by Mary Couzns
Cameron Mackintosh returns to number one in prestigious Stage 100
Deal to stage musicals in China and £35 million refurbishment of West End theatres help him beat Lloyd Webber to top spot.
The Stage newspaper has today announced The Stage 100 – the industry bible’s annual guide to the 100 most influential people in UK theatre.
*Cameron Mackintosh, London theatre owner and producer of shows such as Les Miserables, Avenue Q and The Phantom of the Opera, has returned to the top for the first time in eight years.
*Last year’s winners – Andrew Lloyd Webber and David Ian – slip to
No 2 and No 7 in the list, respectively.
*In 2008, Mackintosh and Lloyd Webber will work together as judges on the next BBC talent hunt – I’d Do Anything – to find stars for a revival of Mackintosh’s production of Oliver!
*The Stage 100 also features: Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Daniel Radcliffe, Anne-Marie Duff, Ewan McGregor, Lee Mead, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Trevor Nunn, Carlos Acosta and Damon Albarn.
*Ambassador Theatre Group’s Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire are placed third, while National Theatre artistic director Nicholas Hytner is fourth.
*Hairspray producer Stage Entertainment is a new entry in the Top 20, as is Macbeth director Rupert Goold.
*Both National Theatre of Scotland and pantomime producer Qdos Entertainment climb into the top 10.
*Regional theatre is strongly represented, with artistic directors from Wales, Scotland, Manchester, Leeds, Plymouth and Newcastle – among others.
*Stage Editor Brian Attwood said:
“Cameron Mackintosh has never been out of the upper echelons of The Stage 100 but has had to wait nearly a decade to regain top billing.
“This year he presents an unassailable case for the number one slot. In the West End he has led the way by refurbishing his playhouses at a cost of £35 million, while on television, his production of Oliver! is the BBC’s latest musical theatre talent show. Meanwhile, his agreement with Beijing will introduce his productions to a potential audience of millions and guarantees him an unrivalled global influence.”
The full top twenty is as follows:
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Cameron Mackintosh
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Andrew Lloyd Webber
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Howard Panter/Rosemary Squire (Ambassador Theatre Group)
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Nicholas Hytner (National Theatre)
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Nica Burns/Max Weitzenhoffer (Nimax)
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Bill Kenwright (producer)
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David Ian (Live Nation)
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Michael Boyd (Royal Shakespeare Company)
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Nick Thomas/Jon Conway (Qdos Entertainment)
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Vicky Featherstone/John Tiffany (National Theatre of Scotland)
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Sonia Friedman (producer)
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Dominic Cooke (Royal Court)
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Michael Grandage (Donmar Warehouse)
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Kevin Spacey / Sally Greene (Old Vic)
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Jonathan Church (Chichester Festival Theatres)
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David Lan (Young Vic)
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Graham Sheffield (Barbican)
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Bill Taylor (Stage Entertainment) – New Entry
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Jude Kelly (Southbank Centre)
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Rupert Goold (director) – New Entry
The full list appears in the December 28, 2007 issue of
The Stage
The Stage 100, launched in January 1997, represents the paper's choice of the most influential people involved in UK theatre over the previous 12 months.
Our list does not include arts administrators and politicians, nor those working in the broadcasting and light entertainment sectors. Only the first 20 choices have an overall industry ranking; the other 80 are the top figures in their categories alone and are not ranked within those sections.
Andrew Lloyd Webber has won first place more times than anyone else (six times). His victories in January 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002 and 2001 also make him the longest consecutive winner. Cameron Mackintosh is second (four times), having won in 1997, 1999, 2000 and this year (2008).
Only one woman has ever won top place. Australian Janet Holmes a Court, head of what was then the West End’s largest theatre group, Stoll Moss, came first in January 1998. She later sold her venues to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group.
Jude Kelly holds the record as the woman with the most entries in the Top 20. She is placed at 19 this year.
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The Stage Newspaper, founded in 1880 and still owned by the Comerford family, is the only trade paper for the performing arts and entertainment industry in Britain. It is published weekly on Thursdays.The Stage Online (www.thestage.co.uk) is the country's most popular web based performing arts publication and, overall, the second most visited site for Entertainment - Performing Arts, according to the Hitwise United Kingdom quarterly charts www.hitwise.co.uk with 365,000 unique visitors every month.
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