Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement Joel Grey
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 11: (L-R) Joel Grey and Jennifer Grey attend The 76th Annual Tony Awards at United Palace Theater on June 11, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jenny Anderson/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions )

The 76th Tony Awards were held on June 11, 2023, at the United Palace in Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighborhood. The awards ceremony, which honored plays and musicals that opened on Broadway between April 29, 2022, and April 27, 2023, was hosted by Oscar-winning actress Ariana DeBose.

The show was almost canceled due to the Writers Guild of America strike, but a deal was reached that allowed the show to go on without a script. The ceremony also went without a custom-made opening number and writers were encouraged to pre-record their acceptance speeches.

Despite the challenges, the Tony Awards were a success. The show was warm and welcoming, and the winners were inspiring. J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell became the first out nonbinary actors to win in their categories, best lead actor in a musical and best-featured actor in a musical. Jodie Comer, known for playing an assassin on television’s “Killing Eve,” took home a Tony for her performance in the one-woman show “Prima Facie,” her first professional stage role.

Here are some of the highlights of the show:

  • Alex Newell won the Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role in Shucked. Newell is the first nonbinary actor to win a Tony.
  • J. Harrison Ghee won the Tony for Best Leading Actor for his role in Some Like It Hot. Ghee is also the first nonbinary actor to win a Tony.
  • Jodie Comer won the Tony for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for her role in Prima Facie. Comer is best known for her role as Villanelle in the television series Killing Eve.
  • The musical Kimberly Akimbo won the Tony for Best Musical. Kimberly Akimbo is a dark comedy about a young woman with a rare condition that causes her bones to break easily.
  • The play Leopoldstadt won the Tony for Best Play. Leopoldstadt is a drama about a Jewish family in Vienna during the rise of the Nazi Party.

The 76th Tony Awards were a night of celebration for Broadway. The show was a success despite the challenges, and the winners were inspiring. It was a night to remember for all involved.

For more info, please visit: https://www.tonyawards.com/winners/

Winners List

Best New Play “Leopoldstadt”
Best New Musical “Kimberly Akimbo”
Best Play Revival “Topdog/Underdog”

Best Musical Revival “Parade”
Best Leading Actor in a Play Sean Hayes, “Good Night, Oscar”
Best Leading Actress in a Play Jodie Comer, “Prima Facie”

Best Leading Actress in a Musical Victoria Clark, “Kimberly Akimbo”
Best Leading Actor in a Musical J. Harrison Ghee, “Some Like It Hot”

Best Featured Actor in a Play Brandon Uranowitz, “Leopoldstadt”
Best Featured Actress in a Play Miriam Silverman, “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window”
Best Featured Actor in a Musical Alex Newell, “Shucked”
Best Featured Actress in a Musical Bonnie Milligan, “Kimberly Akimbo”
Best Direction of a Play Patrick Marber, “Leopoldstadt”

Best Direction of a Musical Michael Arden, “Parade”
Best Book of a Musical David Lindsay-Abaire, “Kimberly Akimbo”
Best Original Score “Kimberly Akimbo,” music by Jeanine Tesori; lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire
Best Choreography Casey Nicholaw, “Some Like It Hot”

Best Orchestrations Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter, “Some Like It Hot”
Best Scenic Design of a Play Tim Hatley and Andrzej Goulding, “Life of Pi”
Best Scenic Design of a Musical Beowulf Boritt, “New York, New York”
Best Costume Design of a Play Brigitte Reiffenstuel, “Leopoldstadt”

Best Costume Design of a Musical Gregg Barnes, “Some Like It Hot”
Best Sound Design of a Play Carolyn Downing, “Life of Pi”
Best Sound Design of a Musical Nevin Steinberg, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
Best Lighting Design of a Play Tim Lutkin, “Life of Pi”

Best Lighting Design of a Musical Natasha Katz, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”
Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement Joel Grey and John Kander
Isabelle Stevenson Award Jerry Mitchell
Regional Theater Tony Award Pasadena Playhouse

Tony Award for Excellence in Theater Education Jason Zembuch Young
Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theater Lisa Dawn Cave, Victoria Bailey and Robert Fried

Select Arrival Photos from the 76th Tony Awards

Photos Courtesy CBS / Tony Awards / Getty Images