The Tony Awards are hands-down the gayest of the major awards shows, from host Neil Patrick Harris (who called it “50 Shades of Gay”) to presenters and performers like Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ricky Martin and Raul Esparza … hell, even the nominees (Cynthia Nixon, writer Joe DiPietro) and winners (Newsies lyricist Jack Feldman, Death of a Salesman producer Scott Rudin) are gay, or gay-adjacent (Patti LuPone, Bernadette Peters, Judith Light). And with Hugh Jackman presented a special award by his wife (in terrible shoes) and the Judas from Jesus Christ Superstar clad in crotch-hugging iridescent pants and Dallas’ own Cedric Neal clearly featured in best revival of a musical winner Porgy & Bess … well, it was a queerly delicious evening.
It was even better from the seats in the Winspear Opera House, where ATTPAC hosted a free Tony-watching party, marred only by co-host Sandie Newton’s ghastly banter (she cooed over how pretty Bernadette Peters looked, then sniped at John Larroquette as looking old while taking the cop-out “it’s a four-way tie!” approach to the costume contestants, when the team from Evita clearly won).
The big winner was the musical Once, with eight awards, and the play Peter and the Starcatcher with five. Only one of the four musical nominees was not based on movie; sigh.
Here are the winners:
MUSICALS
Musical — Once
Revival — Porgy and Bess
Director — John Tiffany, Once
Actor — Steve Kazee, Once
Actress — Audra McDonald, Porgy and Bess
Featured Actor — Michael McGrath, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Featured Actress — Judy Kaye, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Lighting Design — Once
Set Design — Once
Costume Design — Follies
Sound Design — Once
Score — Newsies
Book — Once
Orchestrations — Once
PLAYS
Play — Clybourne Park
Revival — Death of a Salesman
Director — Death of a Salesman
Actor — James Carden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Actress — Nina Arianda, Venus in Fur
Featured Actor — Christian Borle, Peter and the Starcatcher
Featured Actress — Judith Light, Other Desert Cities
Lighting Design — Peter and the Starcatcher
Set Design — Peter and the Starcatcher
Costume Design — Peter and the Starcatcher
Sound Design — Peter and the Starcatcher