The play Stereophonic—about a 70s rock band in mesmerizing turmoil as they make an album—emerged with the most Tony Awards Sunday night, winning five, including Best Play and Best Direction of a Play.
The 77th presentation of the awards, celebrating the best of Broadway, came with some well-chewed nails. The Best Musical award, the last of the night, went to The Outsiders, the musical adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s 1967 novel, in a category that was a battle and mystery—with Suffs and Hell’s Kitchen also in contention—up until the winning envelope was opened.
The Outsiders ultimately won four Tonys. Some notion of how that last cliffhanger would resolve came with one of the shocks earlier in the evening when Danya Taymor won for direction of a musical, rather than Maria Friedman for Merrily We Roll Along—a much-loved Sondheim revival which ultimately won four Tonys.
In the Best Play category, no surprises: the widely lauded and adored Stereophonic won, but neither it nor fellow nominations’ leader Hell’s Kitchen swept the board. Rather, the judges spread the love, including to Suffs, Shaina Taub’s musical about women’s suffrage, which won Best Book and Original Score—and benefited from a surprise appearance by producer Hillary Clinton, who received a resounding ovation.
Celebrities did extremely well—with acting gongs in their various plays and musicals for Daniel Radcliffe, Sarah Paulson, Jeremy Strong, and Jonathan Groff. Kara Young deservedly won her first Tony (it was her third nomination), while Maleah Joi Moon making her Broadway debut in Hell’s Kitchen won her first Tony on her first nomination—the dream.
Kecia Lewis gave one of the evening’s most powerful speeches, when she won for her performance as a stern music teacher in Hell’s Kitchen. Her deserved victory in a competitive category prevented the Merrily We Roll Along triumvirate of Radcliffe, Groff, and Lindsay Mendez scooping their awards as a trio. But many tears, and much love was visible, from all when Radcliffe and Groff won theirs.
Best Play
Mary Jane
Prayer for the French Republic
WINNER Stereophonic
“My agent gave me a beta blocker, and it’s not working,” said playwright David Adjmi. He said his show about a band recording an album, with frayed personal and professional relationships (and lots of drugs and drink complicating matters) had taken 11 years to write. He thanked the off-Broadway Playwrights Horizons theater for first supporting the work. It had been a “hard journey,” Adjmi said, during which he had relied “emotionally and financially” on his friends. To much applause, he added, “We need to fund the arts in America. It’s the hallmark of a civilzed society.”
Best Musical
WINNER The Outsiders
The most contested and unclear of pre-show categories finally figured out a winner. It was a three-way battle between The Outsiders, Hell’s Kitchen, and Suffs—and The Outsiders, and all its literal grit, balletic fighting, and teenage gang angst—gangst?—ultimately prevailed.
Suffs
Water for Elephants
Best Revival of a Play
WINNER Appropriate
Best Revival of a Musical
WINNER Merrily We Roll Along
No surprises here, and deliciously deserved. Sonia Friedman handed the Tony to her sister, the show’s director Maria Friedman (who earlier lost out on the Musical-directing Tony).
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
William Jackson Harper, Uncle Vanya
Leslie Odom Jr., Purlie Victorious
Liev Schreiber, Doubt
WINNER Jeremy Strong, An Enemy of the People
Interesting choice—not undeserved, it is a powerful performance. Succession star Strong gave a lovely, self-effacing speech, thanking others—including the ushers and front of house staff who truly are the engines of Broadway night in, night out. The play, he said, was “a cry from the heart to face up to difficult truths facing us all down.”
Michael Stuhlbarg, Patriots
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Betsy Aidem, Prayer for the French Republic
Jessica Lange, Mother Play
Rachel McAdams, Mary Jane
WINNER Sarah Paulson, Appropriate
A first Tony nomination, and win. Deserved and not unexpected. Praised the “mighty talent” of Appropriate playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, and being inspired by Janet McTeer, and the work of all performers searching for “the truth of being alive.”
Amy Ryan, Doubt: A Parable
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Brody Grant, The Outsiders
WINNER Jonathan Groff, Merrily We Roll Along
An emotional Groff thanked his family for allowing him to dress up as Mary Poppins aged 3, and for encouraging him to pursue his actorly passions without judgment. A resonant speech about coming out, being yourself, and the power of art and theater followed. To co-stars Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez, Groff said, “You are more than old friends, you are soulmates. I am looking forward to us watching each other change for the rest of our lives.”
Dorian Harewood, The Notebook
Brian d’Arcy James, Days of Wine and Roses
Eddie Redmayne, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Eden Espinosa, Lempicka
WINNER Maleah Joi Moon, Hell’s Kitchen
Broadway debut, first nomination, first win. The ultimate dream. Moon made a beautiful speech dedicated to her parents and the sacrifices they had made for her; she hoped they could celebrate tonight. “I love you more than words. Thank you.”
Kelli O’Hara, Days of Wine and Roses
Maryann Plunkett, The Notebook
Gayle Rankin, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
WINNER Will Brill, Stereophonic
This was a very happy surprise, with some wondering if any of the non-Stereophonic nominees would win, especially if the Stereophonic guys split the vote. Brill immediately asked his castmates to stand up. He said he wouldn’t have been there without his therapist and bass teacher.
Eli Gelb, Stereophonic
Jim Parsons, Mother Play
Tom Pecinka, Stereophonic
Corey Stoll, Appropriate
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Doubt
Juliana Canfield, Stereophonic
Celia Kenan-Bolger, Mother Play
Sarah Pidgeon, Stereophonic
WINNER Kara Young, Purlie Victorious
First Tony win after three nominations in this category. Young, who dominated “Purlie” in a beautifully nuanced comic performance, thanked the “people and women” she had “come from,” including her mother and father who supported her (he smiled and wiped tears from his eyes as she said it—the very public origin story of his pride is even sweeter). Also thanked Ruby Dee who originated the role in Purlie.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Roger Bart, Back to the Future
Joshua Boone, The Outsiders
Brandon Victor Dixon, Hell’s Kitchen
Sky Lakota-Lynch, The Outsiders
WINNER Daniel Radcliffe, Merrily We Roll Along
So deserved—“Franklin Shepard Inc.” is one of my favorite musical numbers on Broadway this season. It has been lovely watching Radcliffe grow into the role off-Broadway and then on. For him too, it seems. “This has been one of the best experiences of my life,” he said. He said he would “miss” performing with Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez “so much,” saying he just had to look at them to perform every night. Groff looked overwhelmed with emotion watching Radcliffe accept the award.
Steven Skybell, Cabaret
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Shoshana Bean, Hell’s Kitchen
Amber Iman, Lempicka
Nikki M. James, Suffs
Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer, Monty Python’s Spamalot
WINNER Kecia Lewis, Hell’s Kitchen
One of the speeches of the night, and a much-deserved win. She spoke about art, family, performance, and persistence, ending with the stern instruction she has herself imbibed first-hand: “Don’t Give. Up.”
Lindsay Mendez, Merrily We Roll Along
Bebe Neuwirth, Cabaret
Best Direction of a Play
WINNER Daniel Aukin, Stereophonic
Anne Kauffman, Mary Jane
Kenny Leon, Purlie Victorious
Lila Neugebauer, Appropriate
Whitney White, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
The best new play of the year (of many years) is a formidable directorial achievement. Aukin talked about the theater and setting—“a room inside a room inside a room”—calling it “a love letter to the joy and pain of people making something together, and “what should be shown and what should we not be seeing.” He admitted he himself asked of his exceptional cast as he watched the show, “Wait, are they acting now, what just happened?”
Best Direction of a Musical
Maria Friedman, Merrily We Roll Along
Michael Greif, Hell’s Kitchen
Leigh Silverman, Suffs
Jessica Stone, Water for Elephants
WINNER Danya Taymor, The Outsiders
A huge shock; all the wind seemed to behind Friedman for Merrily. Taymor held her heels aloft, saying she could not walk in them. She noted the record number of female directors this year, and gave a powerful speech imploring all artists to follow their creative hearts and heads.
Best Choreography
Camille A. Brown, Hell’s Kitchen
Shana Carroll and Jesse Robb, Water for Elephants
Rick and Jeff Kuperman, The Outsiders
Annie-B Parson, Here Lies Love
WINNER Justin Peck, Illinoise
His second Tony, after winning his first for Carousel in 2018. In his speech Peck thanked the artists of the show for helping him enter “uncharted territory.”
Best Orchestrations
Timo Andres, Illinoise
Tom Kitt and Adam Blackstone, Hell’s Kitchen
Will Butler and Justin Craig, Stereophonic
Justin Levine, Matt Hinkley and Jamestown Revival, The Outsiders
WINNER Jonathan Tunick, Merrily We Roll Along
A surprise, but not a huge one. People wondered if Stereophonic, a play, would win. Tunick said he was expecially proud to be winning his first Tony Award for a Sondheim musical, “my old friend and teacher.”
Best Book of a Musical
Bekah Brunstetter, The Notebook
Kristoffer Diaz, Hell’s Kitchen
Rick Elice, Water for Elephants
Adam Rapp and Justin Levine, The Outsiders
WINNER Shaina Taub, Suffs
A deserved winner in an otherwise lackluster year for books of musicals. After thanking her mom who she watched the Tonys with when she was young, and her family, Taub said that if her musical about the early suffragists inspired people, they should register to vote, and “vote, vote, vote this fall as if your life depended on it, because it does.”
Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
Will Butler, Stereophonic
Adam Guettel, Days of Wine and Roses
Jamestown Revival and Justin Levine, The Outsiders
David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, Here Lies Love
WINNER Shaina Taub, Suffs
Stereophonic denied! Another surprise, and a welcome one for a show that is such a delicious mix of politics, education, and wit. With this election year in mind, Taub spoke up for equality, justice, and collective organizing.
Best Scenic Design of a Play
dots, An Enemy of the People
dots, Appropriate
Derek McLane, Purlie Victorious
David Zinn, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
WINNER David Zinn, Stereophonic
It had to be Zinn; his immaculate rendering of a recording studio in Stereophonic is everything ingenious theater design should be. What turns a room into a poem, he asked in a beautiful, emotional speech. “I love everything about Stereophonic,” he said, also speaking for many coming to see that show.
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
AMP featuring Tatiana Kahvegian, The Outsiders
Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini, Hell’s Kitchen
Tim Hatley and Finn Ross, Back to the Future
Riccardo Hernández and Peter Nigrini, Lempicka
Takeshi Kata, Water for Elephants
David Korins, Here Lies Love
WINNER Tom Scutt, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
Scutt thanked the Broadway community for being so welcoming, and praised the collective efforts of the design community.
Best Costume Design of a Play
Dede Ayite, Appropriate
WINNER Dede Ayite, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
Ayite thanked her family, including her family in Guyana, playwright Jocelyn Bioh, and the costume shops and makers without which the musical would not have happened, she said.
Enver Chakartash, Stereophonic
Emilio Sosa, Purlie Victorious
David Zinn, An Enemy of the People
Best Costume Design of a Musical
Dede Ayite, Hell’s Kitchen
WINNER Linda Cho, The Great Gatsby
Cho thanked her family, and spoke of the team behind the 275 costumes of the show; and of her pride of being a winner from a minority.
David Israel Reynoso, Water for Elephants
Tom Scutt, Cabaret
Paul Tazewell, Suffs
Best Lighting Design of a Play
Isabella Byrd, Enemy of the People
Amith Chandrashaker, Prayer for the French Republic
Jiyoun Chang, Stereophonic
WINNER Jane Cox, Appropriate
The ghostly house, the crazy tree, the darkness and light made Cox a winner. She dedicated her award to all “patient partners and children” to those working in the community.
Natasha Katz, Grey House
Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Brandon Stirling Baker, Illinoise
Isabella Byrd, Cabaret
Natasha Katz, Hell’s Kitchen
Bradley King and David Bengali, Water for Elephants
WINNER Brian MacDevitt and Hana S. Kim, The Outsiders
The gloam of Tulsa deservedly wins! Kim’s wonderful speech was full of humor (she said she did not expect to have “so much flesh” on display), nerves, and gratitude for being part of the Broadway community.
Best Sound Design of a Play
Justin Ellington and Stefania Bulbarella, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding
Leah Gelpe, Mary Jane
Tom Gibbons, Grey House
Bray Poor and Will Pickens, Appropriate
WINNER Ryan Rumery, Stereophonic
Sound design IS Stereophonic—one of the most deserved awards of the evening. Rumery had everyone close their eyes to think of the people who believed in them, and thanked his Stereophonic colleagues, quoting the characters of Grover and Diana in the play!
Best Sound Design of a Musical
M.L. Dogg and Cody Spencer, Here Lies Love
Kai Harada, Merrily We Roll Along
Nick Lidster, Cabaret
Gareth Owen, Hell’s Kitchen
WINNER Cody Spencer, The Outsiders
Spencer thanked his colleagues in a sweetly emotional speech, reminding viewers how lovely it is to see people so committed to their craft win awards they deserve. He joked that could not believe he was crying in front of “so many fucking people.”
Lifetime Achievement Awards: George C. Wolfe, Jack O’Brien
“Oh god, does this mean it’s over,” said O’Brien. “Are George and I getting the hook tonight?”
“Nooo!” roared the crowd.
Isabelle Stevenson Award: Billy Porter
Porter gave a powerful speech about the rendering of art and activism. His speech threaded coming out, civil rights, AIDS, and how the latter “activated” him and others “in the streets” to fight for queer people, “and all human beings everywhere. Period.” With this year’s election in mind, and democracy “at a crossroads,” Porter said, “Never give up hope, never give into hate”—and fight the forces that fan the latter.
The Tony Awards by numbers
Stereophonic: 5
The Outsiders: 4
Merrily We Roll Along: 4
Appropriate: 3
Hell’s Kitchen: 2
Suffs: 2
Enemy of the People: 1
Purlie Victorious: 1
Illinoise: 1
Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club: 1
Jaja’s African Hair Braiding: 1
The Great Gatsby: 1
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