Olivier Awards 2016

The sound design for Hamlet was quite good. I liked the set too. I don't think it deserves nominations for anything other than for the design elements though.

Agreed. If Hamlet deserved any nominations it was for the design-while the set isn't what I'd have personally gone with it was undeniably epic/interesting. Personally I loved the sound design as well.

Showstopper is up for Best Entertainment and Family

Very surprised Preeya Kalidas's nomination. She wasn't in my top three performances (by a female) in that show. Maybe they're just trying to avoid their own mini race-row, not that the Oliviers have been bad on that front in the past.

No, I thought her performance was very one-note and obvious. Just a bland copy of the girls from Goodness Gracious Me. She's better than that.

Although, having said that she was probably written like that and directed to act it like that, so in that sense I guess she did it perfectly.

Best New Play is a tough category, I think it'll be between Hangmen and People, Places and Things.

I'm a big fan of Suchet but when I saw his performance as Lady Bracknell (pre-London, admittedly) it was technical challenge but didn't seemingly require him to find the emotional and intellectual depth of some of his other roles. Although, he should've won for All My Sons, in my opinion.
No Mofo Hat?
No Johnny Flynn?
No Chiwetel Ejiofor or Death of a Salesman?

Thank you ! I haven't seen all of them in the plays categories but I don't think Cumbers really could have been the best. Judi Dench actually I think does deserve the award. Funny that...she is good. I think that Shakespeare wrote that part for her. 

I cannot believe Johnny Flynn wasn't nominated.

That is outrageous.

And how on earth did Brannagh get nominated? He was appalling in that.

Yes, I think Suchet is in the Leo category (sympathy/lifetime achievement vote) for the Oliviers - been nominated something like 6 times and never won. I'm also a big fan and never forgiven Kevin Spacey for winning the year Suchet should have won for Amadeus.

Plenty to be confused about but no Jonny Flynn is just insane, none of the nominees in that category are anywhere near his performance (and a large number of other unnominated actors can also be somewhat aggrieved). Angus Wright for best actor for Oresteia clearly wan't famous enough either.

Some of my favourites were never going to be liked enough by the more traditionally focused Oliviers but the play revival and director nominations include some that are very unworthy. Hamlet and Les Liaisons Dangereuses when I would have included Measure for Measure (Young Vic) and Beaux Stratagem (entirely forgotten, NT) and Jonathan Kent repeating pretty much what Jerome Robbins already did for Gypsy coming nowhere near the achievement of Michael Longhurst for Carmen Disruption (Almeida, similarly forgotten)

As for musicals, less to disagree with purely because they have a very small pool to fish in but Close To You deserved something instead of the execrable score created by Lauper and Oremus.