The 78th Annual Tony Awards returned to Radio City Music Hall this year, with Cynthia Erivo hosting.
Some years, one musical is crowned the absolute best of the season, sweeping almost all of the awards (think Hamilton).
That didn’t happen this time around, for good reason — Broadway had a banner year, with a tremendous diversity of shows.
The favorite, Maybe Happy Ending, an original musical about two lonely robots who find each other, won the most awards: six, including Best Musical.
Stranger Things: The First Shadow also won three competitive awards, all technical ones, plus a special award for Illusions & Technical Effects.
Cynthia Erivo hosted the 78th Annual Tony Awards, which were held at Radio City Music Hall once again. In certain years, one musical wins nearly every award, making it the season’s best (think Hamilton). For good reason, that didn’t happen this time around. Broadway had a fantastic year with a wide variety of shows. In the media room across the street, where I was stationed, there were many close races and a lot of startled gasps.
With six awards, including Best Musical, the most coveted Maybe Happy Ending, an original musical about two lonely robots who find each other, took home the most honors.
This year’s Pulitzer Prize winner, Purpose, was named Best Play, which was unexpected because many theatergoers thought the award would go to the popular queer comedy Oh, Mary. However, only one other award—Best Featured Actress (Kara Young)—was given to the show.
But the other awards were actually dispersed among several shows. In addition to a special award for their musicians, Buena Vista Social Club took home four competitive awards. Meanwhile, Sunset Boulevard took home three, including Best Revival and Lead Actress in a Musical. In addition to winning a special award for illusions and technical effects, Stranger Things: The First Shadow took home three other competitive awards, all of which were technical in nature.
However, the absence of a sweep this year seemed fitting. Because there were so many different shows in that season, the winners should also be diverse.
These are my main conclusions from a very happy Tony Awards.
1. . It is funny to see Cynthia Erivo. The producers made good use of this year’s host’s comic timing and her amazing voice. In a single sentence, she requested that her friend Oprah Winfrey check beneath her seat. where a red toy car was discovered by her. Erivo exclaimed, “You get a car!” to gasps from the crowd. Her performance concluded with her taking up a microphone and performing Dreamgirls’ “And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going.”.
2. . Although they are not everything, celebrities do aid in marketing. There was a lot of discussion at the start of the season about how many celebrities, including Kit Connor, Denzel Washington, and George Clooney, were swamping New York’s stages. Apparently, the entire cast of Succession was involved.
Celebrities brought with them a sort of excitement that permeated the streets before and after performances, along with high, headline-grabbing ticket prices. Through their participation in late-night shows and podcasts, they contributed to the resurgence of Broadway’s cultural relevance. Additionally, a large number of them served as presenters, giving the program an Oscar-like feel (Keanu Reeves, Samuel L. Ben Stiller, Bryan Cranston, and Michael Jackson were among them.
They did not, however, take center stage at the awards. Nicole Scherzinger won Best Leading Actress in a Revival for Sunset Blvd., one of only three celebrity-sponsored acting awards out of eight. Sarah Snook took home Best Leading Actress in a Play for The Picture of Dorian Gray, while Darren Criss won Best Leading Actor in a Musical for Maybe Happy Ending, defeating Audra McDonald.
3. A standing ovation is still possible for Hamilton. In honor of the tenth anniversary of Hamilton’s Broadway premiere, the original cast performed a “mixtape” performance. Instead of wearing corsets, they went all black and performed some of the best songs from the musical, culminating with Christopher Jackson’s rendition of “History Has Its Eyes On You.”. “..”.
4. The reward for diversity. Not only in terms of DEI (although many awards were given to racially diverse performers and productions, such as Buena Vista Social Club, which is set in an ethnically specific setting), but also in terms of the kinds of productions that were presented this period. Everyone could find something they enjoyed: Dead Outlaw used country rock to tell a story about a corpse; Operation Mincemeat is a gritty musical about World War II that originated in England; and Stranger Things is based on the sci-fi horror hit series from Netflix.
I kept hearing on the red carpet that this season had a show for everyone and that they hope producers realize that new, risky productions are profitable and should be on Broadway.
5. . We miss Gavin Creel terribly. In September, the 48-year-old Tony Award winner passed away from a rare form of cancer. Erivo and Sara Bareilles performed a slow, beautiful rendition of Annie’s “Tomorrow” during the In Memoriam segment, which paid tribute to the people who passed away this season on the boards and behind the set. Erivo and Bareilles gave each other a long embrace after the final picture of Creel.
Together, a group of Creel’s friends and the American Theatre Wing are creating a $3 million endowment to help aspiring theater artists in his memory.
Ciera Crawford served as editor.
