FROM church aisle to red carpet, Muriel's journey is far from over and set for a return Sydney season next July.
The Australian film-turned-musical swept the Sydney Theatre Awards on Monday night, scoring 4 out of 9 gongs in the musical category including Best Mainstage Musical and Best Direction.
Muriel's Wedding beat several other high-profile productions for best musical, including Beautiful, based on the life of American singer Carole King, and the Cyndi Lauper-penned Kinky Boots.
The recognition for the show comes after initial difficulties that left it rejected from multiple theatres hesitant to host the new musical.
However, it soon garnered incredible demand from audiences, breaking a record for the highest number of Sydney Theatre Award nominations and selling out the final shows of its premiere run at Sydney's Roslyn Packer Theatre. An announcement on Monday by Muriel's theatre company Global Creatures confirmed it would return for a second Sydney season in July 2019 at the Lyric Theatre.
"It certainly gives us the opportunity to have a long look at what worked and didn't and iron out any creases," Global Creatures head Carmen Pavlovic said about the year-long wait between seasons.
Husband and wife duo Kate Miller-Heidke and Keir Nuttall also won an award for Muriel's original score, as did lead actress Maggie McKenna for Best Newcomer.
Belvoir's Hir, a black comedy detailing the dysfunctional family of a returned veteran, took home the night's top prize for Best Mainstage Production.
