Cameron Mackintosh number one in Stage 100

Cameron Mackintosh number one in Stage 100

Cameron Mackintosh has retained the number one spot in The Stage newspaper's The Stage 100 – the industry bible’s annual guide to the 100 most influential people in UK theatre. The return of Oliver! and ongoing multi-million refurbishment of West End theatres help him beat Lloyd Webber to top spot.

The London theatre owner and producer of shows such as Les Miserables, Cats, Oliver! and The Phantom of the Opera, has topped the list for the fifth time. Only Andrew Lloyd Webber has come first more times (six times).

This year’s highest riser is Donmar Warehouse artistic director Michael Grandage, who is placed equal third with National Theatre artistic director Nicholas Hytner.

Mamma Mia! producer Judy Craymer is the highest placed new entry to the top 20. She is in at number 10, following the global success of the film version of the Abba musical.

New entrant David Tennant becomes only the fifth actor to be listed in the top 20 in the history of the Stage 100.

News and opinion editor of The Stage and editor of The Stage 100, Alistair Smith, said: “Despite talk of financial crisis, it has actually been a surprisingly stable year in theatre and this is reflected in a fairly static top end of the Stage 100. Indeed, it is business as usual for most of the West End, where Mackintosh and Lloyd Webber continue to be its leading lights.

Where Mackintosh narrowly beats his long-term collaborator is in the amount of time and money he continues to lavish on the refurbishment of his theatres, which totals more than £35 million and is still ongoing. It is here that his influence on the fabric of the West End will be felt for years to come.

The full top twenty is as follows:

1. Cameron Mackintosh (producer/theatre-owner)
2. Andrew Lloyd Webber (producer/theatre-owner)
3 = Michael Grandage (Donmar Warehouse)
3= Nicholas Hytner (National Theatre)
5. Howard Panter / Rosemary Squire (Ambassador Theatre Group)
6. Bill Kenwright (producer)
7. Nica Burns / Max Weitzenhoffer (Nimax)
8. Michael Boyd (Royal Shakespeare Company)
9. Nick Thomas / Jon Conway (Qdos Entertainment)
10. Judy Craymer (producer)
11. Kevin Spacey / Sally Greene (Old Vic Theatre)
12. Sonia Friedman (producer)
13. Dominic Cooke (Royal Court Theatre)
14. Rupert Goold (director)
15. Bill Taylor (Stage Entertainment)
16. Jonathan Church (Chichester Festival Theatre)
17. David Ian (producer)
18. David Pugh & Dafydd Rogers (producer)
19. Alex Poots (Manchester International Festival)
20. David Tennant (actor)

The Stage Newspaper, founded in 1880 and still owned by the Comerford family, is a trade paper for the performing arts and entertainment industry in Britain. It is published in the UK weekly on Thursdays.