“The Spectacular Showdown: A Look at the 2023 Tony Awards Winners and Nominees”

2023 Tony Awards: Celebrating the Biggest Names on Broadway

The 2023 Tony Awards celebrated the biggest shows and stars on Broadway in a spectacular showdown. The red carpet was graced by some of the brightest talents of the year as they gathered to commemorate the accomplishments of the performing arts industry. The event was hosted unscripted by Ariana DeBose, who opened the show with a Broadway medley, dancing her way through a blank script in support of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

Standing in Solidarity

In solidarity with WGA writers, Lin-Manuel Miranda pulled his performance scheduled for the event. DeBose took a moment to acknowledge the hard work of those who had found a compromise to keep the show going. “For every single person that had a hand in finding that compromise, I say a full-throated thank you!”

Highlights of the Night

One of the biggest highlights of the night was the award for Best Lead Actress in a Play, which was won by Jodie Comer for her role in Prima Facie. Comer had made her Broadway debut with this one-woman play that dealt with sexual assault and victimhood. Her achievement brings her halfway towards the prestigious EGOT title.

The much sought-after Best Musical award went to Kimberly Akimbo, which also bagged several more awards such as Best Book of a Musical. Brit actor J Harrison Ghee won Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for his performance in Some Like It Hot.

Full List of Nominations and Winners

The Tony Awards 2023 had several nominees and winners. The complete list of nominations and winners is as follows:

• Best Musical: & Juliet, Kimberly Akimbo – Winner, New York, New York, Shucked, Some Like It Hot
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Topdog/Underdog, Corey Hawkins, Topdog/Underdog, Sean Hayes, Good Night, Oscar – Winner, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Between Riverside and Crazy, Wendell Pierce, Death of a Salesman
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical: Annaleigh Ashford, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Sara Bareilles, Into the Woods, Victoria Clark, Kimberly Akimbo – Winner, Lorna Courtney, & Juliet, Micaela Diamond, Parade
• Best Play: Ain’t No Mo’ by Jordan E Cooper, Between Riverside and Crazy by Stephen Adly Guirgis, Cost of Living by Martyna Majok, Fat Ham by James Ijames, Leopoldstadt by Tom Stoppard – Winner
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play: Jessica Chastain, A Doll’s House, Jodie Comer, Prima Facie – Winner, Jessica Hecht, Summer, 1976, Audra McDonald, Ohio State Murders
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical: Christian Borle, Some Like It Hot, J Harrison Ghee, Some Like It Hot – Winner, Josh Groban, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Brian d’Arcy James, Into the Woods, Ben Platt, Parade, Colton Ryan, New York, New York
• Best Revival of a Musical: Into the Woods, Camelot, Parade – Winner, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
• Best Book of a Musical: & Juliet – David West Read, Kimberly Akimbo – David Lindsay-Abaire – Winner, New York, New York – David Thompson and Sharon Washington, Shucked – Robert Horn, Some Like It Hot – Matthew López and Amber Ruffin
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical: Kevin Cahoon, Shucked, Justin Cooley, Kimberly Akimbo, Kevin Del Aguila, Some Like It Hot, Jordan Donica, Camelot, Alex Newell, Shucked – Winner
• Best Revival of a Play: The Piano Lesson, A Doll’s House, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window, Topdog/Underdog – Winner
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play: Nikki Crawford, Fat Ham, Crystal Lucas-Perry, Ain’t No Mo’, Miriam Silverman, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window – Winner, Katy Sullivan, Cost of Living, Kara Young, Cost of Living
• Best Direction of a Musical: Michael Arden, Parade – Winner, Lear deBessonet, Into the Woods, Casey Nicholaw, Some Like It Hot, Jack O’Brien, Shucked, Jessica Stone, Kimberly Akimbo
• Best Direction of a Play: Saheem Ali, Fat Ham, Jo Bonney, Cost of Living, Jamie Lloyd, A Doll’s House, Patrick Marber, Leopoldstadt – Winner, Stevie Walker-Webb, Ain’t No Mo’, Max Webster, Life of Pi
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical: Julia Lester, Into the Woods, Ruthie Ann Miles, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Bonnie Milligan, Kimberly Akimbo – Winner, NaTasha Yvette Williams, Some Like It Hot, Betsy Wolfe, & Juliet
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play: Jordan E Cooper, Ain’t No Mo’, Samuel L Jackson, The Piano Lesson, Arian Moayed, A Doll’s House, Brandon Uranowitz, Leopoldstadt – Winner, David Zayas, Cost of Living
• Best Scenic Design of a Play: Miriam Buether, Prima Facie, Tim Hatley and Andrzej Goulding, Life of Pi – Winner, Rachel Hauck, Good Night, Oscar, Richard Hudson, Leopoldstadt, Dane Laffrey and Lucy Mackinnon, A Christmas Carol
• Best Scenic Design of a Musical: Beowulf Boritt, New York, New York – Winner, Mimi Lien, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Michael Yeargan and 59 Productions, Camelot, Scott Pask, Shucked, Scott Pask, Some Like It Hot
• Best Orchestrations: Bill Sherman and Dominic Fallacaro, & Juliet, John Clancy, Kimberly Akimbo, Jason Howland, Shucked, Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter, Some Like It Hot – Winner, Daryl Waters and Sam Davis, New York, New York
• Best Costume Design of a Musical: Gregg Barnes, Some Like It Hot – Winner, Susan Hilferty, Parade, Jennifer Moeller, Camelot, Clint Ramos and Sophia Choi, KPOP, Paloma Young, & Juliet, Donna Zakowska, New York, New York
• Best Costume Design of a Play: Tim Hatley, Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell, Life of Pi, Dominique Fawn Hill, Fat Ham, Brigitte Reiffenstuel, Leopoldstadt – Winner, Emilio Sosa, Ain’t No Mo’, Emilio Sosa, Good Night, Oscar
• Best Original Score: Almost Famous – music: Tom Kitt, lyrics: Cameron Crowe and Tom Kitt, Kimberly Akimbo – music: Jeanine Tesori, lyrics: David Lindsay-Abaire – Winner, KPOP – music and lyrics: Helen Park and Max Vernon, Shucked – music and lyrics: Shane McAnally and Brandy Clark, Some Like It Hot – music and lyrics: Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman
• Best Choreography: Steven Hoggett, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Casey Nicholaw, Some Like It Hot – Winner, Susan Stroman, New York, New York, Jennifer Weber, & Juliet, Jennifer Weber, KPOP
• Best Lighting Design of a Play: Neil Austin, Leopoldstadt, Natasha Chivers, Prima Facie, Jon Clark, A Doll’s House, Bradley King, Fat Ham, Tim Lutkin, Life of Pi – Winner, Jen Schriever, Death of a Salesman, Ben Stanton, A Christmas Carol
• Best Lighting Design of a Musical: Ken Billington, New York, New York, Lap Chi Chu, Camelot, Heather Gilbert, Parade, Howard Hudson, & Juliet, Natasha Katz, Some Like It Hot, Natasha Katz, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street – Winner
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