WhatsOnStage today announces that this year’s ceremony will be hosted at The London Palladium in a first for the awards.
Taking place on Sunday 11 February 2024, the evening will see winners crowned across a range of categories. Theatregoers will also enjoy a host of exclusive live performances from top stage talent, accompanied by a 24-piece orchestra. The event is co-produced with creative directors Alex Parker and Damian Sandys.
Tickets will go on general sale from 12pm on 23 November 2023 via LW Theatres. A special pre-sale for WhatsOnStage Theatre Club members will take place at 12pm on 22 November 2023.
Now in their 24th year, the WhatsOnStage Awards are the only major theatre awards decided by the theatregoers themselves.
WhatsOnStage’s Darius Thompson-Smith and Alex Wood said today: “We are incredibly excited for this new chapter for the WhatsOnStage Awards – now at The London Palladium. Moving to this new location will give us more flexibility with performances, more price points for purchasers and allow the evening to bring in an even larger audience. Alongside a huge 24-piece orchestra overseen by Alex Parker, we’re determined to create an unforgettable evening for theatre fans.
“We cannot express just how important and rewarding our time at the Prince of Wales Theatre has been over recent years – with brilliant, warm and accommodating teams at both Delfont Mackintosh and The Book of Mormon, who have leant us their home time and again. Now bring on The Palladium!”
Nominations are currently open and will close on Thursday 23 November 2023 ahead of the shortlist being announced on Thursday 7 December 2023. Voting will then open at the same time, closing on Thursday 11 January 2024, with the winners being announced at the ceremony in February.
The awards categories will continue as before. Performance categories will be gender-free and, for each of the following, readers will be able to nominate and vote for one individual:
- Best Performer in a Play
- Best Performer in a Musical
- Best Supporting Performer in a Play
- Best Supporting Performer in a Musical
Additional audience-nominated categories include Best New Play, Best New Musical, Best Play Revival, Best Musical Revival, Best Regional Production, Best Takeover Performance, Best Professional Debut, Best Concert Event, Best West End Show and Best Off West End Production. Eligibility criteria are available on the WhatsOnStage Awards website (awards.whatsonstage.com).
The shortlist for the technical categories (Choreography, Costume Design, Direction, Graphic Design, Lighting Design, Musical Direction/Supervision, Set Design, Sound Design, Casting Direction and Video Design) will be decided once again by an independent panel of industry experts from across the UK appointed by WhatsOnStage, taking the total number of categories to 24. Shortlists will then be voted on by the general public.
