The musical revival of Sunset Boulevard has dominated at the 2024 WhatsOnStage Awards, taking home a remarkable 8 awards. The musical, which closed in the West End last month, won awards across the board, including Best Video Design, Best Sound Design, Best Direction for Jamie Lloyd and Best Performer in a Musical for Nicole Scherzinger as the principal performer playing Norma Desmond.
It became well-known for its remarkable use of videography and live video of performers leaving the theatre to perform on the streets of the capital, and is now preparing for a Broadway transfer with eight WhatsOnStage Awards under its belt, a testament to its power, and looks set to be a smash hit in New York City as well.
Although by far the most lucrative production of the evening, Sunset Boulevard wasn’t the only show to take a good share of accolades. Guys & Dolls claimed three awards, namely Best Musical Revival, Best Set Design and Best Graphic Design for its exciting production, and Cabaret and A Little Life each took two categories.
Ten other shows were honoured with one title apiece, including The Little Big Things for Best Casting Direction, Stranger Things: The First Shadow for Best New Play, and the coveted Best New Musical title was given to Operation Mincemeat, which has been extending its run repeatedly in the past few years, with its witty comedy, quick changes and unbelievable story.
There were some notable upsets in this year’s awards however, particularly for Dear England, which left empty handed, as well as The Wizard of Oz and the Sheffield Theatres production of Miss Saigon. Nevertheless, many productions and casts will be celebrating tonight, and opens the door for fresh speculation ahead of this year’s Olivier Awards.
The 24th annual WhatsOnStage Awards were held on February 11th at the London Palladium. See the full list of award winners and nominees here
