The biennial Linbury Stage Design Award was presented at the National Theatre this afternoon, Nov. 9.

The award, the brainchild of Lady Sainsbury (Anya Linden, an ex- ballerina who herself studied stage design at the Slade School of Fine Art) was awarded at a lunchtime ceremony. The overall award — and a prize of £4,500 plus a commission for English Touring Theatre — was won by Moritz Junge for his design for The Threepenny Opera.

The three runners-up all won £1,500 and commissions. They were Jessica Bergstrom, who will design for The Royal Court, Max Jones, who will design for the Young Vic, and Nicholaos Zavaliaris who will design for Welsh National Opera.

Lady Sainsbury introduced the awards with a short speech about the need to recognize and promote the work of stage designers, sentiments that were echoed by Trevor Nunn, Director of the National Theatre, and Baroness Blackstone, Minister of State for the Arts.

The Linbury Biennial Prize for Stage Design Exhibition continues at the National, in the Lyttleton Exhibition foyer, until Dec. 8, so the public will continue to have an opportunity to view the work of the twelve contestants whose designs were shortlisted for this year's award.

— By Paul Webb Theatrenow