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Here are all the 2023 Tony Award winners.
If the Tony Awards solidified anything in its2023 nominee slate, its thatBad Cinderellareally did earn its name.
Spoiler: They dont agree on much.
Because wheres the fun in that?
Voter 2:There are three Pulitzer Prize winners in this category.
When was the last time that happened?
But this story is so personal for him.
Ive never been so drawn in and moved by a Stoppard play.
I do haveFat Hamlingering in the back of my mind, though.
They all had great artistry.
I think the winning play this season, and the one that I would vote for today, isLeopoldstadt.
Its sort of an event play.
Its beautifully acted and directed.
Its about something very meaningful to a lot of people.
Its about history and humanity, and its a symbol.
Its a gorgeous love letter to the city.
I was charmed byShucked.I thought the book of& Julietwas extraordinarily clever.
I wasnt crazy aboutSome Like It Hot.It felt slick and a bit soulless.
Voter 2:My No.
I dont mind saying that I love& Juliet.I have the musical taste of a teenager.
Every song I had such a good time.
I laughed my ass off atShucked.ButKimberly Akimbowas so unexpected.
Its a really tough story to pull off, and I love what they created.
Im looking forward to seeing it again.
I was underwhelmed byNew York, New Yorkbut can absolutely see why its there.
Its a big show.
Its such a feel-good New York story.
It was the last musical that opened.
Often, it stays in peoples minds and stays fresh.
I wasnt surprised to see it there at all.
Voter 3:& Julietwill get my vote.
Its absolutely a show that has artistry and heart.
It not only has excellent performances but really excellent storytelling.
Its a very different and exciting addition to the Tonys race and the Broadway appetite.
The set design was deeply misguided.
I didnt think everyone was in the same play.
The performances were all over the place.
The play was bursting with ideas but ultimately wasnt well-realized.
The production itself I found wanting.
It was 75 mph from start to finish.
It was one of those rides.
Thetwo actors had such great chemistry.
I did thinkThe Piano Lessonwas good, but it had a few weak points casting-wise.A Dolls Housewas very good.
Its a sparse production, but thats the thing.
I sawSidney Brusteinat BAM and thought it was kind of a slog.
I hate saying that about Lorraine Hansberry, but I wasnt thrilled with it.
Voter 3:For me, itsThe Piano Lesson.
Its one of the August Wilson plays I had never seen before.
It felt very homespun, real, and urgent.
It would be between the two Sondheims, and Ill give the edge toSweeney.The two leads were sensational.
The production was gorgeous, and Im blown away by the scale of the orchestra.
I really loved it.Paradeis worthy, andInto the Woodswas quite wonderful.
It was the best version ofInto the WoodsIve ever seen.Camelotmystified and bored me.
It wasnt very good.
I dont like to be bitchy.
Im just being open.
Its kind of incredible that there are two Sondheim revivals up against each other.
I wonder if they will cancel each other out.
Im leaning towardInto the Woods.
ParadeandSweeney Toddwere great productions for different reasons.
Its hard to compare them.
Im still very undecided.
Voter 3:This is the year of Sondheim.
It certainly means something to me as a lover of musicals.
Im very nostalgic and appreciative of everything Sondheim has done for musical theater.
So its between those two.
Today, itsInto the Woodsfor me because of how I felt sitting in the theater watching that production.
Id give the edge toStephen McKinley Henderson.
Hes a great New York actor, and Ive admired his work over the years.
Hes giving a staggering performance.
If it werent him, Id give it toWendell Pierce, whos extraordinary.
But its a tilt to Stephen because of his body of work.
Voter 2:This is a tough category.
This is what you call stacked.
Im going betweenSean Hayesand Stephen McKinley Henderson.
Its two very different performances.
Ive been a huge fan of Stephens for so long.
He was so charming, and I loved everything about his performance.
For Sean, its a completely different kind of role.
What he does physically with the role he really throws himself into it.
At the end, when he plays Rhapsody in Blue, its gorgeous.
Voter 3:Probably Sean Hayes.
But to be honest, that could change by the time I actually vote.
She would be the front-runner right now.
In part, its the role.
I love the play, and I loved the production.
Chastains stillness and strength were quite riveting and extraordinary.
But every single performance in this category is extraordinary.
Voter 2:Jodie Comer.
Im not hesitating at all.
God, its so hard to describe what she does.
Its one of the most incredible performances Ive ever seen.
Im having a hard time articulating why shes so good.
When I walked out, I was speechless, as you could tell.
Voter 3:This is Jodie Comers Tony Award.
Its astonishing how complex it is.
He brings so much intellect and soul to the stage, and its always fresh.
Im in awe of him.
This is another category where everyone is terrific.
But Colton is bringing the freshest performance.
Hes going to be a star.
Voter 2:I was a little surprised Colton Ryan was in there.
The way the book writers reworked the script and reconceived the role I was pretty impressed.
Not that I wasnt impressed with the others.
Christian Borle was good, but he has won two Tonys.
Hes got the bookends.
Josh Groban sings beautifully, and he was much more menacing than Id expected.
Brian dArcy James was great.
Ben Platt was fantastic.
Its a terrific performance.
He could even win.
But theres a lot of love forSome Like It Hot.Im going withJ.
Voter 3:They are all giving superb performances of interesting and complex men.
Its really, really hard.
Ive never seen a performance so committed since he won forDear Evan Hansen.
Theres just a beautiful integrity and purity to what shes doing that I find very moving.
Voter 2:They all deserve to be there, and they do wildly different things.
Im going with Victoria Clark.
Its hard to sway me from her.
What shes doing is so layered and a lot more challenging.
Voter 3:Every one of these women is giving a performance of a lifetime.
I truly believe that.
The character runs the gamut of a full story arc.
Very difficult and very challenging songs are sung.
Weve never heard them before.
I also think shes the youngest of the group.
That demands a lot of applause and attention.
He allowed himself to be a part of an ensemble when he could have done a star turn.
That takes great discipline in artistry.
Im thinking about him too.
I need to do some reflecting about this category.
She blew me away.
She managed to be hilarious and terrifying.
The fact that she made such an athletic and extraordinary performance should be celebrated.
Im thinking about Crystal Lucas-Perry, because she played so many characters.
She was hilarious and terrifying.
I feel like she did so much in that show.
Ill give it to Justin, but I think Alex will win.
Id be perfectly happy with that.
Justin gave a completely fresh performance.
Its such a confident debut, and he really broke my heart and touched my soul.
Every time he opened his mouth, I just about fell out of my chair.
Its that deadpan sense of humor.
With the things he said, I dont know how he and everyone else kept a straight face.
Voter 3:Its probably Kevin Cahoon forShucked.
Oh God, or is it Alex Newell?
Alex is shaking the roof, changing the game, interrupting the conversation, and garnering a standing ovation.
She was fucking hilarious and fearless.
She was just so funny and fresh.
We managed to love this woman who is so destructive.
Voter 2:Bonnie Milligan.
I didnt expect that role to go where it goes.
First of all, shes so funny.
She lands all the jokes, but she doesnt work for them.
You know how some people really push for the jokes?
Theres an ease there, and I really admire that about her performance.
I think those types of performances are what the Tonys were made for.
Thats why she gets my vote.
Its smart and witty, so I have great admiration for it.
Voter 2:Its interesting where people think about splitting their votes.
Im really going betweenKimberly AkimboandShucked,but Im leaning towardShucked.Its not just the one-liners.
There are a lot of them.
If someone told you aboutShuckedas a 30-second elevator pitch, you would be like,What?
No, thats not going to work.
Im not going to see that.But itdoeswork because of the book.
Im 55 percentShuckedright now.
Voter 3:I wouldnt say that they all deserved this.
My vote goes to& Juliet.
Writing a book to a jukebox musical takes a whole other set of skills and talent.
Its harder than it seems.
Its probably one of the best books Ive ever heard and seen.
So much opportunity and so much disappointment.
I dont think Jennifer Webers work on either of her shows is very good.
So those are easy for me to rule out.
Im all about Susan Stroman.
I think the variety of her work is breathtaking.
It goes from ballet to tap to other transitions.
Its all in there, and it takes my breath away.
She understands the form and loves it.
She does her homework.
She knows what it means to bring an idiom to Broadway and understands the vernacular of different forms.
Shes an absolute master.
Voter 2:Im very happy to seeKPOPthere.
When I saw it, I thought that it needed to get a choreography nomination.
How long do you think it took them to get it right?
I was astonished seeing that.
Not that all the other dancing in the show isnt terrific, but that number alone seals the deal.
Thats really fascinating to see her achieve.
Ive never seen choreography quite like what Jennifer does for her productions.
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