In an extraordinary clean sweep, Matilda the Musical was not only the biggest winner at last night’s 2016 Helpmann Awards but the biggest winner in the history of the event.

Based on Roald Dahl’s darkly irreverent, much-loved children’s novel, the Royal Shakespeare Company production with book by Dennis Kelly and songs by Tim Minchin won an unprecedented 13 awards topping Mary Poppins, which won eight in 2011. The musical, which premiered in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2010, has previously won eight Olivier Awards and five Tony Awards.

In a competitive field that also included Little Shop of Horrors, Fiddler on the Roof and The Sound of Music, Matilda (produced in Australia by Louise Withers and a team of co-producers) triumphed in all of the categories in which it was nominated including Best Musical, Best Direction of a Musical (Matthew Warchus) and Best Original Score (Minchin).

Matilda the Musical

The eight young girls who shared the role of Matilda in Sydney and Melbourne (Molly Barwick, Dusty Bursill, Tiana Mirra, Alannah Parfett, Sasha Rose, Georgia Taplin, Bella Thomas and Ingrid Torelli) were named Best Female Actor in a Musical. Acting awards also went to...