On Thursday 24th September, nominees for this year’s Black British Theatre Awards were announced.
Founded in 2019, the Black British Theatre Awards are voted almost entirely by the public and aim to highlight, as well as champion, the recognition, and representation of Black talent in British theatre.
The awards feature 26 different categories that span production and performance in plays, musicals, and dance productions, with additional categories including the LGBTQ+ Champion Award, the Disability Champion Award, and Best Teacher of Performing Arts as a Subject Award.
BBTA Directors Solange Urdang and Omar F Okai say “This is an important year with UK Theatre coming to a standstill and The Black Lives Matter movement protests. We feel it is important now more than ever to highlight the wonderful Black British talent we have in abundance and hope to bring positivity to such a difficult time”.
This year’s awards ceremony will take place at London’s Young Vic Theatre and be broadcast exclusively on Sky Arts in late October, produced by Kwame Kwei-Armah & Shantelle Rochester and Directed by Charlie Di Placido and Kojey Radical.
Photo credit: Michelle Marshall
The Black British Theatre Awards 2020 Nominees are:
BEST DIRECTOR AWARD FOR A PLAY OR MUSICAL
Clint Dyer, Death of England, National Theatre | Nadia Latif, Fairview, Young Vic Theatre | Ola Ince, Appropriate, Donmar Warehouse | Roy Alexander Weise, ‘Master Harold’… and the boys, National Theatre
BEST PRODUCER AWARD
Adrian Grant, Thriller Live, Lyric Theatre | Nicole Raquel Dennis and Ryan Carter, Turn Up, Cadogan Hall | Tobi Kyeremateng, My White Best Friend (and Other Letters Left Unsaid), Royal Court Theatre
BEST CHOREOGRAPHER AWARD
Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy MBE, REDD, Barbican Theatre | Lanre Malaolu, Pass Over, Kiln Theatre | Shelley Maxwell, ‘Master Harold’… and the boys, National Theatre
BEST DANCE PERFORMANCE IN A DANCE PRODUCTION AWARD
Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy MBE, REDD, Barbican Theatre | Marcelino Sambé, The Cellist, Royal Opera House
BEST DANCE PRODUCTION AWARD
Ingoma, Ballet Black, Barbican Theatre | REDD – Boy Blue, Barbican Theatre | Some Like It Hip Hop – ZooNation, Peacock Theatre
BEST USE OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Nicole Raquel Dennis and Ryan Carter, Turn Up, Cadogan Hall
LIGHT AND SOUND RECOGNITION AWARD
Carmen Wright | Simeon Miller | Tony Gayle
COSTUME DESIGN RECOGNITION AWARD
Jodie Simone Howe | Maybelle Laye | Natalie Pryce
BOOK AND LYRICS RECOGNITION AWARD
Arinzé Kene | Roy Williams | Shirley Thompson OBE
MUSICAL DIRECTOR RECOGNITION AWARD
Ian Oakley | Sean Green | Shiloh Coke
CASTING DIRECTOR RECOGNITION AWARD
Isabella Odoffin
BEST MALE ACTOR IN A PLAY
Lucian Msamati, Master Harold’… and the boys, National Theatre | Paapa Essiedu, Pass Over, Kiln Theatre | Valentine Olukoga, The Fishermen, Trafalgar Studios
BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A PLAY
Rakie Ayola, On Bear Ridge, Royal Court Theatre | Ronke Adekoluejo, Three Sisters, National Theatre | Sharon D. Clarke MBE, Death of a Salesman, Piccadilly Theatre
BEST SUPPORTING MALE ACTOR IN A PLAY
Arinzé Kene, Death of a Salesman, Young Vic Theatre | Nari Blair-Mangat, Cyrano de Bergerac, Playhouse Theatre | Reice Weathers, The Upstart Crow, Gielgud Theatre
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE ACTOR IN A PLAY
Cherrelle Skeete, The High Table, Bush Theatre | Michele Austin, Cyrano de Bergerac, Playhouse Theatre | Rosalind Eleazar, Uncle Vanya, Harold Pinter Theatre
BEST PRODUCTION PLAY
Death of a Salesman, Piccadilly Theatre | Fairview, Young Vic Theatre | Three Sisters, National Theatre
BEST MALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL AWARD
Jason Brock, Thriller Live, Lyric Theatre | Jonathan Andrew Hume, Come from Away, Phoenix Theatre | Noah Thomas, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Apollo Theatre
BEST FEMALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL AWARD
Aisha Jawando, TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, Aldwych Theatre | Maiya Quansah-Breed, Six the Musical, Arts Theatre | Miriam-Teak Lee, & Juliet, The Shaftesbury Theatre
BEST SUPPORTING MALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL AWARD
Arun Blair-Mangat, & Juliet, The Shaftesbury Theatre | Nicholas McLean, Wicked, Apollo Victoria Theatre | Tarinn Callender, Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE ACTOR IN A MUSICAL AWARD
Melanie La Barrie, & Juliet, The Shaftesbury Theatre | Nicole Raquel Dennis, Dear Evan Hansen, Noël Coward Theatre | Shanay Holmes, The Bridges of Madison County, Menier Chocolate Factory
BEST MUSICAL PRODUCTION AWARD
Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre | Thriller Live, Lyric Theatre | TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, Aldwych Theatre
LGBTQ+ CHAMPION AWARD
Arun Blair-Mangat | Layton Williams | Rikki Beadle-Blair MBE
DISABILITY CHAMPION AWARD
Chris Fonseca | Rachel Nwokoro
BEST TEACHER OF PERFORMING ARTS AS A SUBJECT AWARD
David Blake, WAC Arts | Dollie Henry, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance | Kamara Gray, Urdang Academy/Artistry Youth Dance
BEST RECENT GRADUATE AWARD
Danielle Fiamanya, Guildford School of Acting | Stacy Abalogun, Royal Academy of Dramatic Art | Tonye Scott-Obene, Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Shirley Thompson OBE
For more information on the awards and a full list of nominees, follow this link.