Photo credit: www.goldderby.com
The Tony Awards Administration Committee convened for its last session this season to finalize the eligibility of twelve Broadway productions in anticipation of the nominations for the 2025 Tony Awards. Among the key discussions were adjustments regarding the classifications of various performers, creating a highly competitive environment.
The productions reviewed during this meeting included: Good Night, and Good Luck; Boop! The Musical; The Last Five Years; Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends; Smash; John Proctor Is a Villain; Floyd Collins; Stranger Things: The First Shadow; Pirates! The Penzance Musical; Just in Time; Real Women Have Curves: The Musical; and Dead Outlaw.
After deliberation, the committee made several key eligibility decisions:
Heather Gilbert (lighting design) and David Bengali (projection design) have been jointly recognized as eligible for the Best Lighting Design of a Play award for their contributions to Good Night, and Good Luck.
Jasmine Amy Rogers is now eligible for the Best Lead Actress in a Musical award for her role in Boop! The Musical.
David Rockwell (scenic design) and Finn Ross (projection design) will also be jointly recognized in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Boop! The Musical.
The Last Five Years qualified for consideration as Best Revival of a Musical, with Jason Robert Brown (book, composer, lyricist) recognized alongside the production team in this category.
Additionally, Brown is eligible for the Best Orchestrations category for his work on The Last Five Years.
Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga are both eligible for the Best Featured Actress in a Musical award for their performances in Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.
Matt Kinley (scenic design) and George Reeve (projection design) are jointly acknowledged in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical award for their contributions to this production.
Robyn Hurder is set to contend in the Best Lead Actress in a Musical category for her performance in Smash, while Beowulf Boritt (scenic design) and S. Katy Tucker (video and projection design) are jointly recognized for their work in the Best Scenic Design category related to the same musical.
Furthermore, John Proctor Is the Villain will compete in the Best Play category, with Natasha Katz (lighting design) and Hannah Wasileski (projection design) jointly recognized for the Best Lighting Design of a Play award.
Floyd Collins is also eligible for Best Revival of a Musical, with Tina Landau (book/additional lyrics) and Adam Guettel (music and lyrics) recognized jointly in this category.
Jeremy Jordan is a contender for Best Lead Actor in a Musical for his role in Floyd Collins.
Scott Zielinski (lighting) and Ruey Horng Sun (projections) will also be considered jointly for their work in the Best Lighting Design category for Floyd Collins.
Louis McCartney is eligible for the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play for his performance in Stranger Things: The First Shadow, while Miriam Buether (set designer) and 59 (video and visual effects designer) are jointly recognized in the Best Scenic Design category for their contributions to that production.
Stephen Daldry (director) and Justin Martin (co-director) will be jointly eligible for Best Direction of a Play for their work on Stranger Things: The First Shadow.
Lynne Page (movement director and choreographer) and Coral Messam (additional choreography) will also be recognized jointly in the Best Choreography category for their work on this production.
Rupert Holmes (adaptation) will be recognized for the Best Book of a Musical category for Pirates! The Penzance Musical, while Jinkx Monsoon is a contender for the Best Featured Actress in a Musical category for her role in that production.
Tatianna Córdoba will be recognized in the Best Lead Actress in a Musical category for her role in Real Women Have Curves: The Musical
Arnulfo Maldonado (set design) and Hana S. Kim (video design) will be jointly acknowledged for their work in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for Real Women Have Curves: The Musical.
Andrew Durand will be eligible for the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical award for his performance in Dead Outlaw.
The committee confirmed that all other eligibility matters adhere to the opening night credits.
Notably, several actors are now competing in categories that differ from their initial billing. Among them, Jinkx Monsoon transitions to the featured actress category for her comedic performance as Ruth in Pirates! The Penzance Musical, while her co-stars Ramin Karimloo and David Hyde Pierce remain in the lead actor category.
Broadway icons Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga will also join Monsoon in the featured actress category, reflecting a trend for productions with ensemble casts. Historically, performers in revues have faced the issue of category placement, as the Tony administration has not allowed lead category consideration for revue productions since the 1990s.
Another significant shift involves Jeb Brown of Dead Outlaw, whose entire cast is billed below the title. Although Brown garnered accolades as a lead actor during the Off-Broadway run, the Tony Administration opted to elevate only his co-star Andrew Durand to lead status.
This year also presents an opportunity for notable writers to gain recognition for works that predate their Broadway debut. The change in policy, initiated to address a loophole highlighted by Neil Patrick Harris during an acceptance speech in 2014, allows writers of revivals to be acknowledged alongside producers. This year’s eligible shows, Floyd Collins and The Last Five Years, reflect this update, with their creators, Tina Landau, Adam Guettel, and Jason Robert Brown, appearing on the ballot for their respective productions.
Source
www.goldderby.com