It’s officially Tony season. On Monday, the nominations for the 75th Annual Tony Awards were announced by Tony winner Adrienne Warren and three-time Tony nominee Joshua Henry.
It was no surprise that Michael R. Jackson’s provocative and bold work “A Strange Loop'' received lots of Tony love. The Pulitzer Prize-winning musical picked up 11 nominations, including nods for its young star Jaquel Spivey in his New York theater debut. The show also broke other ground with L Morgan Lee, who is nominated in the “Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical” category for her role as one of the "Thoughts," becoming the first openly transgender performer to be nominated for an award in the history of the Tonys.
And another first - or two - for Camille A. Brown, the director and choreographer behind the seven-time Tony nominated revival of “for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf.” She is the first person to be nominated for directing and choreographing the same play in one season. Not to mention, she’s the first Black woman to direct and choreograph the same show on Broadway in 67 years.
In addition, looking at the acting categories as a whole, there seems to be a fair assortment of theater veterans (Rob McClure, Matt Doyle, Jennifer Simard) and TV/film stars who got their start treading the boards (Hugh Jackman, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Uzo Aduba). It’s clear the nominators did not select performers just because they’re bold-face names – think Daniel Craig, Beanie Feldstein, Sarah Jessica Parker – a trend critics of the Tonys have claimed to have seen in the past.
Over the years, there’s been a push to create a best ensemble category for the Tonys, and if there were ever a year to do it, it would be now. This season has been chock full of incredible ensembles. Some members were recognized individually, like all three principals in the eight-time Tony nominated play “The Lehman Trilogy” (Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley, Adrian Lester) while others were not, like the rock star queens from “Six.” Other ensemble contenders could include the casts from “Girl From the North Country,” “for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf,” “A Strange Loop” and “Company.”
Finally, the last shocker for me after tallying up the nominations for all the eligible shows was “Paradise Square.” The musical, which opened to mixed reviews and is struggling at the box office, received 10 nominations, tying with “MJ: The Michael Jackson Musical” for the second-highest amount of nominations.
The noms for “Paradise Square” include one for Joaquina Kalukango, who gives a tour-de-force performance as the show’s leading lady. I saw Joaquina perform on Monday at The Actors’ Fund gala (now called The Entertainment Community Fund), and I know I’m going back to “Paradise Square” just to see this newly minted Tony nominee blow the roof off The Ethel Barrymore Theatre. I encourage you to do the same.
Now that the nominations are out. the countdown is on for Broadway’s biggest night. which is set to take place at Radio City Music Hall on June 12. Tune in to On Stage every Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m., when I’ll sit down with members from the Tony class of 2022. And as always, I’ll see you at the theater.