The 36th Olivier Awards with MasterCard, the premiere event in the London theatrical awards calendar, will be broadcast online when it is staged next Sunday 15 April.
Theatre fans across the world will be able to watch the winners being revealed and the exclusive entertainment, including a live performance from Ronan Keating, via live streams on both olivierawards.com and bbc.com/radio2.
This globe-spanning online presentation is the latest way for audiences to follow what is already a huge celebration of excellence in London theatre that includes, in 2012, the star-studded ceremony at the Royal Opera House, a special event for the theatre community in New York, a free, entertainment-packed public event in Covent Garden piazza and coverage on BBC Radio 2 and via the BBC Red Button.
Excited theatre lovers tuning in online will be able to see the glamorous stars arriving on the red carpet from 17:30. Among the roster of talent expected at the event, alongside this year’s impressive list of nominees, are presenters including Scrubs and All New People star Zach Braff, British stars making it big in the US Hayley Atwell and Jack Davenport, Shakespearean great Sir Patrick Stewart and Downton Abbey star Dan Stevens.
The live stream will feature the same content as the BBC Red Button, which will be presented by Anneka Rice and feature the stars’ arrivals before the ceremony begins at 18:00, running until 21:00.
More details have emerged of this year’s ceremony, which will include performances by some of 2012’s nominated musicals along with tributes to this year’s two Special Award winners Sir Tim Rice and Dame Monica Mason.
At the public event in Covent Garden piazza, which begins at 16:00, BBC Radio 2 Olivier Audience Award nominees Billy Elliot The Musical, Les Misérables, Jersey Boys and Wicked will all be entertaining the crowds when the ceremony is not being streamed onto big screens. Fans can also watch their favourite stars walking down the red carpet from 16:30.
All theatrical eyes will be on events at the Royal Opera House on 15 April, to see if Matilda The Musical can convert all of its 10 nominations into wins and if One Man, Two Guvnors or The Ladykillers, which have five nominations each, will win the battle of this year’s top comedies.
Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton will host the illustrious event, which, with so many ways to follow, it would be very difficult for any theatre fan to miss. Fans can even get involved, ether by following or posting on the Oliviers Facebook page or by following the Oliviers twitter account and tweeting with the hashtag #Oliviers2012.