Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards announces nominees for the first time in 37-year history

The winners will be revealed next month

Hayley Atwell and Tom Hiddleston in Much Ado About Nothing, Jonathan Bailey in Richard II and Diego Andres Rodriguez and Rachel Zegler in Evita, © Manuel Harlan, Marc Brenner

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The nominees of this year’s Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards have been revealed.

Voted on by UK-based theatre critics who are members of the Circle, the awards recognise theatre work from across 2025. This is the first time in the awards’ 37-year history that the shortlist has been published and that members have voted for longlists and shortlists.

2026 chair of the Critics’ Circle Drama Section, Mark Lawson said today: “Our first experiment with longlists and shortlists was intended to increase the range of talent under consideration. I’m confident that has happened with 179 candidates in play across the whole voting process – at venues from huge to minuscule – resulting in excitingly diverse shortlists.

“Emerging talent is especially well represented with a significant number of contenders for both Most Promising Playwright and Best Newcomer recognised for their professional theatre debuts. A new category for Best Cast or Ensemble aims to reflect that, while star and lead performances matter and thrill audiences, many great shows also rely on exhilarating teamwork.”

The awards have also made the move to honour the late Blanche Marvin with a renaming of the Empty Space…Peter Brook Award, set up to celebrate a UK theatre for its programming and community efforts.

The nominees for the new Empty Space…Peter Brook Award (In Memory of Blanche Marvin), Sponsored by Nica Burns, will be announced next week.

The Critics’ Circle winners will be revealed in a ceremony at the National Theatre on 26 March.

TNominees in full:

Best New Play

David Adjmi – Stereophonic at Duke of York’s

Alice Birch – Romans: a novel at Almeida

Jack Holden and Ed Stambollouian – Kenrex at the Other Palace

James Graham (from a book by Jacob Dunne) – Punch at Young Vic / Apollo

David Ireland – The Fifth Step at @sohoplace

Suzie Miller – Inter Alia at National Theatre

Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson – Kyoto at @sohoplace

Best Revival Of A Play Or Musical

All My Sons at Wyndham’s Theatre

Brigadoon at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

Evita at The London Palladium

Intimate Apparel at Donmar Warehouse

Into The Woods at Bridge Theatre

Indian Ink at Hampstead Theatre

The Weir at Harold Pinter Theatre

Best New Musical

Cable Street at Southwark Playhouse

Here We Are at National Theatre

Paddington The Musical at Savoy Theatre

Shucked at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

Sing Street at Lyric Hammersmith

Titanique at Criterion Theatre

Best Director

Daniel Aukin – Stereophonic at Duke of York’s

Jordan Fein – Into The Woods at Bridge Theatre

Lynette Linton – Intimate Apparel at Donmar Warehouse

Jamie Lloyd – Evita at The London Palladium / Much Ado About Nothing at Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Luke Sheppard – Paddington The Musical at Savoy Theatre

Ivo Van Hove – All My Sons  at Wyndham’s Theatre

Best Ensemble Or Cast

1536 at Almeida Theatre

Here We Are at National Theatre

Into The Woods at Bridge Theatre

Stereophonic at Duke of York’s Theatre

The Weir at Harold Pinter Theatre

When We Are Married at Donmar Warehouse

Most Promising Playwright

Jamie Armitage – A Ghost In Your Ear at Hampstead Theatre / An Interrogation at Hampstead Theatre

Sophia Chetin-Leuner – P*rn Play at Royal Court

Hannah Doran – The Meat Kings! (Inc) of Brooklyn Heights at Park Theatre

Sophia Griffin – After Sunday at Bush Theatre

Katherine Moar – Ragdoll at Jermyn Street Theatre

Ava Pickett – 1536 at Almeida Theatre

Shaan Sahota – The Estate at National Theatre

Best Actor

Adeel Akhtar – The Estate at National Theatre

Bryan Cranston – All My Sons  at Wyndham’s Theatre

Paapa Essiedu – All My Sons  at Wyndham’s Theatre

Brendan Gleeson – The Weir at Harold Pinter Theatre

Sean Hayes – Goodnight, Oscar at Barbican Theatre

James Hameed and Arti Shah – Paddington The Musical at Savoy Theatre

David Shields – Punch at Young Vic / Apollo

Best Actress

Kate Fleetwood – Into The Woods at Bridge Theatre

Julie Hesmondhalgh – Punch at Young Vic / Apollo

Marianne Jean-Baptiste – All My Sons  at Wyndham’s Theatre

Rosamund Pike – Inter Alia at National Theatre

Nicola Walker – The Unbelievers at Royal Court

Samira Wiley – Intimate Apparel at Donmar Warehouse

Rachel Zegler – Evita at The London Palladium

Best Designer

Miriam Buether – Kyoto at @sohoplace / The Land Of The Living at National Theatre

Lizzie Clachan – The Lady From The Sea at Bridge Theatre

Soutra Gilmour – Much Ado About Nothing at Theatre Royal Drury Lane / Evita at The London Palladium

Tom Pye – Paddington The Musical at Savoy Theatre

Tom Scutt – Into The Woods at Bridge Theatre

David Zinn – Stereophonic at Duke of York’s / Here We Are at National Theatre

Best Shakespearean Performance

Hayley Atwell – Much Ado About Nothing at Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Jonathan Bailey – Richard II at Bridge Theatre

David Harewood – Othello at Haymarket Theatre

Tom Hiddleston – Much Ado About Nothing at Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Francesca Mills – Hamlet at National Theatre

Samuel West – Twelfth Night at Barbican

Best Newcomer

Isobel Akuwudike – The Lady From The Sea at Bridge Theatre

Ruby Ashbourne-Serkis – Indian Ink at Hampstead Theatre

Asa Butterfield – Second Best at Riverside Studios

Kate Phillips – The Weir at Harold Pinter Theatre

Diego Andres Rodriguez – Evita at The London Palladium

Jasper Talbot – Inter Alia at National Theatre

Artie Wilkinson-Hunt – The Land Of The Living at National Theatre

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