It Was A Night Of Firsts At The 2024 Tony Awards

The 2024 Tony Awards were handed out last night celebrating the best of Broadway this past theater season. And the results represented a lot of ‘firsts’ for the winners. For starters, all eight winners in the acting categories took home their first Tonys. The Best Play trophy went to David Adjmi for his Broadway debut effort, Stereophonic. The same goes for the play’s director, Daniel Aukin, who scored the Best Direction of a Play honor. Danya Taymor’s work on The Outsiders, her first outing as director of a musical on Broadway, took home the Best Direction of a Musical award – and the show won for Best Musical. https://youtu.be/XgFge6fFWJY?si=WabzFtIhppeM-TiJ It really was a ‘spread the wealth’ kind of night with no one show dominating the trophy count. I did my own happy dance a few times as my two favorite productions of the season – The Outsiders and Merrily We Roll Along – did well. Merrily won four Tonys including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical (Jonathan Groff), Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical (Daniel Radcliffe), and Best Orchestrations (Jonathan Tunick). https://youtu.be/dMrsctr0VOI?si=A_HJ-kD8WLUtMYut Jonathan Groff – previously nominated for Spring Awakening and Hamilton – gave a moving acceptance speech for this first win. He thanked his parents and brother (who were in the audience) for supporting his creative nature since childhood. “Even if they didn’t always understand me, my family knew the life-saving power of fanning the flame of a young person’s passions without judgment,” said Groff. “I walk through life with an open heart because you let me know that I could.” He also thanked the cast of Spring Awakening (his first Broadway show), for inspiring him to have the courage to come out as gay at the age of 23. Here’s the full speech: https://youtu.be/cMcc5-mu_Uk?si=u5znLLqYfeR3_Q_q Also in the queer actors category, Sarah Paulson won the Best Actress in a Play honor for her performance in the revival of Appropriate. The Outsiders scored four trophies as well. In addition to the Best Musical and Best Direction awards, the show also honored for Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design of a Musical. One more moment that totally touched me – Kecia Lewis winning Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for her work in Hell’s Kitchen. I vividly remember seeing 18-year-old Kecia make her Broadway debut 40 years ago in the original run of Dreamgirls. So, as she says in her acceptance speech, “Don’t. Give. Up.” https://youtu.be/7Bxz5ACw9sA?si=yiTGDHCI14pO77ro And did I mention former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an appearance as well? One more clip I’ll post here: Nicole Scherzinger (coming to Broadway next season in Sunset Boulevard) performed a moving “What I Did For Love” during the In Memoriam segment. Other awards shows could learn from the Tonys on how to handle these. https://youtu.be/hQ_Fpsoi9IY?si=IEuUT5E0EgzkxS18 Click over to the CBS YouTube channel for more Tony Award performances and acceptance speeches.

Full List of the 2024 Tony Awards Winners:

Best Musical

Hell’s KitchenIllinoise*WINNER* The OutsidersSuffsWater for Elephants

Best Play

Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, 

Author: Jocelyn Bioh Mary Jane, Author: Amy Herzog Mother Play, Author: Paula Vogel Prayer for the French Republic, Author: Joshua Harmon *WINNER* Stereophonic, Author: David Adjmi

Best Revival of a Musical

Cabaret at the Kit Kat ClubGutenberg! The Musical!*WINNER* Merrily We Roll AlongThe Who’s Tommy

Best Revival of a Play

*WINNER* AppropriateAn Enemy of the PeoplePurlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch

Best Book of a Musical

Hell’s Kitchen

 Kristoffer Diaz The Notebook Bekah Brunstetter The Outsiders Adam Rapp and Justin Levine *WINNER* Suffs Shaina Taub Water for Elephants Rick Elice

Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre

Days of Wine and Roses

 Music & Lyrics: Adam Guettel Here Lies Love Music: David Byrne and Fatboy Slim Lyrics: David Byrne The Outsiders Music & Lyrics: Jamestown Revival (Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance) and Justin Levine Stereophonic Music & Lyrics: Will Butler *WINNER* Suffs Music & Lyrics: Shaina Taub

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical

Brody Grant, The Outsiders *WINNER* Jonathan Groff, Merrily We Roll Along 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 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 Leading Role in a Play

William Jackson Harper, Uncle Vanya Leslie Odom, Jr., Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch Liev Schreiber, Doubt: A Parable *WINNER* Jeremy Strong, An Enemy of the People 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 Amy Ryan, Doubt: A Parable

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical

Roger Bart, Back To The Future: The Musical Joshua Boone, The Outsiders Brandon Victor Dixon, Hell’s Kitchen Sky Lakota-Lynch, The Outsiders *WINNER* Daniel Radcliffe, Merrily We Roll Along Steven Skybell, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

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 Lindsay Mendez, Merrily We Roll Along Bebe Neuwirth, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play

*WINNER*

Will Brill, Stereophonic 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: A Parable Juliana Canfield, Stereophonic Celia Keenan-Bolger, Mother Play Sarah Pidgeon, Stereophonic *WINNER* Kara Young, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch

Best Scenic Design of a Musical

AMP featuring Tatiana Kahvegian, The Outsiders Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini, Hell’s Kitchen Takeshi Kata, Water for Elephants David Korins, Here Lies Love Riccardo Hernández and Peter Nigrini, Lempicka Tim Hatley and Finn Ross, Back To The Future: The Musical *WINNER* Tom Scutt, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Scenic Design of a Play

dots, Appropriate dots, An Enemy of the People Derek McLane, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch David Zinn, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding *WINNER* David Zinn, Stereophonic

Best Costume Design of a Musical

Dede Ayite, Hell’s Kitchen *WINNER* Linda Cho, The Great Gatsby David Israel Reynoso, Water for Elephants Tom Scutt, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Paul Tazewell, Suffs

Best Costume Design of a Play

Dede Ayite, Appropriate *WINNER* Dede Ayite, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding Enver Chakartash, Stereophonic Emilio Sosa, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch David Zinn, An Enemy of the People

Best Lighting Design of a Musical

Brandon Stirling Baker, Illinoise Isabella Byrd, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Natasha Katz, Hell’s Kitchen Bradley King and David Bengali, Water for Elephants *WINNER* Brian MacDevitt and Hana S. Kim, The Outsiders

Best Lighting Design of a Play

Isabella Byrd, An Enemy of the People Amith Chandrashaker, Prayer for the French Republic Jiyoun Chang, Stereophonic *WINNER* Jane Cox, Appropriate Natasha Katz, Grey House

Best Sound Design of a Musical

M.L. Dogg and Cody Spencer, Here Lies Love Kai Harada, Merrily We Roll Along Nick Lidster for Autograph, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Gareth Owen, Hell’s Kitchen *WINNER* Cody Spencer, The Outsiders

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

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

Best Direction of a Play

*WINNER*

Daniel Aukin, Stereophonic Anne Kauffman, Mary Jane Kenny Leon, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch Lila Neugebauer, Appropriate Whitney White, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding

Best Choreography

Annie-B Parson, Here Lies Love Camille A. Brown, Hell’s Kitchen Rick Kuperman and Jeff Kuperman, The Outsiders *WINNER* Justin Peck, Illinoise Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, Water for Elephants

Best Orchestrations

Timo Andres, Illinoise Will Butler and Justin Craig, Stereophonic Justin Levine, Matt Hinkley and Jamestown Revival (Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance), The Outsiders Tom Kitt and Adam Blackstone, Hell’s Kitchen *WINNER* Jonathan Tunick, Merrily We Roll Along

Winners by the Numbers

Stereophonic

: 5 wins The Outsiders: 4 wins Hell’s Kitchen: 2 wins Merrily We Roll Along: 4 wins Appropriate: 2 wins Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch: 1 win Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club: 1 win The Great Gatsby: 1 win Illinoise: 1 win Jaja’s African Hair Braiding: 1 win Suffs: 2 wins