On Sunday night, after all the Tonys had been handed out, the comedian Alex Edelman took the stage during the official after-party at the Museum of Modern Art.
“One day more,” he sang, waving his arms, trying to recruit others to join him behind the microphone in a rousing one-man rendition of a song from the musical “Les Misérables.”
“Another day, another destiny … ”
Mr. Edelman, who received a special Tony Award last year for his one-man show “Just for Us,” slowly gathered his army of fellow performers: Betsy Wolfe, Jessica Vosk and Casey Likes. Soon, more than half a dozen stars were belting not just their own parts, but every part.
A cabaret moment is a familiar scene for any theater party, even on a night celebrating an unusual Broadway season.
It has been a banner year on the district’s 41 stages, thanks in large part to a flurry of shows with screen stars on the marquee: “Good Night, and Good Luck” (George Clooney), “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (Sarah Snook, who won a Tony Award for playing 26 different characters), “Othello” (Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal) and “Glengarry Glen Ross” (Bob Odenkirk, Bill Burr and Kieran Culkin), among others.
Many actors were making their Broadway debut.
“I’m so lucky to get to do it,” Sadie Sink, best known for her role as the tomboy Max in Netflix’s science fiction drama series “Stranger Things,” said at the MoMA party, celebrating her first nomination.
“I think that’s how you maintain your love for acting and challenge yourself in ways you maybe get a little spoiled with in the film and TV industry,” she added.
The infusion of screen royalty has been polarizing. Box office revenues have finally surpassed their prepandemic peak, and the boost from high ticket prices has been a shot in the arm for an industry that is finally getting back on its feet. But there are also concerns of stunt casting, and some of this season’s starriest offerings have received less-than-stellar reviews.
Those sky-high prices have also put tickets out of reach for many theatergoers. Some of the starriest shows, “Othello” and “Good Night, and Good Luck,” which each closed Sunday, had been selling some seats for close to $1,000 each.
“I’m conflicted — I’m really happy that it’s the highest-grossing season, but some of the reason for that is normal people will never get to see those shows,” said Marjan Neshat, who was nominated for her performance in the play “English.”
Despite their place on marquees, the season’s biggest stars were in short supply at the after-party at MoMA, where hundreds of Tonys attendees gathered around 11 p.m., shortly after the ceremony ended at Radio City Music Hall.
There were, however, plenty of familiar faces from the theater world: Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, who wrote “Purpose,” the winner for best play; featured acting winner Francis Jue of “Yellow Face,” bopping his head along to “Rocket Man” at the bar; another featured acting winner, Kara Young, also of “Purpose,” being mobbed with well-wishers for the second year in a row, who this time were original cast members of “Hamilton.”
The “Hamilton” actors at MoMA included Leslie Odom Jr., Jasmine Cephas Jones and Daveed Diggs, who had reunited for a 10th-anniversary medley at the ceremony. Mr. Odom is returning to the Broadway company this fall; Mr. Diggs said any comeback on his part might be trickier.
“I don’t have the knees I used to,” he said. “We’d have to re-choreograph some things. But it was nice to be reminded of really how special that time was.”
By 1:30 a.m., many of the nominees had made their way to the Carlyle Hotel on the Upper East Side, where the theater publicist Rick Miramontez was hosting his annual late-night bash with the producer John Gore.
Upstairs, Mia Farrow, who was nominated for best lead actress in a play for her role opposite Patti LuPone in “The Roommate,” chatted at the bar. Jean Smart, the “Hacks” Emmy winner who is currently on Broadway in the one-woman show “Call Me Izzy,” posed for photos at a table with a glass of champagne.
Adam Lambert, who earlier this spring wrapped a run as the Emcee in “Cabaret” on Broadway, walked up to Helen J Shen, who made her Broadway debut this season in “Maybe Happy Ending,” to congratulate her on her performance at the ceremony of the gentle numbers “Chasing Fireflies” and “Never Fly Away” with her co-star, Darren Criss.
“You were incredible,” Mr. Lambert told her, as they exchanged kisses. A dusting of glitter coated his hair and ears, accentuated by silver earrings and thick black eyeliner.
The group made their way to the back room, where the pianist Billy Stritch played “You Make Me Feel So Young,” the jazz standard popularized by Frank Sinatra.
Playbills from the ceremony were scattered on tables, which were also littered with half-eaten cartons of fries and cocktails. Across the hall, people took selfies with a Tony Award-shaped ice sculpture, with an array of jumbo shrimp and oysters at its base.
Hours after his “Les Mis” turn at the mic, Mr. Edelman sat on a black couch by the piano alongside the bar, where a “Sunset Boulevard” record peeked out of a bag.
“This is my favorite night of the year,” he said. “But I’m very biased.”
Nancy Coleman is a senior staff editor.
Sarah Bahr writes about culture and style for The Times.
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