News
My Neighbor Totoro Stage Play Nominated For 9 Olivier Awards
posted on by Andrew Osmond
The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)'s stage adaptation of Studio Ghibli's and Hayao Miyazaki's 1988 film My Neighbor Totoro has received nine nominations for the theatrical Oliver Awards. The awards ceremony will be on April 2 2023.
The play has been nominated in the following categories: Best Entertainment or Comedy Play, Best Director (Phelim McDermott), Best Costume Design (Kimie Nakano), Best Sound Design (Tony Gayle), Best Theatre Choreographer (Basil Twist for Puppetry Direction), Best Original Score or New Orchestration (Joe Hisaishi and Will Stuart), Best Set Design (Tom Pye), Best Lighting Design (Jessica Hung and Han Yun) and a Best Actress (Mei Mac, who plays Mei in the play).
The play received more nominations than any other stage productions, beating the musical Standing at the Sky's Edge with eight nominations.
The stage Totoro was previously nominated in nine categories for the WhatsOnStage awards, and won five of them, including Best Direction and Best Set Design.
My Neighbor Totoro had a 15-week run from October 8, 2022 to January 21, 2023 at London's Barbican Centre. It was presented by the RSC and Hayao Miyazaki's longtime composer Joe Hisaishi, who created the music for the original film and served as the play's executive producer. Tom Morton-Smith (Oppenheimer) adapted the story, and Phelim McDermott (Akhnaten) directed the production. The play was made in collaboration with the English theatre company Improbable and Japan's Nippon TV.
Morton-Smith said that he had permission "to expand on the beats (in the film) that are already there and show some scenes that aren't in the film.”
The RSC describes the production on its website:
"This enchanting coming-of-age story explores the magical fantasy world of childhood and the transformative power of imagination, as it follows one extraordinary summer in the lives of sisters Satsuki and Mei."
The original anime film My Neighbor Totoro is the story of two young sisters, Mei and Satsuki, who move to the countryside and encounter Totoro, wonderful creatures which only children can see.
Grateful thanks to Ian Wolf for the heads-up.
