Sara Kestelman won this Laurence Olivier Award for her role as Fraulein Schneider in Sam Mendes' revival of Cabaret at the Donmar Warehouse, 9 December 1993 to 26 March 1994. It was presented to her in 1994 by the Society of West End Theatre for 'the Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical'. The other actors nominated in the category were Henry Goodman as Buddy Fidler in City of Angels at the Prince of Wales Theatre; Barry James as Beadle Bamford in Sweeney Todd at the National Theatre and Adrian Lester as Anthony Hope in Sweeney Todd at the National Theatre.

The sculptor Harry Franchetti who created this award studied ceramics and sculpture at Glasgow and the Royal College of Art. In 1988 he was asked by the awards committee to design a theatre award based on an image of Laurence Olivier as Henry V. Modelled by Franchetti in Plastoline, a mixture of clay and wax, he coated the base in plaster and carved the words: 'Laurence Olivier as Henry V 1937' on the front by hand. In subsequent years: 'The Old Vic' was added. It was cast by Chris Nash at the small Putney foundry Arch Bronze where the awards are still cast today, 35 years later. Over the years Franchetti has made small changes to the crown and the lettering to make it easier to cast. He checks the patina of every cast since patinising bronze is more an art than chemistry, and adds a wooden base. From the original couple of casts that Franchetti presented to the Awards committee in 1988, by 2022 it had run to over 1,500 editions. In 2021 he redesigned it to be laser cut in Dartington Crystal, as a special award for producers.