Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush won the best actor in a play prizes at last night's Helpmann Awards but it was musical Mary Poppins that stole the show.
Mary Poppins picked up a total of eight wins from its 12 nominations, including best musical, best male and female actors in a musical for its leads Matt Lee and Verity Hunt-Ballard.
The awards for theatre, music, dance, comedy and opera were held at Sydney Opera House on Monday evening.
Blanchett won best female actor win for her turn in the Sydney Theatre Company's play Uncle Vanya.
Rush won the best male actor award for his role in the play The Diary of a Madman which picked up three awards, including best play director for Neil Armfield and best original score.The Belvoir Theatre's The Wild Duck was named best play, with its supporting male and female actors, Anthony Phelan and Anita Hegh winning their categories.
Philip Quast won best supporting male actor in a musical for Mary Poppins and the female equivalent went to Hairspray's Esther Hannaford in a sole win for the colourful production.
The awards, established in 2001 and named in honour of the late Australian dancer, actor, director and choreographer Sir Robert Helpmann, are Australia's answer to London's Olivier Awards and New York's Tonys.
Other winners included Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never Dies, Splendour in the Grass and Tim Minchin and the Sydney Symphony.
For the full list of winners, see http://www.helpmannawards.com.au/site/_content/document/00000185-source.pdf
