David Thaxton has been awarded Best Actor in a Musical for his performance as Captain Giorgio in the Donmar Warehouse revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Passion.
The actor fended off competition from Alex Gaumond (Legally Blonde The Musical), Ramin Karimloo (Love Never Dies), Sahr Ngaujah (Fela!) and Michael Xavier (Love Story) to win the coveted prize.
Thaxton was relatively unknown before being cast as the male lead in Passion, though he had played Enjolras in Les Misérables for several years. Following the success of Passion, he recently joined the cast of Love Never Dies to play Raoul alongside his Olivier Award competitor Karimloo as the Phantom.
The Donmar’s revival of Passion, a tale of obsessive love, was the centrepiece of a festival honouring the 80th birthday of composer Sondheim, who receives a Special Olivier Award tonight.