| Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical | |
|---|---|
 2025 Recipient:Imelda Staunton | |
| Awarded for | Best Actress in a Musical |
| Location | England |
| Presented by | Society of London Theatre |
| First award | 1979 |
| Currently held by | Imelda Staunton forHello, Dolly! (2025) |
| Website | officiallondontheatre |
TheLaurence Olivier Award forBest Actress in a Musical is an annual award presented by theSociety of London Theatre in recognition of achievements inprofessional London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in1976, and renamed in1984 in honour of English actor and directorLaurence Olivier.
This award was introduced in1979, along with the award forBest Actor in a Musical. In1977 and1978, there had been a commingled actor/actress award forBest Performance in a Musical, won both times by an actress.
| Year | Actress | Musical | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | |||
| Virginia McKenna | The King and I | Anna Leonowens | |
| Carol Channing | Hello, Dolly! | Dolly Gallagher Levi | |
| Antonia Ellis | Chicago | Velma Kelly | |
| Liz Robertson | My Fair Lady | Eliza Doolittle |
From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction — you must stay at home.
{{cite speech}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Step 4 of the roadmap will allow productions to play without capacity restrictions. June 21 was the goal; now, the government is eyeing July 19.
Any new production that opened between 19 Feb. 2020 to 22 Feb. 2022 are eligible for categories in the 2022 Olivier Awards. With two years worth of shows set for honours in one year's ceremony, the 2022 Olivier Awards will prove tougher competition than before.