight members are marked with an asterisk in the full winners list below.
Full list of WhatsOnStage Awards 2025 winners:
Best Performer in a Play
- David Tennant*, Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre – WINNER
- Emma D’Arcy*, The Other Place, National Theatre
- Tom Holland, Romeo & Juliet, Duke of York’s Theatre
- Cush Jumbo*, Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre
- Anne Odeke*, Princess Essex, Shakespeare’s Globe
- Michael Sheen*, Nye, National Theatre and Wales Millennium Centre
Best Performer in a Musical
- Imelda Staunton*, Hello, Dolly!, The London Palladium – WINNER
- Georgina Castle*, Mean Girls, Savoy Theatre
- Jo Foster*, Why Am I So Single?, Garrick Theatre
- Myles Frost, MJ the Musical, Prince Edward Theatre
- Leesa Tulley*, Why Am I So Single?, Garrick Theatre
- Vanessa Williams, The Devil Wears Prada, Theatre Royal Plymouth and Dominion Theatre
Best Supporting Performer in a Play
- Freema Agyeman*, Romeo & Juliet, Duke of York’s Theatre – WINNER
- Romola Garai*, Giant, Royal Court Theatre
- Julie Hesmondhalgh*, Punch, Nottingham Playhouse
- Teddy Hinde*, The History Boys, UK tour
- Atsuki Mashiko, Spirited Away, The London Coliseum
- Sharon Small*, Nye, National Theatre
Best Supporting Performer in a Musical
- Melanie La Barrie*, Hadestown, Lyric Theatre – WINNER
- Siobhan Athwal*, Bhangra Nation, Birmingham Rep
- Amy Di Bartolomeo*, The Devil Wears Prada, Theatre Royal Plymouth and Dominion Theatre
- Grace Mouat*, Mean Girls, Savoy Theatre
- Jaydon Vijn*, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
- Tom Xander*, Mean Girls, Savoy Theatre
Best Takeover Performance
- Layton Williams*, Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre – WINNER
- Zoe Birkett*, TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, Aldwych Theatre
- Cara Delevingne, Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
- Craig Ryder*, Moulin Rouge! the Musical, Piccadilly Theatre
- Alex Sawyer*, Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre
- Tobias Turley*, Mamma Mia!, Novello Theatre
Best Professional Debut Performance
- Jeevan Braich*, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Esme Bowdler*, Heathers the Musical, @sohoplace and UK tour
- Stevie Doc*, Mamma Mia!, Novello Theatre
- Vasco Emauz*, Back to the Future the Musical, Adelphi Theatre
- Mia Kobayashi*, Your Lie in April, Harold Pinter Theatre
- Gerardine Sacdalan*, & Juliet, UK tour
Best Casting Direction
- Harry Blumenau* and Sarah-Jane Price*, Why Am I So Single?, Garrick Theatre – WINNER
- Amy Ball*, The Years, Almeida Theatre
- Stuart Burt*, Fiddler on the Roof, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
- Alastair Coomer and Chloe Blake*, Till the Stars Come Down, National Theatre
- Anna Cooper*, Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre
- Lotte Hines*, A Raisin in the Sun, Leeds Playhouse, Oxford Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and Nottingham Playhouse
Best New Musical
- Mean Girls, Music by Jeff Richmond, lyrics by Nell Benjamin and book by Tina Fey, Savoy Theatre – WINNER
- Babies, Music and lyrics by Jack Godfrey and book by Martha Geelan, The Other Palace
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Music and lyrics by Darren Clark and book and lyrics by Jethro Compton, Ambassadors Theatre
- The Devil Wears Prada, Music by Elton John, lyrics by Shaina Taub and Mark Sonnenblick and book by Kate Wetherhead, Theatre Royal Plymouth and Dominion Theatre
- MJ the Musical, Music and lyrics by Michael Jackson and book by Lynn Nottage, Prince Edward Theatre
- Why Am I So Single?, Music, lyrics and book by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, Garrick Theatre
Best Musical Revival
- Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Dear Evan Hansen, Nottingham Playhouse and UK tour
- Hadestown, Lyric Theatre
- Hello, Dolly!, The London Palladium
- Kiss Me, Kate, Barbican Theatre
- Oliver!, Chichester Festival Theatre
Best New Play
- Spirited Away, Adapted by John Caird and co-adapted by Maoko Imai, The London Coliseum – WINNER
- Giant, Mark Rosenblatt, Royal Court Theatre
- Kyoto, Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson, RSC’s Swan Theatre
- Princess Essex, Anne Odeke, Shakespeare’s Globe
- Punch, James Graham, Nottingham Playhouse
- Slave Play, Jeremy O’Harris, Noël Coward Theatre
Best Play Revival
- Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre – WINNER
- A Raisin in the Sun, Leeds Playhouse, Oxford Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and Nottingham Playhouse
- The Crucible, Sheffield Crucible
- Oedipus, Wyndham’s Theatre
- Romeo & Juliet, Duke of York’s Theatre
- Waiting for Godot, Theatre Royal Haymarket
Best West End Show
- SIX, Vaudeville Theatre – WINNER
- Cabaret, Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre
- Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre
- Les Misérables, Sondheim Theatre
- Mamma Mia!, Novello Theatre
- Operation Mincemeat, Fortune Theatre
Best Regional Production
- Oliver!, Chichester Festival Theatre – WINNER
- 42 Balloons, The Lowry, Salford
- The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
- Becoming Nancy, Birmingham Repertory Theatre
- Brassed Off, Theatre by the Lake, Stephen Joseph Theatre and Octagon Theatre Bolton
- Dear Evan Hansen, Nottingham Playhouse and UK tour
Best Studio Production
- Diary of a Gay Disaster, Underbelly Cowgate and Arcola Theatre – WINNER
- BRACE BRACE, Royal Court Theatre
- Dear Young Monster, Bristol Old Vic Weston Studio
- KENREX, Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse, Sheffield
- Mulatto Boy, Omnibus Theatre
- Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em, Barn Theatre
Best Concert Event
- Something Rotten! – In Concert, Theatre Royal Drury Lane – WINNER
- Gypsy the Musical in Concert, Hope Mill Theatre at Opera House, Manchester
- I Am Harvey Milk, Cadogan Hall
- Pippin – 50th Anniversary Concert, Theatre Royal Drury Lane
- Sondheim on Sondheim, Alexandra Palace Theatre
- Spring Awakening: 15th Anniversary Concert, Victoria Palace Theatre
Best Direction
- Emma Rice, The Buddha of Suburbia, RSC’s Swan Theatre and Barbican Theatre – WINNER
- Eline Arbo, The Years, Almeida Theatre
- Robert Icke, Oedipus, Wyndham’s Theatre
- Anthony Lau, The Crucible, Sheffield Crucible
- James Macdonald, Waiting for Godot, Theatre Royal Haymarket
- Drew McOnie, The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
Best Choreography
- Christopher Wheeldon, MJ the Musical, Prince Edward Theatre – WINNER
- Matthew Bourne, Oliver!, Chichester Festival Theatre
- Julia Cheng, Fiddler on the Roof, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
- Drew McOnie, The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
- Rujuta Vaidya, Bhangra Nation, Birmingham Rep
- Anthony Van Laast, Kiss Me, Kate, Barbican Theatre
Best Set Design
- Tim Hatley, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Jon Bausor and Toby Olié, Spirited Away, The London Coliseum
- Miriam Buether, Kyoto, RSC’s Swan Theatre
- Es Devlin, Coriolanus, National Theatre
- Kenneth MacLeod, Maggie and Me, UK tour
- Tom Scutt, Fiddler on the Roof, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
Best Costume Design
- Gabriella Slade, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Sachiko Nakahara, Spirited Away, The London Coliseum
- Lez Brotherston, Oliver!, Chichester Festival Theatre
- Marg Horwell, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Theatre Royal Haymarket
- Tom Scutt, Fiddler on the Roof, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
- Rae Smith, Hello, Dolly!, The London Palladium
Best Lighting Design
- Howard Hudson, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Paule Constable, Oliver!, Chichester Festival Theatre
- Jessica Hung Han Yun, Minority Report, Nottingham Playhouse, Birmingham Rep and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre
- Tim Lutkin, Coriolanus, National Theatre
- Bruno Poet, Waiting for Godot, Theatre Royal Haymarket
- Zoe Spurr, The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
Best Sound Design
- Gareth Fry, Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre – WINNER
- Paul Arditti, BRACE BRACE, Royal Court Theatre
- Susan Bear, Maggie and Me, UK tour
- Nicola T Chang, Minority Report, Nottingham Playhouse, Birmingham Rep and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre
- Gareth Fry, Viola’s Room, Woolwich Works
- Gareth Owen, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
Best Video Design
- Andrzej Goulding, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- David Bergman, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Theatre Royal Haymarket
- Grant Gee and Ellie Thompson, Bluets, Royal Court Theatre
- Tal Rosner, Minority Report, Nottingham Playhouse, Birmingham Rep and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre
- Ash J Woodward, The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
- Ash J Woodward, FANGIRLS, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre
Best Musical Direction/Supervision
- Liam Robinson and Tarek Merchant, Hadestown, Lyric Theatre – WINNER
- Mark Aspinall and Dan Turek, Fiddler on the Roof, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre
- Niraj Chag and Simon Baker, The Buddha of Suburbia, RSC’s Swan Theatre and Barbican Theatre
- Darren Clark and Mark Aspinall, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Ambassadors Theatre
- Alasdair Macrae, Macbeth, Donmar Warehouse and Harold Pinter Theatre
- Matthew Malone, Brassed Off, Theatre by the Lake, Stephen Joseph Theatre and Octagon Theatre Bolton
Best Wigs, Hair and Make-Up Design
- Jackie Saundercock and Campbell Young Associates, Starlight Express, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – WINNER
- Campbell Young Associates, The Devil Wears Prada, Theatre Royal Plymouth and Dominion Theatre
- Marg Horwell, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Theatre Royal Haymarket
- Betty Marini, The Cabinet Minister, Menier Chocolate Factory
- Hiroaki Miyauchi, Spirited Away, The London Coliseum
- Georgia Nosal, The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth
Services to Theatre
- Paule Constable (Lighting Designer)
From all of us at Spotlight, a massive congratulations to all the winners and nominees! Take a look at our website for more awards news and industry advice.
