The 'Fleabag' actor takes home the Best Actor award for his role in 'Present Laughter' while the 'Downton Abbey' actress is crowned this year's Best Actress for her role in 'A German Life'.
- Nov 25, 2019
AceShowbiz - "Fleabag" star Andrew Scott and Maggie Smith won the top acting prizes at Britain's Evening Standard Theatre Awards on Sunday night, November 24.
Scott took home the Best Actor accolade for his performance in a gender-switched version of Noel Coward's autobiographical comedy, "Present Laughter", while the 84-year-old "Downton Abbey" star landed the Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress for her role as top Nazi Joseph Goebbels' secretary in "A German Life".
Smith now holds the record for most wins in this category with five, having previously won in 1962, 1970, 1984 and 1994.
Lynn Nottage's working class drama "Sweat" was named Best Play, while the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre's revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Evita" won in the Best Musical category.
"Nowhere Boy" star Anne-Marie Duff won the Best Musical Performance accolade, and former Almeida Theatre impresario Robert Icke won Best Director for his productions "The Doctor and The Wild Duck".
Acting legend Ian McKellen also accepted the Editor's Award, given for his "Ian McKellen On Stage" tour celebrating his 80th birthday, which raised funds for theatres in need. A second special prize went to legendary theatre director, Peter Brook, who was presented with the Lebedev Award for his contribution to theatre.
The ceremony was hosted by Evening Standard proprietor Evgeny Lebedev, alongside his co-hosts, Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour, "The Good Wife" star Cush Jumbo, and married couple Damian Lewis and Helen McCrory.
Olivia Colman, Naomi Scott, Lashana Lynch, Taron Egerton, and Glenda Jackson also handed out prizes at the event at the London Coliseum theatre.
The full list of winners is below:
- Best Actor: Andrew Scott - "Present Laughter"
- Natasha Richardson Award for Best Actress: Maggie Smith - "A German Life"
- Best Play: "Sweat" - Lynn Nottage
- Best Director: Robert Icke - "The Doctor & The Wild Duck"
- Best Musical: "Evita"
- Best Musical Performance: Anne-Marie Duff - "Sweet Charity"
- Best Design: Bunny Christie - "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
- Charles Wintour Award for Most Promising Playwright: Jasmine Lee-Jones - "Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner Royal Court"
- Emerging Talent: Laurie Kynaston - "The Son"
- Editor's Award: Ian McKellen - "On Stage Tour"
- Lebedev Award: Peter Brook
