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Jodie Comer drew praise for her West End debut in Prima Facie
By Paul Glynn
Entertainment reporter
Jodie Comer and Paul Mescal are among the big names who have been nominated for this year's Olivier Awards, which celebrate the best of London theatre.
Killing Eve star Comer is up for best actress for her critically-acclaimed one-woman play Prima Facie.
Mescal has added an Olivier nod for his role in A Streetcar Named Desire to his recent Oscar nomination.
The most nominated show overall is My Neighbour Totoro, a stage adaptation of the 1988 animated film, with nine.
Anime: My Neighbour Totoro takes to the stage
The Royal Shakespeare Company's version of the classic Studio Ghibli animation received five-star reviews last year.
My Neighbour Totoro is followed closely by Standing at the Sky's Edge, a musical about life in a Sheffield flat over three generations, which recently transferred to the National Theatre from the Sheffield Crucible.
It has eight nominations, including best original score for rock star Richard Hawley.
Richard Hawley wrote some new songs for the show, which also uses existing material from his career
Comer's Prima Facie is a one-woman show focusing on Tessa, a barrister who specialises in defending people accused of sexual assault.
But when she is date-raped by a colleague, she begins questioning the legal system as she becomes the plaintiff in a trial herself.
Critics hailed the Liverpool-born star's performance on her West End debut as "phenomenal".
Meanwhile, Mescal was praised for his "heart-stoppingly dangerous" performance as Stanley Kowalski in the Almeida theatre's revival of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire.
The Irish actor faces stiff competition for the best actor award from David Tennant, Tom Hollander, Rafe Spall and Giles Terera.
Mescal will also soon find out whether he has won the equivalent prize at the Oscars in Hollywood for the film Aftersun.
Watch: Paul Mescal tells the BBC his Oscar nomination is giving his family a respite after difficult times
The Olivier Awards' other acting nominees include Beverley Knight, Rose Ayling-Ellis, Nicola Walker and Caroline Quentin.
Executive producers Claire Walker and Hannah Essex said: "It is incredible to see such a diverse range of people honoured for their outstanding contributions to the industry."
The ceremony, named after legendary English actor Sir Laurence Olivier, will take place on 2 April at London's Royal Albert Hall.
The main Olivier Award 2023 nominees
- Jodie Comer - Prima Facie, Harold Pinter Theatre
- Patsy Ferran - A Streetcar Named Desire, Almeida Theatre
- Mei Mac - My Neighbour Totoro, Barbican Theatre
- Janet McTeer - Phaedra, National Theatre
- Nicola Walker - The Corn Is Green, National Theatre
- Tom Hollander - Patriots, Almeida Theatre
- Paul Mescal - A Streetcar Named Desire
- Rafe Spall - To Kill A Mockingbird, Gielgud Theatre
- David Tennant - Good, Harold Pinter Theatre
- Giles Terera - Blues For An Alabama Sky, National Theatre
- Alon Moni Aboutboul - The Band's Visit, Donmar Warehouse
- Arthur Darvill - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, Young Vic
- Julian Ovenden - South Pacific, Sadler's Wells
- Andrew Rannells - Tammy Faye, Almeida Theatre
Best actress in a musical
- Katie Brayben - Tammy Faye, Almeida Theatre
- Anoushka Lucas - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, Young Vic
- Miri Mesika - The Band's Visit, Donmar Warehouse
- Faith Omole - Standing At The Sky's Edge, National Theatre
Best actor in a supporting role
- Mark Akintimehin, Emmanuel Akwafo, Nnabiko Ejimofor, Darragh Hand, Aruna Jalloh & Kaine Lawrence - For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy, Royal Court
- Will Keen - Patriots
- Elliot Levey - Good
- David Moorst - To Kill A Mockingbird
- Sule Rimi - Blues For An Alabama Sky
Best actress in a supporting role
- Rose Ayling-Ellis - As You Like It, @sohoplace
- Pamela Nomvete - To Kill A Mockingbird
- Caroline Quentin - Jack Absolute Flies Again, National Theatre
- Sharon Small - Good
- Anjana Vasan - A Streetcar Named Desire
Best actress in a supporting role in a musical
- Beverley Knight - Sylvia, Old Vic
- Maimuna Memon - Standing At The Sky's Edge
- Liza Sadovy - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
- Marisha Wallace - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
Best actor in a supporting role in a musical
- Sharif Afifi - The Band's Visit
- Peter Polycarpou - The Band's Visit
- Clive Rowe - Sister Act, Eventim Apollo
- Zubin Varla - Tammy Faye
- For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy
- Patriots
- Prima Facie
- To Kill A Mockingbird
- The Band's Visit
- Standing At The Sky's Edge
- Sylvia
- Tammy Faye
- The Crucible, National Theatre
- Good
- Jerusalem, Apollo Theatre
- A Streetcar Named Desire
- My Fair Lady, London Coliseum
- Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
- Sister Act
- South Pacific
Best entertainment or comedy play
- Jack And The Beanstalk, The London Palladium
- My Neighbour Totoro
- My Son's A Queer, (But What Can You Do?), Garrick Theatre & Ambassadors Theatre
- One Woman Show, Ambassadors Theatre
- Blippi The Musical, Apollo Theatre
- Hey Duggee The Live Theatre Show, Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre
- Midsummer Mechanicals, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Shakespeare's Globe
- The Smartest Giant In Town, St Martin's Theatre
- Rebecca Frecknall - A Streetcar Named Desire
- Robert Hastie - Standing At The Sky's Edge
- Justin Martin - Prima Facie
- Phelim McDermott - My Neighbour Totoro
- Bartlett Sher - To Kill A Mockingbird
Best new opera production
- Alcina by Royal Opera, Royal Opera House
- Least Like The Other by Irish National Opera and Royal Opera, Royal Opera House
- Peter Grimes by Royal Opera, Royal Opera House
- Sibyl, Barbican Theatre
Outstanding achievement in opera
- Sinéad Campbell-Wallace - her performance in Tosca by English National Opera, London Coliseum
- William Kentridge - his conception and direction of Sibyl, Barbican Theatre
- Antony McDonald - his design of Alcina, Royal Opera House
Best new dance production
- Light Of Passage by Crystal Pite, Royal Opera House
- Pasionaria by La Veronal, Sadler's Wells
- Traplord by Ivan Michael Blackstock, 180 Studios (The Strand)
- Triptych (The Missing Door, The Lost Room, And The Hidden Floor) by Peeping Tom, Barbican Theatre
Outstanding achievement in dance
- Manuel Liñán - his choreography of ¡VIVA!, Sadler's Wells
- Dickson Mbi - his choreography of Enowate, Sadler's Wells
- Raquel Meseguer Zafe - her dramaturgy of Ruination by Lost Dog, Royal Opera House
- Catrina Nisbett - her performance in Family Honour by Spoken Movement, Sadler's Wells
Outstanding achievement in affiliate theatre
- Age Is A Feeling, Soho Theatre
- Blackout Songs, Hampstead Theatre Downstairs
- The P Word, Bush Theatre
- Paradise Now!, Bush Theatre
- Two Palestinians Go Dogging, Royal Court
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