‘Utterly winning’: Paddington becomes first new West End musical to land nine WhatsOnStage awards

Using state-of-the-art animatronics to bring Paddington to life, the new musical has wowed critics and delighted audiences since it opened in December Paddington has become the first new West End musical to land nine awards at the WhatsOnStage awards. The much-loved bear’s first appearance on the boards has wowed critics and delighted audiences since it opened in December, and it is now one of the three most awarded shows in the WhatsOnStage ceremony’s history – alongside Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Miss Saigon – as well as the most lauded new musical. The Guardian’s theatre critic Arifa Akbar praised the state-of-the-art animatronics that bring the bear to life, along with some “marvellous songs about marmalade”. She said: “This is the new Mary Poppins: a well-known story imaginatively staged, immaculately performed and utterly winning.” At the 26th edition of the awards, voted for by theatregoers, the latest interpretation of Evita, the musical charting the rise of populism in 1940s Buenos Aires, secured five awards, including best performer for Rachel Zegler. The actor and singer has won plaudits for her depiction of President Juan Perón’s wife, in