A New-Look 2022 Matilda Awards Announces Its Stellar Field Of Nominees

The prestigious Matilda Awards, Queensland's premier awards for performing arts, honours 2022's brightest and boldest artists across a range of new and refreshed categories.

A stellar shortlist of nominees will contest 20 categories when the annual celebration of Queensland's dazzling theatre industry is held at Brisbane Powerhouse on Monday 27 February 2023.

Matilda Awards Chair Jan Irvine said acting categories were now gender-inclusive for artists in lead and supporting roles across mainstage and independent productions.

"The Matilda Awards committee consistently strives to make this a more inclusive and representative celebration and will recognise actors across production type, rather than by gender," Ms Irvine said.

"We've also introduced two new categories this year: Best Ensemble acknowledges outstanding whole-of-cast performances and a Judges Award honours work that pushes artistic boundaries.

"There is an impressive number of new Australian works nominated this year and it's worth noting Metro Arts accounts for 12, or about half, of these nominations, cementing itself as a champion of independent and emerging local artists."

Leading the field with seven nominations is Batshit, a solo production by Leah Shelton interrogating the myths and fears of female madness at Metro Arts during Brisbane Festival.

Receiving six nominations apiece are Queensland Theatre's tri-lingual adaptation of Othello for Brisbane Festival and Bunker, a high-intensity physical theatre work staged at Metro Arts.

Queensland Theatre's The Almighty Sometimes is nominated in five categories with QPAC and shake & stir theatre co.'s The Twits and the Metro Arts/Counterpilot co-production of Adrift nominated for four awards each.

Vying for Best Mainstage Production are Fourteen, Othello, Slow Boat, The Almighty Sometimes and The Twits and productions contesting The Lord Mayor's Award for Best New Australian Work are An Ideal Husband, Batshit, Fourteen, Face to Face and Boy, Lost.

For more information, including ticket release dates, visit matildaawards.com.au.

2022 MATILDA AWARD NOMINATIONS

BEST DESIGN - SET

John Felmingham Adrift Metro Arts/Counterpilot & Sarah Winter

Josh McIntosh Fourteen shake & stir theatre co./QPAC/Brisbane Festival

Josh McIntosh & Echo Wu Slow Boat Brisbane Festival/Brisbane Powerhouse/Playlab Theatre

Renée Mulder First Casualty Queensland Theatre

Simone Romaniuk The Almighty Queensland Theatre Sometimes

BEST DESIGN - COSTUME

Simona Cosentini Othello Brisbane Festival/Queensland Theatre

& Simone Tesorieri

Maria McRae A Bee Story 2 ARC Circus

Renée Mulder First Casualty Queensland Theatre

Simone Romaniuk Bernhardt/Hamlet Queensland Theatre

Leah Shelton Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

BEST DESIGN - SOUND OR COMPOSITION

Sound Designer Holding Achilles Legs On The Wall/Dead Puppet Society/

Tony Brumpton Brisbane Festival/QPAC

Music by Tony Buchen

& Chris Bear with Montaigne

Kenneth Lyons Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

Guy Webster Bunker Metro Arts

Mike Willmett Adrift Metro Arts/Counterpilot

Mike Willmett The Almighty Sometimes Queensland Theatre

BEST DESIGN - LIGHTING

Christine Felmingham Adrift Metro Arts/Counterpilot

Christine Felmingham Bunker Metro Arts

Jason Glenwright Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

Jason Glenwright The Twits shake & stir theatre co./QPAC

Ben Hughes The Almighty Sometimes Queensland Theatre

BEST DESIGN - VIDEO

Jeremy Gordon & Nathan Sibthorpe Bunker Metro Arts

Blake Howson & Sarah Stafford Again,You Have Trusted Me Backbone Youth Arts

Grace Uther & Freddy Komp Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

Ken Weston Queen's City Blak Social Brisbane Festival/ Screen Qld/QPAC/

Craig Wilkinson First Casualty Queensland Theatre

BEST DIRECTOR

Ross Balbuziente The Twits shake & stir theatre co./QPAC

Daniel Evans The Almighty Sometimes Queensland Theatre

Mikayla Hosking Rabbit Hole Ad Astra

Jason Klarwein & Nathan Sibthorpe Othello Brisbane Festival/Queensland Theatre

Lisa Wilson Bunker Metro Arts

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE - INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

Zac Boulton Fuel Shock Therapy Productions

Paula Delaney-Nazarski Queen's City Blak Social Brisbane Festival/ Screen Qld/QPAC/

Sarah McLeod Fuel Shock Therapy Productions

Vanessa Moltzen Brilliant Traces Ad Astra

Leah Shelton Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE - MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Jimi Bani Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Queensland Theatre

Andrew Buchanan Othello Brisbane Festival/Queensland Theatre

Nelle Lee The Twits shake & stir theatre co./QPAC

Lorinda Merrypor Face to Face A Playlab Theatre Production presented in partnership with Metro Arts

Angie Milliken Bernhardt/Hamlet Queensland Theatre

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE - INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

James Blee BU21 The Drama Merchant

Madeleine Little and Janelle Bailey The Normal Heart Ad Astra

Bernadette Pryde Toy Symphony Ad Astra

Sam Valentine The Boys PIP Theatre

Tibian Wyles Queen's City Blak Social Brisbane Festival/ Screen Qld/QPAC/

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE - MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Amy Ingram Fourteen shake & stir theatre co./QPAC/Brisbane Festival

Benjin Maza Othello Brisbane Festival/Queensland Theatre

Sarah Ogden Othello Brisbane Festival/Queensland Theatre

Trent Owers The Sunshine Club Queensland Theatre/QPAC

Silvan Russ Slow Boat Brisbane Festival/Brisbane Powerhouse/Playlab Theatre

BEST ENSEMBLE

Boy, Lost Belloo Creative

Dirty Fame Flash Candles Club Western Standard Productions

First Casualty Queensland Theatre

Jane Eyre shake & stir theatre co.

Tiddas Brisbane Festival/La Boite Theatre/QPAC

Bille Brown AWARD BEST EMERGING ARTIST

Morgan Francis Boy, Lost Belloo Creative

Oliver Hetherington-Page The No Bang Theory indelabilityarts

Reagan Mannix First Casualty Queensland Theatre

Perry Mooney Queen's City Brisbane Festival/ Screen Qld/QPAC/Blak Social

Thomas Stewart Assume People Cluster Arts & Melon the Human Like You

BEST MUSICAL OR CABARET

A Very Naughty Christmas Woodward Productions

All Fired Up Box Jelly Creative/Brisbane Powerhouse

Dirty Fame Flash Candles Club Western Standard Productions

Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves The Little Red Company

The Last Five Years La Boite Theatre

BEST CIRCUS OR PHYSICAL THEATRE PRODUCTION

A Bee Story 2 ARC Circus

Bunker Metro Arts

Holding Achilles Brisbane Festival/QPAC/Dead Puppet Society/

Legs on the Wall

JINGLE JACs Entertainment

Knee Deep CIRCFest/Casus Creations

BEST INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION

All Fired Up Box Jelly Creative/Brisbane Powerhouse

Batshit Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts

Bear With Me Metro Arts

Boy, Lost Belloo Creative

Bunker Metro Arts

BEST MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION

Fourteen shake & stir theatre co./QPAC/Brisbane Festival

Othello Brisbane Festival/ Queensland Theatre

Slow Boat Brisbane Festival/Brisbane Powerhouse/Playlab Theatre

The Almighty Sometimes Queensland Theatre

The Twits shake & stir theatre co./QPAC

THE LORD MAYOR'S AWARD FOR BEST NEW AUSTRALIAN WORK

An Ideal Husband By Lewis Treston after Oscar Wilde

Produced by La Boite Theatre

Batshit By Leah Shelton

Produced by Brisbane Festival/Metro Arts.

Boy, Lost Adapted for the stage by Katherine Lyall-Watson from the book by Kristina Olsson

Produced by Belloo Creative

Face to Face By Emily Wells

A Playlab Theatre Production presented in partnership with Metro Arts

Fourteen By Nelle Lee, Nick Skubij with Shannon Molloy

Produced by shake & stir theatre co./QPAC/Brisbane Festival

THE JUDGES' AWARD

An award given at the discretion of the judges for outstanding theatrical endeavour which pushes artistic and/or other boundaries.

Adrift Metro Arts/Counterpilot

Again, You Have Trusted Me Backbone Youth Arts

LOVE, LUST, LOSS Broad Encounters

THE GOLD MATILDA

The Gold Matilda is a special open award presented for a standout production or performance element or in recognition of an individual company or group for their contribution to the industry.

This award is announced on the night.

QUT School of Creative Practice BACKSTAGE AWARD

The award recognises an individual or small group that displays excellence within their position behind the scenes.

This award is announced on the night.