Tony Awards Fast Facts
Here’s a look at the Tony Awards which honor achievements on Broadway.
September 26, 2021 – The 74th Annual Tony Awards are scheduled to take place. The ceremony was originally scheduled for June 7, 2020, but was postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
June 9, 2019 – The 73rd Annual Tony Awards take place.
Facts
The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League.
Only productions staged in designated Broadway theatres are eligible for nominations.
The musical that holds the record for most Tony Awards is “The Producers,” in 2001. It won 12 awards out of 15 nominations.
The hip-hop infused musical “Hamilton” earned a record-setting 16 Tony nominations on May 3, 2016, including Best Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for playwright/star Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Producer/director Harold “Hal” Prince has won the most Tony Awards overall (21).
Actress Audra McDonald has won the most Tony awards as a performer (six).
The Tonys are named after Antoinette Perry, a Broadway actress and director who died in 1946.
Her charitable work with the American Theatre Wing during WWII inspired the Broadway community to create an award in her honor.
The American Theatre Wing became famous for the “Stage Door Canteens,” in which GIs could drop in and be entertained by famous Hollywood and Broadway stars.
If there is only one nominee, the category is submitted to the Tony Voters. An affirmative vote of 60% of the total ballots cast will grant an Award in that category.
Timeline
April 6, 1947 – The first Tony Awards are presented at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York.
The first “Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play” award is a tie with Ingrid Bergman for “Joan of Lorraine” and Helen Hayes for “Happy Birthday.”
The first “Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play ” award is also a tie, between Jose Ferrer for “Cyrano de Bergerac” and Fredric March for “Years Ago.”
1956 – The Tonys are broadcast on television for the first time, on the Dumont Network.
2020 Tony Award Nominees (selected)
Best Play
“Grand Horizons”
“The Inheritance”
“Sea Wall/A Life”
“Slave Play”
“The Sound Inside”
Best Musical
“Jagged Little Pill”
“Moulin Rouge! The Musical”
“Tina – The Tina Turner Musical”
Best Revival of a Play
“Betrayal”
“Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune”
“A Soldier’s Play”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Ian Barford for “Linda Vista”
Andrew Burnap for “The Inheritance”
Jake Gyllenhaal for “Sea Wall/A Life”
Tom Hiddleston for “Betrayal”
Tom Sturridge for “Sea Wall/A Life”
Blair Underwood for “A Soldier’s Play”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Joaquina Kalukango for “Slave Play”
Laura Linney for “My Name is Lucy Barton”
Audra McDonald for “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune”
Mary-Louise Parker for “The Sound Inside”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Aaron Tveit for “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Karen Olivo for “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”
Elizabeth Stanley for “Jagged Little Pill”
Adrienne Warren for “Tina – The Tina Turner Musical”
2019 Tony Award Winners (selected)
Best Play
“The Ferryman”
Best Musical
“Hadestown”
Best Revival of a Play
“The Boys in the Band”
Best Revival of a Musical
“Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Bryan Cranston for “Network”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Elaine May for “The Waverly Gallery”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Santino Fontana for “Tootsie”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Stephanie J. Block for “The Cher Show”
