# Critics' Circle Theatre Award

The Critics' Circle Theatre Awards, known as the Drama Theatre Awards until 1990, are British theatrical awards presented annually for the closing year's theatrical achievements. The winners, from theatre throughout the United Kingdom, are selected via vote by the professional theatre critics of The Critics' Circle.

## Recipients
### Best Actor

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1982 | Bob Hoskins | Guys and Dolls |
| 1983 | Derek Jacobi | Cyrano de Bergerac and Much Ado About Nothing |
| 1984 | Brian Cox | Rat in the Skull and Strange Interlude |
| 1984 | Antony Sher | Richard III |
| 1985 | Anthony Hopkins | Pravda |
| 1985 | Gary Oldman | The Pope's Wedding |
| 1986 | Bill Fraser | When We Are Married |
| 1986 | Hugh Quarshi | The Great White Hope |
| 1987 | Brian Cox | Fashion, Taming of the Shrew and Titus Andronicus |
| 1988 | Alex Jennings | Too Clever by Half |
| 1988 | Tom Wilkinson | An Enemy of the People |
| 1989 | Ian McKellen | Othello |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Michael Gambon | Man of the Moment |
| 1991 | Nigel Hawthorne | The Madness of George III |
| 1992 | Paul Eddington | No Man's Land |
| 1993 | Ian Holm | Moonlight |
| 1994 | Tom Courtenay | Moscow Stations |
| 1995 | Daniel Massey | Taking Sides |
| 1996 | David Suchet | Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? |
| 1997 | Ian Holm | King Lear |
| 1998 | Kevin Spacey | The Iceman Cometh |
| 1999 | Henry Goodman | The Merchant of Venice |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Michael Gambon | The Caretaker |
| 2001 | Ian McDiarmid | Faith Healer |
| 2002 | Simon Russell Beale | Uncle Vanya |
| 2003 | Michael Sheen | Caligula |
| 2004 | Richard Griffiths | The History Boys |
| 2005 | Simon Russell Beale | The Philanthropist |
| 2006 | Rufus Sewell | Rock 'n' Roll |
| 2007 | Charles Dance | Shadowlands |
| 2008 | Kenneth Branagh | Ivanov |
| 2009 | Mark Rylance | Jerusalem |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | David Suchet | All My Sons |
| 2011 | Benedict Cumberbatch | Frankenstein |
| 2012 | Adrian Lester | Red Velvet |
| 2013 | Lenny Henry | Fences |
| 2014 | Mark Strong | A View from the Bridge |
| 2015 | Kenneth Cranham | The Father |
| 2016 | Stephen Dillane | Faith Healer |
| 2017 | Bryan Cranston | Network |
| 2018 | Kyle Soller | The Inheritance |
| 2019 | Andrew Scott | Present Laughter |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Ben Daniels | The Normal Heart |
| 2023 | Giles Terera | Blues for an Alabama Sky and Othello |
| 2024 | Andrew Scott | Vanya |

### Best Actress

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1982 | Judi Dench | The Importance of Being Earnest and A Kind of Alaska |
| 1983 | Juliet Stevenson | Measure for Measure |
| 1984 | Glenda Jackson | Strange Interlude |
| 1985 | Vanessa Redgrave | The Seagull |
| 1986 | Joan Plowright | The House of Bernarda Alba |
| 1987 | Judi Dench | Antony and Cleopatra |
| 1988 | Pauline Collins | Shirley Valentine |
| 1989 | Fiona Shaw | Electra and The Good Person of Sichuan |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Josette Simon | After the Fall |
| 1991 | Fiona Shaw | Hedda Gabler |
| 1992 | Eileen Atkins | The Night of the Iguana |
| 1993 | Penelope Wilton | The Deep Blue Sea |
| 1994 | Clare Higgins | The Children's Hour and Sweet Bird of Youth |
| 1995 | Claire Skinner | The Glass Menagerie |
| 1996 | Janet McTeer | A Doll's House |
| 1997 | Judi Dench | Amy's View |
| 1998 | Sinéad Cusack | Our Lady of Sligo |
| 1999 | Janie Dee | Comic Potential |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Victoria Hamilton | As You Like It |
| 2001 | Lindsay Duncan | Mouth to Mouth and Private Lives |
| 2002 | Clare Higgins | Vincent in Brixton |
| 2003 | Eve Best | Mourning Becomes Electra |
| 2004 | Victoria Hamilton | Suddenly Last Summer |
| 2005 | Eve Best | Hedda Gabler |
| 2006 | Kathleen Turner | Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? |
| 2007 | Anne-Marie Duff | Saint Joan |
| 2008 | Margaret Tyzack | The Chalk Garden |
| 2009 | Rachel Weisz | A Streetcar Named Desire |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Jenny Jules | Ruined |
| 2011 | Sheridan Smith | Flare Path |
| 2012 | Hattie Morahan | A Doll's House |
| 2013 | Lesley Manville | Ghosts |
| 2014 | Helen McCrory | Medea |
| 2015 | Denise Gough | People, Places and Things |
| 2016 | Billie Piper | Yerma |
| 2017 | Victoria Hamilton | Albion |
| 2018 | Patsy Ferran | Summer and Smoke |
| 2019 | Sharon D Clarke | Death of a Salesman |
| 2019 | Juliet Stevenson | The Doctor |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Jessie Buckley | Cabaret |
| 2023 | Patsy Ferran | A Streetcar Named Desire |
| 2024 | Sophie Okonedo | Medea |

### Best Designer

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1982 | John Gunter | The Beggar's Opera and Guys and Dolls |
| 1982 | Grant Hicks | The Double Man and True West |
| 1983 | Voytek | Great and Small |
| 1984 | Alison Chitty | Venice Preserved |
| 1985 | William Dudley | The Critic, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Mutiny, The Mysteries and The Real Inspector Hound |
| 1986 | Ezio Frigerio | The House of Bernarda Alba |
| 1986 | Maria Björnson | The Phantom of the Opera |
| 1987 | Maria Björnson | Follies |
| 1987 | Michael Taylor | Attractions |
| 1988 | Richard Hudson | The Old Vic season |
| 1989 | John Napier | Miss Saigon |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Mark Thompson | The Wind in the Willows |
| 1991 | Bob Crowley | Murmuring Judges |
| 1992 | Ian MacNeil | An Inspector Calls |
| 1993 | Ian MacNeil | Machinal |
| 1994 | Mark Thompson | The Kitchen |
| 1995 | Robin Don | The Winter Guest |
| 1996 | Robert Innes Hopkins | The Comedy of Errors and The Weavers |
| 1997 | John Napier | Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up |
| 1998 | Phelim McDermott, Julian Crouch and Graeme Gilmour | Shockheaded Peter |
| 1998 | Richard Hoover | Not About Nightingales |
| 1999 | Julie Taymor and Richard Hudson | The Lion King |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Paul Brown | Coriolanus, Richard II and The Tempest |
| 2001 | Paul Brown | Platonov |
| 2002 | William Dudley | The Coast of Utopia |
| 2003 | Bob Crowley | Mourning Becomes Electra |
| 2004 | Christopher Oram | Suddenly Last Summer |
| 2005 | Timothy Bird and David Farley | Sunday in the Park with George |
| 2006 | Punchdrunk Company | Faust |
| 2007 | Rae Smith and Handspring Puppet Company | War Horse |
| 2008 | Neil Murray | Brief Encounter |
| 2009 | Christopher Oram | Red |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Bunny Christie | The White Guard |
| 2011 | Mark Tildesley | Frankenstein |
| 2012 | Miriam Buether | Wild Swans |
| 2013 | Es Devlin | Chimerica |
| 2014 | Es Devlin | The Nether |
| 2015 | Anna Fleischle | Hangmen |
| 2016 | Christine Jones | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child |
| 2017 | Vicki Mortimer | Follies |
| 2018 | Bunny Christie | Company |
| 2019 | Tom Scutt | A Very Expensive Poison |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Tom Scutt | Cabaret |
| 2023 | Tom Pye | My Neighbour Totoro |
| 2024 | Miriam Buether and 59 Productions | Stranger Things: The First Shadow |

### Best Director

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1982 | James Roose-Evans | 84, Charing Cross Road |
| 1983 | Terry Hands | Cyrano de Bergerac (classical) |
| 1983 | Giles Havergal | Men Should Weep (modern) |
| 1984 | Peter Gill | Fool for Love and Venice Preserved |
| 1985 | Bill Bryden | The Mysteries |
| 1986 | Mike Alfreds | The Cherry Orchard |
| 1987 | Declan Donnellan | Twelfth Night |
| 1988 | Peter Brook | The Mahabharata |
| 1989 | Nicholas Hytner | Ghetto and Miss Saigon |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Peter Hall | The Wild Duck |
| 1990 | Robert Lepage | Tectonic Plates |
| 1991 | Trevor Nunn | Timon of Athens |
| 1992 | Stephen Daldry | An Inspector Calls |
| 1993 | Terry Hands | Tamburlaine the Great |
| 1994 | Sean Mathias | Design for Living and Les Parents terribles |
| 1995 | Sam Mendes | The Glass Menagerie |
| 1996 | Richard Eyre | Guys and Dolls and John Gabriel Borkman |
| 1997 | Richard Eyre | The Invention of Love and King Lear |
| 1998 | Howard Davies | Flight and The Iceman Cometh |
| 1999 | Trevor Nunn | The Merchant of Venice and Summerfolk |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Michael Grandage | As You Like It, Merrily We Roll Along and Passion Play |
| 2001 | Robert Lepage | The Far Side of the Moon |
| 2002 | Sam Mendes | Twelfth Night and Uncle Vanya |
| 2003 | Howard Davies | Mourning Becomes Electra |
| 2004 | Rufus Norris | Festen |
| 2005 | Michael Grandage | The Wild Duck |
| 2006 | John Tiffany | Black Watch |
| 2007 | Rupert Goold | Macbeth |
| 2008 | Michael Grandage | The Chalk Garden and Ivanov |
| 2009 | Rupert Goold | Enron |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Michael Grandage | King Lear |
| 2010 | Thea Sharrock | After the Dance |
| 2011 | Mike Leigh | Grief |
| 2012 | Benedict Andrews | Three Sisters |
| 2013 | Lyndsey Turner | Chimerica |
| 2014 | Ivo van Hove | A View from the Bridge |
| 2015 | Robert Icke | Oresteia |
| 2016 | John Tiffany | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child |
| 2017 | Dominic Cooke | Follies |
| 2018 | Stephen Daldry | The Inheritance |
| 2019 | Jamie Lloyd | Betrayal, Cyrano de Bergerac and Evita |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Rebecca Frecknall | Cabaret |
| 2023 | Lynette Linton | Blues for an Alabama Sky |
| 2024 | Rupert Goold | Dear England |

### Best Musical

Known as the 'Peter Hepple Award' from 2016 onwards.
1980s
| Year | Work |
| 1982 | Guys and Dolls |
| 1983 | Blood Brothers |
| 1984 | On Your Toes |
| 1985 | Me and My Girl |
| 1986 | Chess |
| 1987 | Follies |
| 1988 | South Pacific |
| 1989 | Miss Saigon |
1990s
| Year | Work |
| 1990 | Into the Woods |
| 1991 | Carmen Jones |
| 1992 | Assassins |
| 1993 | City of Angels |
| 1994 | She Loves Me |
| 1995 | Company |
| 1996 | Guys and Dolls |
| 1997 | Chicago |
| 1998 | Oklahoma! |
| 1999 | Spend Spend Spend |
2000s
| Year | Work |
| 2000 | The Beautiful Game |
| 2001 | Kiss Me, Kate |
| 2002 | Anything Goes |
| 2003 | Jerry Springer: The Opera |
| 2004 | The Producers |
| 2005 | Billy Elliot the Musical |
| 2006 | Caroline, or Change |
| 2007 | Hairspray |
| 2008 | La Cage Aux Folles |
| 2009 | Spring Awakening |
2010s
| Year | Work |
| 2010 | Matilda the Musical |
| 2011 | London Road |
| 2012 | Merrily We Roll Along |
| 2013 | The Scottsboro Boys |
| 2014 | Gypsy |
| 2015 | Bend It Like Beckham: The Musical |
| 2016 | Groundhog Day |
| 2017 | Hamilton |
| 2018 | Company |
| 2019 | Come From Away |
2020s
| Year | Work |
| 2022 | Spring Awakening |
| 2023 | Oklahoma! |
| 2024 | Guys and Dolls |

### Best New Play

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Writer |
| 1982 | A Kind of Alaska | Harold Pinter |
| 1984 | One for the Road | Harold Pinter |
| 1985 | A Chorus of Disapproval | Alan Ayckbourn |
| 1986 | Road | Jim Cartwright |
| 1987 | Curtains | Stephen Bill |
| 1987 | Fashion | Doug Lucie |
| 1988 | The Secret Rapture | David Hare |
| 1989 | Ghetto | Joshua Sobol |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Writer |
| 1990 | Racing Demon | David Hare |
| 1991 | Three Birds Alighting on a Field | Timberlake Wertenbaker |
| 1992 | Angels in America | Tony Kushner |
| 1993 | Arcadia | Tom Stoppard |
| 1994 | Dead Funny | Terry Johnson |
| 1995 | The Steward of Christendom | Sebastian Barry |
| 1996 | Blinded by the Sun | Stephen Poliakoff |
| 1997 | Closer | Patrick Marber |
| 1998 | Copenhagen | Michael Frayn |
| 1999 | Mnemonic | Simon McBurney |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Writer |
| 2000 | Blue/Orange | Joe Penhall |
| 2001 | Humble Boy | Charlotte Jones |
| 2002 | The York Realist | Peter Gill |
| 2003 | Democracy | Michael Frayn |
| 2004 | The History Boys | Alan Bennett |
| 2005 | Harvest | Richard Bean |
| 2006 | Rock'n'Roll | Tom Stoppard |
| 2007 | A Disappearing Number | Simon McBurney and Complicite |
| 2008 | August: Osage County | Tracy Letts |
| 2009 | Jerusalem | Jez Butterworth |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Writer |
| 2010 | Clybourne Park | Bruce Norris |
| 2011 | One Man, Two Guvnors | Richard Bean |
| 2012 | The Effect | Lucy Prebble |
| 2013 | Chimerica | Lucy Kirkwood |
| 2014 | King Charles III | Mike Bartlett |
| 2015 | Hangmen | Martin McDonagh |
| 2016 | The Flick | Annie Baker |
| 2017 | The Ferryman | Jez Butterworth |
| 2018 | The Inheritance | Matthew Lopez |
| 2019 | A Very Expensive Poison | Lucy Prebble |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Writer |
| 2022 | Best of Enemies | James Graham |
| 2023 | Patriots | Peter Morgan |
| 2024 | The Motive and the Cue | Jack Thorne |

### Best Shakespearean Performance

Known as the 'John and Wendy Trewin Award' from 2000 until 2015, and 'The Trewin Award' from 2016 onwards.
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Simon Russell Beale | Hamlet |
| 2001 | Samuel West | Hamlet |
| 2002 | Mark Rylance | Twelfth Night |
| 2003 | Greg Hicks | Coriolanus |
| 2004 | Paul Rhys | Measure for Measure |
| 2005 | Kevin Spacey | Richard II |
| 2006 | Tamsin Greig | Much Ado About Nothing |
| 2007 | Chiwetel Ejiofor | Othello |
| 2007 | Patrick Stewart | Macbeth |
| 2008 | Derek Jacobi | Twelfth Night |
| 2008 | David Tennant | Hamlet |
| 2009 | Jude Law | Hamlet |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Derek Jacobi | King Lear |
| 2011 | Eddie Redmayne | Richard II |
| 2012 | Simon Russell Beale | Timon of Athens |
| 2013 | Rory Kinnear | Othello |
| 2014 | Antony Sher | Henry IV |
| 2015 | Judi Dench | The Winter's Tale |
| 2016 | Glenda Jackson | King Lear |
| 2017 | Andrew Scott | Hamlet |
| 2018 | Sophie Okonedo | Antony and Cleopatra |
| 2019 | Hammed Animashaun | A Midsummer Night's Dream |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Cush Jumbo | Hamlet |
| 2023 | Arthur Hughes | Richard III |
| 2024 | David Tennant | Macbeth |

### Most Promising Newcomer

Known as the 'Jack Tinker Award' from 1996 onwards.
1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1989 | Sam Mendes | Artistic direction at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester |
| 1989 | Julia Ormond | Faith, Hope and Charity |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Sara Crow | Private Lives |
| 1991 | Lia Williams | The Revengers' Comedies |
| 1992 | Rufus Sewell | Making It Better |
| 1993 | Emma Fielding | Arcadia and The School for Wives |
| 1994 | Rachel Weisz | Design for Living |
| 1995 | Victoria Hamilton | The Master Builder and Retreat |
| 1996 | James Callis | Old Wicked Songs |
| 1997 | Liza Walker | Closer |
| 1998 | Mick Gordon | Gate Theatre, London |
| 1999 | Eve Best | 'Tis Pity She's a Whore |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Chiwetel Ejiofor | Blue/Orange |
| 2001 | Lyndsey Marshal | Boston Marriage and Redundant |
| 2002 | Alison Pargeter | Damsels in Distress |
| 2003 | Lisa Dillon | Iphigenia and The Master Builder |
| 2004 | Eddie Redmayne | The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? |
| 2005 | Mariah Gale | 'Tis Pity She's a Whore |
| 2006 | Andrew Garfield | Citizenship and The Overwhelming |
| 2007 | Leanne Jones | Hairspray |
| 2008 | Ella Smith | Fat Pig |
| 2009 | Tom Sturridge | Punk Rock |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Daniel Kaluuya | Sucker Punch |
| 2011 | Blanche McIntyre | Accolade and Foxfinder |
| 2012 | Denise Gough | Desire Under the Elms and Our New Girl |
| 2013 | Kate O'Flynn | Port |
| 2014 | Patsy Ferran | Blithe Spirit and Treasure Island |
| 2015 | David Moorst | Violence and Son |
| 2016 | Anthony Boyle | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child |
| 2017 | Sheila Atim | Girl From the North Country |
| 2017 | John McCrea | Everybody’s Talking About Jamie |
| 2018 | Chris Walley | The Lieutenant of Inishmore |
| 2019 | Sam Tutty | Dear Evan Hansen |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Samuel Creasy | The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage |
| 2022 | Stuart Thompson | Spring Awakening |
| 2023 | Lizzie Annis | The Glass Menagerie |
| 2024 | Louis McCartney | Stranger Things: The First Shadow |
| 2024 | Jack Wolfe | Next to Normal |

### Most Promising Playwright

1980s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1989 | Stephen Jeffreys | Valued Friends |
1990s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 1990 | Clare McIntyre | My Heart's a Suitcase |
| 1991 | Rona Munro | Bold Girls |
| 1992 | Philip Ridley | The Fastest Clock in the Universe |
| 1993 | Simon Donald | Theatre of Stuff |
| 1994 | Kevin Elyot | My Night With Reg |
| 1995 | Jez Butterworth | Mojo |
| 1996 | Martin McDonagh | The Beauty Queen of Leenane |
| 1997 | Conor McPherson | The Weir |
| 1998 | Rebecca Prichard | Yard Gal |
| 1999 | Charlotte Jones | Martha, Josie and the Chinese Elvis |
2000s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2000 | Joanna Laurens | The Three Birds |
| 2001 | Gregory Burke | Gagarin Way |
| 2002 | Charlotte Eilenberg | The Lucky Ones |
| 2003 | Lucy Prebble | The Sugar Syndrome |
| 2004 | Rebecca Lenkiewicz | The Night Season |
| 2005 | Laura Wade | Breathing Corpses and Colder Than Here |
| 2006 | Nina Raine | Rabbit |
| 2007 | Polly Stenham | That Face |
| 2008 | Alexi Kaye Campbell | The Pride |
| 2009 | Alia Bano | Shades |
2010s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2010 | Anya Reis | Spur of the Moment |
| 2011 | Tom Well | The Kitchen Sink |
| 2012 | Lolita Chakrabarti | Red Velvet |
| 2013 | Rory Kinnear | The Herd |
| 2013 | Phoebe Waller-Bridge | Fleabag |
| 2014 | Barney Norris | Visitors |
| 2015 | James Fritz | Four Minutes Twelve Seconds |
| 2016 | Charlene James | Cuttin’ It |
| 2017 | Branden Jacobs-Jenkins | Gloria and An Octoroon |
| 2018 | Natasha Gordon | Nine Night |
| 2019 | Jasmine Lee-Jones | Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner |
2020s
| Year | Recipient | Work |
| 2022 | Igor Memic | Old Bridge |
| 2022 | Zadie Smith | The Wife of Willesden |
| 2023 | Tyrell Williams | Red Pitch |
| 2024 | Marcelo Dos Santos | Backstairs Billy |
| 2024 | Matilda Feyiṣayọ Ibini | Sleepova |

## Special awards

| Year | Recipient | Notes |
| 2017 | David Lan | Commendation for artistic direction at the Young Vic |
| 2018 | Neil McPherson | Commendation for artistic direction at the Finborough Theatre |
| 2019 | Paule Constable | Commendation for lighting design |
| 2022 | Jermyn Street Theatre | Commendations for exceptional theatre-making during lockdown |
| 2022 | National Theatre | Commendations for exceptional theatre-making during lockdown |
| 2022 | Nica Burns | Commendations for exceptional theatre-making during lockdown |
| 2022 | The Old Vic | Commendations for exceptional theatre-making during lockdown |
| 2022 | Original Theatre Company | Commendations for exceptional theatre-making during lockdown |
| 2023 | New Diorama Theatre | Recipient of the Peter Brook Award for an innovative venue |
| 2024 | Orange Tree Theatre | Recipient of the Peter Brook Award for an innovative venue |