Sadie Sink has been voted Best West End Debut Performer at The Stage Debut Awards 2026, the one prize of the night settled by the public, at a ceremony that spread its two acting categories across four winners.
The ninth edition of The Stage Debut Awards, in association with Netflix, was handed out on Sunday evening at 8 Northumberland Avenue in London, and the award that carries the best-known name went where the voting public put it. Sadie Sink was named Best West End Debut Performer for Romeo and Juliet at the Harold Pinter Theatre, the only category of the eight that the judging panel shortlists but does not decide.
That places her in a run of winners that has become the closest thing the West End has to an annual public verdict on a newcomer: Rachel Zegler, Jodie Comer, Rose Ayling-Ellis and Jack Wolfe all took the same prize before her.
Both performance categories ended in a tie. Robert Aramayo and Zoe Armer shared Best Performer in a Play, sponsored by Encore, Aramayo for Guess How Much I Love You? at the Royal Court Theatre and Armer for her Anya in The Virgins at Soho Theatre.
Best Performer in a Musical, sponsored by Michael Harrison Entertainment, was likewise divided, between Julianne Pundan and James Spence. Pundan was recognised for her performance in Miss Saigon at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, and on tour, Spence for Thespians at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester, and on tour.
Off stage, Tommaso Giacomin was named Best Director for The Uncontainable Nausea of Alec Baldwin at the New Diorama Theatre, while Georgie Dettmer took Best Writer, sponsored by Sonia Friedman Productions, for Are You Watching? at the Royal Court.
Jordan Luke Gage, until now known as a performer, won Best Composer, Lyricist or Book Writer, sponsored by Theatrical Rights Worldwide, for Redcliffe at Southwark Playhouse Borough. It is a debut made three times over: he wrote the book, the music and the lyrics.
Natalie Roar took Best Designer, sponsored by Preevue, for her costume design on Les Liaisons Dangereuses at the National Theatre, and Ava Pickett won Best Creative West End Debut, sponsored by Jamie Wilson Productions, as the writer of 1536 at the Ambassadors Theatre. Pickett has now won in consecutive years, having taken Best Writer at last year’s ceremony.
Sam Marlowe, The Stage’s reviews editor and co-chair of the judging panel, said: “This year’s winners represent a truly exciting range of fresh talent – artists making their mark, bringing us work that speaks to our present moment and enriches and advances theatre as an art form. Their energy and vision are bound to ensure that the stage remains a vibrant, socially and culturally significant creative space.”
The evening was hosted by the actor and comedian Hammed Animashaun, with the categories handed over by Sting, Indhu Rubasingham, Matthew Xia, Tyrone Huntley, Marisha Wallace and Michael Rishawn. There were performances from Huntley and from Avenue Q, a medley from the West End Theatre Choir, and a surprise appearance by Sting alongside his The Last Ship co-star Frances McNamee.
The awards began in 2017 and reach their tenth anniversary in 2027. The 2026 shortlist was published in August, drawn from productions in the West End, in regional theatres, on tour and on the fringe, and the eligibility and judging rules are set out on the awards’ own site.
