2021 Tony Awards Recap

2021+Tony+Awards+Recap

Virginia Feagans, Co-Editor

On September 26, the 74th Tony Awards were held in order to recognize the best Broadway achievements of the 2019-2020 season. They were supposed to be held June 7, 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event had to be postponed. It began with an award ceremony hosted by Audra McDonald, which was followed by “The Tony Awards Present: Broadway’s Back!” which was a live event hosted by Leslie Odom Jr. Many shows were nominated for prestigious prizes, such as Best Musical and Best Play, but the musical with the most nominations was “Jagged Little Pill” with fifteen, followed by “Moulin Rouge” with fourteen. 

Many plays and musicals were nominated for awards, but there could only be one winner. Here is a list of the most notable winners and awards. “Jagged Little Pill” won two awards, including Best Book of a Musical and Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical. “Moulin Rouge” won ten awards, such as Best Musical, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical (Aaron Tveit), Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical (Danny Burstein), Best Scenic design of a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical, and Best Choreography of a Musical. The play “The Inheritance” won five awards, Best Play, Best Performance of a Leading Actor in a Play (Andrew Burnap), Best Performance of by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play (Lois Smith), Best Direction of a Play (Stephen Daldry), and Best Book of a Musical. “A Soldier’s Play” won two awards, Best Revival of  a Play and Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play, and “A Christmas Carol” won five awards, Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre, Best Scenic Design of a Play, Best Costume Design of a Play, Best Lighting Design of a Play, and Best Sound Design of a Play. 

Winning a Tony is the highest honor anyone working on a Broadway show can hope to achieve. It is so great to see the shows of the 2019-2020 season get recognized for all their hard work and talent.