Vote for Samuel Blenkin, Rakie Ayola, and More in the 2017 BroadwayWorld UK Awards!

by · October 13, 2017

The BroadwayWorld UK Awards are an opportunity for fans to vote for their favorite stage actors. This year, both Rakie Ayola (Hermione) and Samuel Blenkin (Scorpius) of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child are nominated!

Ayola and Blenkin are both nominated in the Best Long-Running West End Show Performer category. They replaced original castmembers Noma Dumezweni and Anthony Boyle, respectively, in May of this year. Dumezweni has praised Ayola’s portrayal of Hermione Granger, now a mother and Ministry worker:

I went to see the new [London] cast, with Rakie Ayola playing Hermione, and I loved it. I went, ‘Oh my God, they’re doing their own thing’, and within that there were little changes, and I thought, yes, that makes sense. And I said to Rakie, ‘I’m totally stealing some of your stuff because I really enjoy what you do’. But that’s the highest compliment I can give her, as an actress to another actress; I love what she did.

Samuel Blenkin is a rather fresh face, but his performance has stolen our hearts nonetheless! He’s been a die-hard fan of Harry Potter for years, ever since reading the book at the age of nine:

Replacement cast members don’t always get the recognition they deserve for their work, so this is a great opportunity to show them some appreciation. However, they’re not the only notable nominees!

Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge) and Shirley Henderson (Moaning Myrtle) are competing in the Best Actress in a New Production of a Play category for their performances in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Girl from the North Country, respectively. Both productions have several other nominations: Conleth Hill is also nominated for Best Actor in a New Production of a Play forWho’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, while Sheila Atim is nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a New Production of a Play and Mark Henderson is nominated for Best Lighting Design of a New Production of a Play or Musical for Girl from the North Country. Daniel Radcliffe’s co-star David Haig is also nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a New Production of a Play for their production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.

With a shortlist like this, it’s tough to predict which talented actor will take home the prize. Make sure to cast your vote for your favorite actors at BroadwayWorld’s website. Voting is open until Friday, December 8, with the winners announced soon afterward, so don’t miss out!