Australia - The Australian Entertainment Industry Association has announced the nominees for the 2003 Helpmann Awards. Named in honour of dancer and actor Sir Robert Helpmann and first presented in 2001, these annual awards honour productions new to Australia.

The 2003 nominations cover a wide range of productions, including those created in Australia and those previously seen elsewhere in the world but visiting Australia for the first time. The awards include categories for both productions and technical work on productions - and, unusually for theatrical awards, even feature a category for sound design.

This year’s technical nominees are: Best Costume Design: Dale Ferguson - Great Expectations; Kristian Fredrikson - Man of La Mancha; Julie Lynch - The Way of the World; Bob Crowley - The Witches of Eastwick.

Best Scenic Design: Stephen Curtis - The Blue Room; Kristian Fredrikson - Swan Lake; Dan Potra - Love in the Age of Therapy; Tony Tripp - A Doll’s House.

Best Lighting Design: David Hersey & Jenny Kagan - Oliver!; Nigel Levings - Copenhagen; Nick Schlieper - Great Expectations; Matt Scott - The Blue Room.

Best Sound Design: Paul Charlier - Buried Child; Peter Grubb & Shelly Lee - Oliver!; Peter Grubb - The Witches of Eastwick; John Scandrett & Julian Spink - Cabaret.

The ‘best production’ categories included nominations for Cabaret, Oliver! , Man of LaMancha and The Witches of Eastwick (in the Best Musical category); Copenhagen, Soft, The Comedy of Errors and Waiting for Godot (Best Play); Il Trovatore, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Love in the Age of Therapy and The Marriage of Figaro (Best Opera), Ellipse, Swan Lake, The Age of Unbeauty and Walkabout (Best Ballet or Dance Work) and Circus Oz, Macbeth: As Told by the Wierd Sisters, Still Angela and Twinkle Twinkle Little Fish (Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production).

The 2003 awards will be presented on 19 May at a ceremony to be held at the Showroom at the Star City Casino in Sydney.

(Rob Halliday)


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