odie Comer and Paul Mescal have landed top gongs for their West End debut performances at the Olivier Awards, as the greatest night in British theater returns.
The Killing Eve star won the Best Actress award for her role as Tessa in Prima Facie, a one-person production by Suzie Miller, which also won the coveted Best New Play award.
After receiving critical acclaim for her West End debut at the Harold Pinter Theatre, the 30-year-old Comer will bring the play to Broadway later this month.
During her acceptance speech, Comer said, “I am so overwhelmed. This piece has changed my life. I am so grateful and I have so many people to thank.
“To Suzie Miller for writing the most exquisite play I have ever had the pleasure of reading.
“One thing I would say to all the kids who haven’t been to drama school, who can’t afford to go to drama school, who have been rejected from drama school, don’t let anyone tell you it’s not possible.
“It may take the stars to align and you need to meet generous, kind, patient people, but it is possible.
“Mom, Dad, I love you, and my grandfather is 82 today, so happy birthday.”
At the awards ceremony, held Sunday at the Royal Albert Hall, Oscar nominee Mescal also took home best actor for his role as Stanley Kowalski in the new stage adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire.
The Almeida Theater production also won the prestigious Best Revival award, and Anjana Vasan won the Best Actress in a Supporting Role award for her turn as Stella in the play directed by Olivier winner Rebecca Frecknall.
Mescal fought for good against stiff competition from David Tennant; Tom Hollander for Patriots; Rafe Spall for killing a mockingbird; and Giles Terera for Blues For An Alabama Sky.
During his acceptance speech, Mescal, 27, thanked his mother, who is being treated for cancer, and added: “I hope you get better.”
The big winner of the evening was the enchanting new stage adaptation by the Royal Shakespeare Company of Studio Ghibli’s 1988 animated film My Neighbor Totoro, which dominated the theater awards.
The coming-of-age adaptation garnered six of the nine awards it was nominated for, including the Noel Coward Award for Best Entertainment or Comedy and the Sir Peter Hall Award for Best Director.
It was one of many musicals, plays and operas to receive recognition on Sunday at the ceremony hosted by Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham.
Oklahoma from Rodgers & Hammerstein! won Best Musical Revival for its sold-out run at the Young Vic, while also winning Arthur Darvill Best Actor in a Musical for his turn as Curly McLain.
During his acceptance speech, 40-year-old Darvill said, “My goodness, this is very overwhelming.”
He told his castmates, “It’s a privilege to be on stage with you. (We) have created such an incredible piece of theatre.
“Growing up I was very lucky. I had incredibly supportive parents… I had a great drama teacher who still teaches and is very inspiring.”
A total of six productions from The Almeida Theater triumphed on the night, with Will Keen taking Best Supporting Actor for Patriots and Tammy Faye taking two awards in acting categories: Katie Brayben for Best Actress in a Musical and Zubin Varla for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical.
Set in Sheffield and premiered in the city in 2019 before moving to London this year, Standing At The Sky’s Edge won Best New Musical, while Richard Hawley and Tom Deering won Best Original score or new orchestrations for the production.
Hawley, 56, dedicated the credit to “fallen comrades” including Pulp bassist Steve Mackey “whom we lost a month ago” after meeting on the first day of kindergarten.
He added, “We’ve remained friends and brothers all along, I’ll miss him all my life.”
Beverley Knight not only performed twice at the ceremony, but also won the award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical for her performance as Emmeline Pankhurst in Sylvia at The Old Vic.
During her acceptance speech, the emotional 50-year-old said: “Emmeline Pankhurst stood on this stage and said, ‘I am inciting this gathering to rebellion’ and she said to the women in the room, be militant in your own way and that was in 1912 .
“The following year she banned the socio-political union.
“A hundred years later we are on this stage, we have reclaimed power for those women. I want to thank the Old Vic with all my heart for giving us a second bite.
Knight added: “Big up Wolverhampton youth theater who gave me a chance when I was 11 years old.”
The ceremony also celebrated Sir Derek Jacobi, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding contribution to theater throughout his career.
Sir David struggled to hold back tears before delivering an impressive speech in which he named a number of famous people, including Dame Shirley Bassey and Laurence Olivier, after whom the ceremony is named.
The show culminated in a tribute to Dame Arlene Phillips, who received a special award, with a performance of Grease The Musical – a production that made her famous as a choreographer.
According to the organizers, a total of 16 of the 18 winners won their first Olivier on Sunday.
The star-studded ceremony featured performances from top new musical nominees, including Standing At The Sky’s Edge, Sylvia and Tammy Faye, as well as Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! and sister law.
Late entertainers including Paul O’Grady, Nicholas Lloyd Webber and Darius Danesh Campbell were honored at the 2023 Olivier Awards, along with Dame Angela Lansbury, Dame Hilary Mantel, Burt Bacharach, Bernard Cribbins and Kay Mellor.
The 2023 Olivier Awards were broadcast on ITV1 and ITVX from 10.15pm to 12.20am.