By Mark Shenton
26 Jan 2010

Rachel Weisz in A Streetcar Named Desire
photo by Johan Persson

The import of the Broadway musical Spring Awakening was named winner of the Peter Hepple Award for Best Musical (new or revival) in 2009 by Britain's Critics' Circle Theatre Awards in a lunchtime ceremony held Jan. 26 at the West End's Prince of Wales Theatre.

The production was first seen at London's Lyric Hammersmith before transferring to the West End's Novello Theatre.

Rachel Weisz was named Best Actress for her performance as Blanche du Bois in A Streetcar Named Desire, seen at the Donmar Warehouse, and Mark Rylance was named Best Actor for his performance in Jerusalem, seen at the Royal Court before transferring (Jan. 28) to the West End's Apollo Theatre.

In addition, Jez Butterworth's Jerusalem also took the award for Best New Play, and the Royal Court took two further awards for productions seen there: Rupert Goold was named Best Director for his production of Enron, co-produced with Headlong and Chichester's Minerva Theatre, and Alia Bano was named Most Promising Playwright for Shades, seen at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs. Enron has since also transferred to the West End, where it is now playing at the Noel Coward Theatre, and will open on Broadway in April.

The Donmar was also further represented, in addition to its award to Weisz, by awards to Jude Law (receiving the John and Wendy Trewin Award for Best Shakespearean Performance, for playing the title role in Hamlet in the Donmar's West End season at Wyndham's, subsequently seen on Broadway) and Christopher Oram (named best designer for Red, currently playing at the Donmar Warehouse through Feb. 6).

Finally, the Jack Tinker Award for Most Promising Newcomer other than a playwright was won by Tom Sturridge for his performance in Punk Rock, also seen at London's Lyric Hammersmith and subsequently at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre.

The company of Enron
photo by Manuel Harlan