Michael Ball has been recognised by the Olivier Awards with MasterCard for his acclaimed performance in Sweeney Todd, taking home the much coveted Best Actor in a Musical prize.
This win marks the hugely popular actor and singer’s second Olivier Award win after collecting a prize in the same category in 2008 for his role in Hairspray.
When the musical opened in the West End last March, Official London Theatre’s Matthew Amer described Ball’s remarkable performance as “heart-stopping”, saying: “This version of Michael Ball is almost unrecognisable. Gone is the cheery, loveable, dimpled presenter and the chuckling, corpsing, dragged up star of Hairspray. Instead, when Mark Henderson’s atmospheric lighting first illuminates Ball as Sweeney Todd, we meet a still, brooding, snarling, giant of a psychotic man.”
Ball’s career has spanned more than four decades and seen the star take leading roles in iconic shows including The Phantom Of The Opera, Aspects Of Love, Les Misérables and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in both the West End and on Broadway.
Not content with just conquering the stage, Ball is also a multi-platinum recording artist, has toured extensively, is a radio and television broadcaster and presented the Olivier Awards with his Sweeney Todd co-star Imelda Staunton in 2011 and 2012.
Joking he was planning to use his award as a bookend alongside his award from 2008, Ball said the win was “awesome, absolutely awesome,” describing his time in the show as “…the best time of my life. Without question. It was a thrill every night. Working with her [Imelda Staunton] was the greatest thing.”
The actor triumphs in the category over fellow nominees Alex Bourne (Kiss Me, Kate), Tom Chambers (Top Hat) and Will Young (Cabaret).
