# 15th Helpmann Awards

The 15th Annual Helpmann Awards for live performance in Australia were held on 27 July 2015 at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney. Best Musical and Best Play were both awarded to revival productions, of Les Misérables and The Glass Menagarie respectively. Opera for young audiences The Rabbits was named Best New Australian Work and Best Original Score. Singer-songwriter Paul Kelly received the JC Williamson Award for lifetime achievement.

## Winners and nominees

In the following tables, winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface. The nominees are those which are listed below the winner and not in boldface.

### Theatre

| Best Play | Best Direction of a Play |
| The Glass Menagerie – Belvoir Calpurnia Descending – Malthouse Theatre and Sydney Theatre Company Endgame – Sydney Theatre Company Suddenly Last Summer – Sydney Theatre Company | Kip Williams – Suddenly Last Summer Sarah Goodes – Switzerland (Sydney Theatre Company) Andrew Upton – Endgame (Sydney Theatre Company) Clare Watson – What Rhymes with Cars and Girls (Melbourne Theatre Company) |
| Best Female Actor in a Play | Best Male Actor in a Play |
| Pamela Rabe – The Glass Menagerie Julie Forsyth – Night on Bald Mountain (Malthouse Theatre) Robyn Nevin – Suddenly Last Summer Sarah Peirse – Switzerland | Hugo Weaving – Endgame (Sydney Theatre Company) Hunter Page-Lochard – Brothers Wreck (Belvoir) Peter Carroll – Oedipus Rex (Belvoir) Steve Rodgers – Eight Gigabytes of Hardcore Porn (Griffin Theatre Company and Perth Theatre Company) |
| Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play | Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play |
| Helen Thomson – After Dinner (Sydney Theatre Company) Julie Forsyth – Endgame (Melbourne Theatre Company) Sarah Peirse – Endgame (Sydney Theatre Company) Pamela Rabe – Beckett Tryptych - Footfalls (State Theatre Company of South Australia in association with Adelaide Festival) | John Bell – As You Like It (Bell Shakespeare) Glenn Hazeldine – After Dinner Bruce Spence – Endgame (Sydney Theatre Company) Lasarus Ratuere – Kill the Messenger (Belvoir) |

### Musicals

Best Musical :
| Les Misérables – Cameron Mackintosh Australia Anything Goes – Opera Australia and John Frost Dirty Dancing - The Classic Love Story on Stage – John Frost Once – John Frost ||
| Best Direction of a Musical | Best Choreography in a Musical |
| John Tiffany – Once Dean Bryant – Anything Goes Laurence Connor and James Powell – Les Misérables Stuart Maunder AM – Into the Woods (Victorian Opera) | Andrew Hallsworth – Anything Goes Kate Champion and Michelle Lynch – Dirty Dancing - The Classic Love Story on Stage Michael Ashcroft and Geoffrey Garratt – Les Misérables Steven Hoggett – Once |
| Best Female Actor in a Musical | Best Male Actor in a Musical |
| Caroline O'Connor – Anything Goes Helen Dallimore – Blood Brothers (Enda Markey Presents) Madeline Jones – Once Patrice Tipoki – Les Misérables | Simon Gleeson – Les Misérables Hayden Tee – Les Misérables Todd McKenney – Anything Goes Todd McKenney – La Cage aux Folles (The Production Company) |
| Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical |
| Kerrie Anne Greenland – Les Misérables Amy Lehpamer – Once Claire Lyon – Anything Goes Lucy Maunder – Into the Woods | Alex Rathgeber – Anything Goes Trevor Ashley – Les Misérables Colin Dean – Once Chris Durling – Les Misérables Brent Hill – Once Eddie Muliaumaseali'i – Show Boat (The Production Company) |

### Opera and Classical Music

| Best Opera | Best Direction of an Opera |
| Faramondo – Brisbane Baroque in association with QPAC Faust – Opera Australia in association with The Opera Conference Madama Butterfly – English National Opera, Metropolitan Opera and Lithuanian National Opera in association with West Australian Opera and Perth International Arts Festival Philip Glass Trilogy – State Opera of South Australia | Paul Curran – Faramondo David McVicar – Don Giovanni (Opera Australia) David McVicar – Faust Leigh Warren – Philip Glass Trilogy |
| Best Female Performer in an Opera | Best Male Performer in an Opera |
| Jennifer Rivera – Faramondo Nicole Car – Faust Caitlin Hulcup – Iphigénie en Tauride (Pinchgut Opera) Latonia Moore – Aida - Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour (Opera Australia) | Michael Fabiano – Faust Adam Diegel – Madama Butterfly Christopher Purves – The Perfect American (Brisbane Festival and Opera Queensland in association with QPAC and Griffith University) Claudio Sgura – Tosca (Opera Australia) Teddy Tahu Rhodes – Don Giovanni |
| Best Female Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera | Best Male Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera |
| Anna Devin – Faramondo Nicole Car – Don Giovanni Taryn Fiebig – Don Giovanni Anna Starushkevych – Farmondo | Christopher Lowrey – Faramondo Shane Lowrencev – Don Giovanni Teddy Tahu Rhodes – Faust Warwick Fyfe – The Flying Dutchman (Victorian Opera) |
| Best Symphony Orchestra Concert | Best Chamber and Instrumental Ensemble Concert |
| Reflections on Gallipoli – Australian Chamber Orchestra The Damnation of Faust – Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Mahler 3 – Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Tafelmusik's House of Dreams – Musica Viva | Les Arts Florissants and Le Jardin des Voix in A Jardin A L'Italienne – Melbourne Recital Centre, Sydney Opera House and Perth International Arts Festival Goldner String Quartet - Musica Viva International Concert Series National Tour 2015 – Goldner String Quartet for Musica Viva Australia Stephen Hough in Recital – Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sixteen – Melbourne Recital Centre, Sydney Opera House, Perth International Arts Festival, QPAC and ANU School of Music Llewellyn Hall |
| Best Individual Classical Performance ||
| William Christie – William Christie (Melbourne Recital Centre, Sydney Opera House and Perth International Arts Festival) Emanuel Ax – The Beethoven Piano Concertos (Sydney Symphony Orchestra) Asher Fisch – Beethoven Festival (West Australian Symphony Orchestra) Christian Tetzlaff – Christian Tetzlaff (Melbourne Recital Centre) ||

### Dance and Physical Theatre

| Best Ballet or Dance Work | Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production |
| Frame of Mind – Sydney Dance Company Meeting – Antony Hamilton Projects, Arts House and Insite Arts Motion Picture – Lucy Guerin Inc in association with Arts House Precipice – Rachel Arianne Ogle | The Paper Architect – Davy and Kristin McGuire and Perth International Arts Festival Beyond by Circa – Arts Centre Melbourne and Circa Dislocate's If These Walls Could Talk – Marguerite Pepper Productions and Melbourne Festival Tabac Rouge – Compagnie du Hanneton presented by Sydney Festival |
| Best Female Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production | Best Male Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production |
| Chloe Leong – William Forsythe's Quintett (Sydney Dance Company) Madeline Eastoe – Giselle (The Australian Ballet) Elise May – Natalie Weir's The Red Shoes (Expressions Dance Company and Queensland Performing Arts Centre) Jesse Scales – William Forsythe's Quintett | Cass Mortimer Eipper – William Forsythe's Quintett Alisdair Macindoe – Motion Picture David Mack – William Forsythe's Quintett Jack Ziesing – Natalie Weir's The Red Shoes |
| Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production ||
| Rafael Bonachela – Frame of Mind Antony Hamilton – Meeting Natalie Weir – Natalie Weir's The Red Shoes Stephen Page – Patyegarang (Bangarra Dance Theatre) ||

### Contemporary Music

| Best Australian Contemporary Concert | Best Contemporary Music Festival |
| Chet Faker – National Tour 2015 (Chet Faker, Frontier Touring, Artist Voice, Opulent, Future Classic and Perth International Arts Festival) Tina Arena – Reset Tour (Tina Arena and New World Artists) Jimmy Barnes – 30:30 Hindsight Greatest Hits Tour 2014 (Jimmy Barnes and Live Nation in association with Premier Artists and A Day on The Green) Kylie Minogue – Kiss Me Once Tour (Kylie Minogue and Frontier Touring) | Vivid Live 2015 – Destination NSW and Sydney Opera House The 26th Annual Byron Bay Bluesfest 2015 – Bluesfest Laneway Festival – Lunatic Entertainment and Chugg Entertainment Womadelaide 2015 – Womadelaide Foundation |
| Best International Contemporary Music Concert ||
| Ed Sheeran – X WORLD TOUR 2015 (Ed Sheeran and Frontier Touring) Foo Fighters – Sonic Highways World Tour 2015 (Foo Fighters and Frontier Touring) Paul Simon & Sting – On Stage Together (Paul Simon, Sting, and Live Nation) The Rolling Stones – 14 On Fire (The Rolling Stones, Frontier Touring, AEG Live and IEC Entertainment) ||

### Other

| Best Cabaret Performer | Best Comedy Performer |
| Camille O'Sullivan – Camille O'Sullivan - Changeling (Arts Centre Melbourne) David Campbell and John Bucchino – David Campbell Sings John Bucchino (Luckiest Productions) Beccy Cole and Libby O'Donovan – The Cowgirl and the Showgirl (Adelaide Festival Centre Trust) Kim Smith – Nova Noir (Adelaide Festival Centre Trust) | Judith Lucy – Ask No Questions of the Moth (Token Events) Ronny Chieng – You Don't Know What You're Talking About (Century Entertainment) Nazeem Hussain – Legally Brown (Live Nation) Matt Okine – The Other Guy (Century Entertainment) Sam Simmons – Spaghetti for Breakfast (Token Events) |
| Best Presentation for Children | Best Regional Touring Production |
| The Rabbits – Opera Australia and Barking Gecko Theatre Company in association with West Australian Opera Carnival of the Animals – Circa and Queensland Performing Arts Centre Hans Christian, You Must Be An Angel – Sydney Opera House and Arts Centre Melbourne Pete the Sheep – Monkey Baa Theatre Company | Festival of Circa – Circa Food – Force Majeure and Belvoir Kelly – Queensland Theatre Company Sons & Mothers – Performing Lines and No Strings Attached Theatre of Disability |
| Best Special Event ||
| The Incredible and Phenomenal Journey of The Giants to the Streets of Perth – Royal de Luxe and Perth International Arts Festival ||

### Industry

Best New Australian Work :
| Kate Miller-Heidke (composer), Lally Katz (librettist) and Iain Grandage (musical arrangements and additional music) – The Rabbits Nicki Bloom (writer and co-lyricist), Quentin Grant (composer and co-lyricist) and Cameron Goodall (composer and co-lyricist) – Little Bird (State Theatre Company of South Australia in association with Adelaide Festival Centre) Aidan Fennessy (writer) and Tim Rogers (music and lyrics) – What Rhymes with Cars and Girls Damien Millar – Marlin (Arena Theatre Company and Melbourne Theatre Company) Joanna Murray-Smith – Switzerland Tamara Saulwick – Endings (Sydney Festival, Performance Space, Arts House and Insite Arts) ||
| Best Original Score | Best Music Direction |
| Kate Miller-Heidke and Iain Grandage – The Rabbits Cameron Goodall and Quentin Grant – Little Bird Mikelangelo and Pip Branson performed by The Blacksea Gentlemen – Masquarade (Griffin Theatre Company and State Theatre Company of South Australia) Tim Rogers – What Rhymes With Cars and Girls | Martin Lowe – Once Erin Helyard – Faramondo Tim Rogers – What Rhymes With Cars and Girls Timothy Sexton – Philip Glass Trilogy |
| Best Scenic Design | Best Costume Design |
| Geoff Cobham – Little Bird Dan Potra – The Perfect American Marg Horwell – Marlin Matt Kinley – Les Misérables | Gabriela Tylesova – The Rabbits Anna Cordingley – Masqaurade Dale Ferguson – Anything Goes Gary McCann – Faramondo |
| Best Lighting Design | Best Sound Design |
| Paule Constable – Les Misérables Rachel Burke – Marlin Geoff Cobham – Philip Glass Trilogy Paule Constable – Faust Nick Schlieper – Macbeth (Sydney Theatre Company) | Mick Potter – Les Misérables Clive Goodwin – Once JD Brill, Clair Global and Eagles – Eagles - History of the Eagles Live in Concert 2015 (The Eagles and Frontier Touring) Michael Waters – Anything Goes |

### Special Awards

| JC Williamson Award | Sue Nattrass Award |
| Paul Kelly | Eric Robinson |