Oliviers 2016 nominations list: Gypsy leads with eight nominations including Best Actress for Imelda Staunton

The annual theatres awards ceremony takes place in April

Imelda Staunton earned rave reviews for her 'magnificent' performance as Momma Rose in Gypsy (JOHAN PERSSON)

Imelda Staunton has picked up her eleventh Olivier Award nomination for Gypsy, which leads the field with an impressive eight nods.

Staunton is up for Best Actress in a Musical for her hugely acclaimed leading role, while Dame Judi Dench will be celebrating her fifteenth nomination for The Winter's Tale.

Musical Kinky Boots follows Gypsy with seven nominations, while The Winter’s Tale and Farinelli and the King have both racked up six.

Farinelli and the King's Mark Rylance will be competing against Hamlet’s Benedict Cumberbatch for Best Actor in a Play following his Best Supporting Actor win for Spotlight at Sunday night’s Oscars.

Bend It Like Beckham is a contender for Best New Musical, along with In the Heights, Kinky Boots and Mrs Henderson Presents.

Take a look at the full list of nominations:

Best New Musical

Bend It Like Beckham

In the Heights

Mrs Henderson Presents

Kinky Boots

The Hounslow Harriers in Bend It Like Beckham

Best Musical Revival

Gypsy

Bugsy Malone

Guys and Dolls

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

David Haig (Nathan Detroit) and the cast of Guys and Dolls (Paul Coltas)

Best Actress in a Musical

Imelda Staunton for Gypsy

Sophie Thompson for Guys and Dolls

Natalie Dew for Bend It Like Beckham

Tracie Bennett for Mrs Henderson Presents

Laura Pitt-Pulford for Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Best Actress nominee Imelda Staunton in rehearsals for Gypsy (JOHAN PERSSON)

Best Actor in a Musical

Ian Bartholomew for Mrs Henderson Presents

Killian Donnelly for Kinky Boots

David Haig for Guys and Dolls

Matt Henry for Kinky Boots

Jamie Parker for Guys and Dolls

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical

David Bedella for In the Heights

Dan Burton for Gypsy

Peter Davison for Gypsy

Gavin Spokes for Guys and Dolls

Best Supporting Actress in a Musical

Lara Pulver for Gypsy

Preeya Kalidas for Bend It Like Beckham

Amy Lennox for Kinky Boots

Emma Williams for Mrs Henderson Presents

Best Director

Rob Ashford and Kenneth Branagh for The Winter’s Tale

Robert Icke for Oresteia

Matthew Dunster for Hangmen

Jonathan Kent for Gypsy

David Morrissey (Harry), Johnny Flynn (Mooney) and Ralph Ineson (Inspector Fry) in Hangmen (Simon Annand)

Best Actress in a Play

Gemma Arterton for Nell Gwynn

Denise Gough for People, Places and Things

Nicole Kidman for Photograph 51

Janet McTeer for Les Liasons Dangereuses

Lia Williams for Oresteia


 Gemma Arterton is up for Best Actress in a Play for her performance as Nell Gwynn
 (Simon Turtle)

Best Actor in a Play

Kenneth Branagh for The Winter’s Tale

Kenneth Cranham for The Father

Benedict Cumberbatch for Hamlet

Adrian Lester for Red Velvet

Mark Rylance for Farinelli and the King

Benedict Cumberbatch takes the lead in Hamlet at the Barbican (John Persson)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Judi Dench for The Winter’s Tale

Michele Dotrice for Nell Gwynn

Melody Grove for Farinelli and the King

Catherine Steadman for Oppenheimer

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Mark Gatiss for Three Days in the Country

Michael Pennington for The Winter’s Tale

Tom Sturridge for American Buffalo

David Suchet for The Importance of Being Earnest

Best New Play

Farinelli and the King

The Father

Hangmen

People, Place and Things

Best Revival

Hamlet

Les Liasons Dangereuses

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

The Winter’s Tale


 Tickets to see Benedict Cumberbatch in Hamlet were hard to come by
 (John Persson)

Best New Comedy

A Christmas Carol

Hand to God

Nell Gwynn

Peter Pan Goes Wrong

Best Costume Design

Gregg Barnes for Kinky Boots

Hugh Durrant for Nell Gwynn

Jonathan Fensom for Farinelli and the King

Katrina Lindsay for Bend It Like Beckham

Best Set Design

Hildegard Bechtler for Oresteia

Es Devlin for Hamlet

Jonathan Fensom for Farinelli and the King

Anna Fleischle for Hangmen

Best Lighting Design

Neil Austin for The Winter’s tale

Natasha Chivers for Oresteia

James Farncombe for People, Places and Things

Mark Henderson for Gypsy

Best Sound Design

George Dennis for The Homecoming

Christopher Shutt for The Father

Tom Gibbons for People, Places and Things

Christopher Shutt for Hamlet

Best Theatre Choreographer

Carlos Acosta and Andrew Wright for Guys and Dolls

Drew McOnie for In The Heights

Stephen Mear for Gypsy

Jerry Mitchell for Kinky Boots

Outstanding Achievement in Music

Bend It Like Beckham

Farinelli and the King

In the Heights

Kinky Boots

Outstanding Achievement in Dance

Alessandra Ferri

Javier De Frutos

Sasha Waltz

Best New Dance Production

He Who Falls (Celui Qui Tombe)

Romeo Et Juliette

Woolf Works

Best Entertainment and Family

Alice’s Adventures Underground

Dr Seuss’s The Lorax

I Want My Hat Back

Peter Pan

Showstopper! The Improvised Musical

Best New Opera Production

Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci

The Force of Destiny

Morgen Und Abend

Outstanding Achievement in Opera

English National Opera Chorus and Orchestra for The Force of Destiny, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and The Queen of Spades

Felicity Palmer for The Queen of Spades

Antonio Pappano for conducting Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci, Guillaume Tell and Krol Roger

Tamara Wilson for The Force of Destiny

Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre

Barbarians

Pat Kinevane and Fishamble

Phil Dunster

Violence and Son