Olivier Awards 2014 Best Dressed

I've fallen off the radar blogging-wise recently as the final few months of third year have become almost unbearable and university has completely taken over my life. If I'm not in the archives I'm in the British Library, and when I'm not hidden scrolling through microfilms at the BFI I'm frantically writing my dissertation. I've barely had the time to surface to do a #100happydays post on schedule let alone anything else, but I decided to take a weekend off before I ran out of steam and couldn't have planned it better as yesterday afternoon saw the 2014 Olivier Awards take over the Royal Opera House and Covent Garden.

Olivier Awards 2013 Best Dressed

I adore the theatre. Having been a part of my school's stage crew for 5 years I gained a real appreciation for the stage. I still experience a certain thrill and a spine-tingle every time I enter a theatre that takes me back to hours spent following scripts by torch-light in the wings, frantically changing sets between scenes and cursing the cast's innate ability to break and lose props with no knowledge as to how they managed it. These memories are some of my most cherished (ignoring how stressful they were at the time!) and helped to develop a special and unique adoration towards theatre that I really can't explain properly, but hope will never fade.

Unfortunately I don't get to go as often as I'd like to, so have decided that as a mid-year's resolution (not a thing, but it is now...) I'm going to make a substantial effort to go more. Living in London is a dream come true, and being so close to so many world-class productions and not seeing them is a total crime, so come 30th May and the end of my exams I'll start working my way down my list of shows. I'm excited already!

Back on topic, last night saw Covent Garden transformed as the Royal Opera House hosted the annual Olivier Awards. A celebration of the best of British theatre, the awards were as glamorous and spectacular as expected, with hosts Hugh Bonneville and Sheridan Smith entertaining those inside while the piazza was filled with theatre fans watching on a large screen.