In an afternoon ceremony, the British Theatre Critics presented the 2026 Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards with “All My Sons” and “Into the Woods” leading the list of winners. And a bear from darkest Peru won over the hearts of the critics to bring home an award of his own.
Critics’ Circle Drama Section Chair Mark Lawson spoke on the awards via statement saying, “in the first year that our members voted from long lists and shortlists—an attempt to extend the range of work considered—around 250 candidates were considered across the process, of which 179 received at least one vote. These came down to the eleven winners honored today. Some categories were won by a landslide, but others were tight five-or six-way contests eventually decided after a recount, suggesting strong quality among the quantity. Overall—and with the winner of the Empty Space…Peter Brook Award, decided by a separate panel—they show an exhilarating range of work across a vast variety of venues and genres—all achieved in challenging economic times. It is particularly pleasing that the array of talents in the Most Promising Playwright and Best Newcomer categories indicate that the current high quality of theatre here is guaranteed to continue.”
And the winners are:
Best New Play: “Punch” by James Graham
Best Revival of a Play of Musical: “All My Sons”
Best New Musical: “Paddington The Musical”
Best Director: Ivo van Hove for “All My Sons”
Best Ensemble or Cast: “Into the Woods”
Most Promising Playwright: Ava Pickett for “1536”
Best Actor: Brendan Gleeson for his role in “The Weir”
Best Actress: Rosamund Pike for her role in “Inter Alia”
Best Designer: Tom Scutt for “Into the Woods”
Best Shakespearean Performance: Hayley Atwell for “Much Ado About Nothing”
Most Promising Newcomer: Ruby Ashbourne-Serkis in “Indian Ink”