THE shortlist for prestigious theatre awards has been released and includes nominations for Gwent companies.

Ballet Cymru, which is based in Newport, have made the shortlist for nine awards for this year’s Wales Theatre Awards .

You’ve Got Dragons by the Taking Flight Theatre Company with Creu Cymru and Abertillery Met is also up for the Best Show for Children and Young People Award.

The awards, which will take place in Newport on January 27 with the support of the South Wales Argus as media partners, aim to recognise excellence in opera, theatre and dance created and performed in Wales.

There were 563 individual nominations made for 141 shows and 239 artists.

This year the shortlisting judges have included operas and opera performers in categories including Best Performance in the Welsh Language and Best Touring Production.

Mike Smith, awards director, said: “The Best Touring Production is a new category, with an award to be presented for an English language and for a Welsh language touring show. This is to recognise the importance of touring to the cultural life of Wales and the particular challenges presented by taking work throughout the nation.

“There will also be a Special Recognition Award to an individual who the judges believe has made an outstanding contribution to the nation’s cultural life. This year there is also a new award, Wales and the World, that recognised a significant achievement in performing work created in Wales internationally.”

The Wales Theatre awards ceremony will be held at The Riverfront Theatre in Newport on Saturday, January 27. Tickets are available from: tickets.newportlive.co.uk