<h2>□ Attention 2016 Olivier Awards revealed</h2>
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<dd> Judy Dench (right), British actor and director Kenneth Brenner, attend the awards ceremony in London, England, on April 3. Xinhua News Agency</dd>
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On April 3, the 40th Annual Lawrence Oliver Awards came to an end. Sir Judi Dench, a famous British actor known to Chinese audiences for playing "Mrs. M" in the 007 series of films, won the individual acting award for the eighth time, breaking the record of the Olivier Award. Previously, there was a rumor that Judy Dench would end more than 60 years of acting due to her declining eyesight, and this time in The Winter's Tale, directed and starring Kenneth Branagh, Judy Dench starred in Paulina (Paulina) was unanimously praised by media critics and won the Best Supporting Actress Award in a Drama, which should not be surprising.
Also making history is the British actress Imelda Stauton (who played dolores Umbridge, the new senior investigator of the Ministry of Magic in the film Harry Potter), who won the Best Actress in a Musical for her fourth time for her outstanding performance in Stephen Sandheim's classic musical remake "Gypsy", becoming the most numerous actress in this award, and three of these four awards were for the role of Sandheim musical actress. She is one of the most talented actresses in the UK.
In the past year, due to the successful production of the Chinese version of the stage play "War Horse" and the landing of the "British National Theatre Live" project in China, the British National Theatre, the top British theater group that has quickly become familiar to Chinese audiences, has also gained something at this year's Oliver Awards ceremony. Danis Geeff starred in People, PlacesandThings, the latest play produced by the National Theatre and has moved to London's West End, to win the best actress in a play, Nicole Kidman, which also won the best sound design award. Mark Gartis, who played Sherlock's older brother McCaw in Sherlock, won the Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama, and his performance in "Three Days in the Country" was performed at the National Theatre Littleton Theatre. The Olivier Award for Best Drama Rehearsal was won by "Aunt Renee's Black Hip Dance", which focuses on the famous female singer of the 90s in the United States.
However, this year's Oliver Awards still show the lack of strength in the British theatre industry in musical theatre creation. "In theHeights" and "Kinky Boots," which won the 2008 and 2013 Broadway Tony Awards for Best Musical, respectively, won almost all musical-related awards — Best New Musical, Best Actor in a Musical, Best Supporting Actor in a Musical, Best Choreographer, Outstanding Achievement in Music. Although the most popular audience award voted by the audience was awarded to the veteran British musical "The Phantom of the Theatre", the British musical has been showing weakness for several years in the creation and production of new musicals.
The Lawrence Oliver Award was established in 1976 as The Society of West End End TheatreAwards, and in 1984 it was renamed after Lawrence Oliver, a famous British stage actor and the first artistic director of the National Theatre. Unlike the Tony Awards on Broadway in the United States, in addition to the major theatres in London's West End, the awards are also for many non-West End theatrical performances, as well as dance and opera. New productions that are staged in the West End Theatre Union Member Theatres from February 16 to February 15 of the following year are eligible for judging as long as the number of performances is not less than 30. Also unlike the Tony Awards, the Oliver Awards have a public selection committee and the audience's favorite performance award (selected by the public), which is more interactive with the public.
(Li Chunzhou)