West End Theatre

Dead Man Walking wins Best New Opera for ENO
April 2026

English National Opera (ENO) is celebrating a major victory tonight as their powerful production of Dead Man Walking took home the Olivier Award for Best New Opera Production at the 2026 Olivier Awards with Cunard.

The award marks a crowning achievement for the production, which received its long-awaited London premiere at the London Coliseum during the ENO’s 2025/26 season.

Marking 25 years since the world premiere of Jake Heggie and Terrence McNally’s masterpiece, this brand-new co-production was directed by ENO Artistic Director Annilese Miskimmon. The production, a collaboration between ENO, Opera North, and Finnish National Opera, was met with numerous five-star reviews. The winning production featured a haunting score by Jake Heggie, recently named Musical America’s 2025 Composer of the Year.