Helpmann Award Winners 2013
Recipients of the 13th annual Helpmann Awards were announced at the Sydney Opera House this evening in a ceremony co-hosted by Eddie Perfect and Christie Whelan-Browne.
With special performances throughout the evening from Perfect and Whelan-Browne, Tim Minchin, the casts of Grease and Hot Shoe Shuffle, the event celebrated Australia’s Live Performance Industry with spunk and pizazz.

43 awards were announced by a host of presenters including Baz Lurhmann, Sharon Millerchip, Rob Mills and Erika Heynatz and a full list of the winners is detailed below!
The big winners this year were were:
Secret River (STC) – 6 awards
Legally Blonde – 5 awards
King Kong – 5 awards
Salome – 4 awards
Best Regional Touring Production
CIRCA
Toured by Performing Lines for Road Work
Best Male Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera
José Carbó
Die Tote Stadt
Opera Australia
Best Female Performer in a Supporting Role in an Opera
Jacqueline Dark
Salome
Opera Australia
Best Chamber & / or Instrumental Ensemble Concert
Jordi Savall & Andrew Lawrence King
Melbourne Recital Centre
Best Scenic Design
Peter England
King Kong
Best Costume Design
Roger Kirk
King Kong
Global Creatures
King Kong Melbourne. Image by Belinda Strodder
Best Presentation for Children
School Dance
Windmill Theatre
Best Individual Classical Music Performance
Simone Young Conducting The Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra
Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner (concert performance) & Symphony No. 2 in C Minor Resurrection by Gustav Mahler, Soloists from the Hamburg State Opera with the Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Queensland Performing Arts Centre & Events Queensland
Best Choreography in a Musical
Jerry Mitchell
Legally Blonde The Musical
Howard Panter for The Ambassador Theatre Group & John Frost for Gordon Frost Organisation
Best Lighting Design
Peter Mumford
King Kong
Best Choreography in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production
Antony Hamilton
Black Project 1 & 2
Arts House & Antony Hamilton Projects
Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production
S
Circa
Best Sound Design
Peter Hylenski
King Kong
Best Special Event
White Night Melbourne
Victorian Major Events Company on behalf of the State Government of Victoria
Best Music Direction
Iain Grandage
The Secret River
Best International Contemporary Concert
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Wrecking Ball 2013
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band & Frontier Touring Company in association with Jacobsen International
Best Cabaret Performer
Robyn Archer AO
Robyn Archer in Concert: QUE RESTE-T-IL? at the Famous Spiegel Garden and Toulouse-Lautrec
Cabaret and Curator Dinner at The National Gallery of Australia
Robyn Archer, Michael Morley (Piano), George Butrumlis (Accordian)
Best Direction of an Opera
Alex Ollé
Un Ballo in Maschera
Opera Australia
Best Direction of a Play
Neil Armfield
The Secret River
Best Direction of a Musical
Jerry Mitchell
Legally Blonde The Musical
Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical
Russell Dykstra
The Addams Family
Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical
Helen Dallimore
Legally Blonde The Musical
Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play
Colin Moody
The Secret River
The Secret River won big this year with 6 gongs.
Image – Heidrun Lohr
Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play
Amber McMahon
School Dance
Best Australian Contemporary Concert
Neil Finn & Paul Kelly
Neil Finn, Paul Kelly & Live Nation Australasia by arrangement with Artist Voice
Best Original Score
Iain Grandage
The Secret River
Best Contemporary Music Festival
The 24th Annual Bluesfest Byron Bay
Bluesfest Touring
Best New Australian Work
Kate Grenville, adapted for the stage by Andrew Bovell
The Secret River
Best Comedy Performer
Julia Morris
Julia Morris – No Judgement
Fox in the Snow
Outstanding Theatrical Achievement
Awarded to King Kong’s creators and puppeteers for the design, creation and operation of King Kong, The Creature
Best Male Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production
Alisdair Macindoe
Dual
Best Female Dancer in a Dance or Physical Theatre Production
Deborah Brown
TERRAIN
Bangarra Dance Theatre
Best Ballet or Dance Work
TERRAIN
Bangarra Dance Theatre
Best Male Performer in an Opera
John Wegner
Salome
Opera Australia
Best Female Performer in an Opera
Cheryl Barker
Salome
Opera Australia
Best Symphony Orchestra Concert
Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner (concert performance), The Hamburg State Opera with The Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra
Queensland Performing Arts Centre & Events Queensland
Best Male Actor in a Musical
Geoffrey Rush
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Best Female Actor in a Musical
Lucy Durack
Legally Blonde The Musical
Best Male Actor in a Play
Colin Friels
Death of a Salesman
Best Female Actor in a Play
Alison Bell
Hedda Gabler
State Theatre Company of South Australia
Best Opera
Salome
Opera Australia
Best Play
The Secret River
Sydney Theatre Company in association with The Confederation of Australian International Arts Festivals, Sydney Festival, The Centenary of Canberra, Perth International Arts Festival
Best Musical
Legally Blonde The Musical
Howard Panter for The Ambassador Theatre Group & John Frost for Gordon Frost Organisation