article via newsone.com
The 70th Annual Tony Awards set the bar for diversity on Sunday evening as several actors and actresses of color were recognized for their work; a major difference from the #OscarsSoWhite controversy that ensued earlier this year. For the first time in the ceremony’s history, four musical acting awards were nabbed by Black actors.
Broadway hit show Hamilton took home eleven awards including Best Musical, Best Lead Actor, which was won by Leslie Odom, Jr., Best Featured Actor, which was given to Daveed Diggs, and Best Featured Actress, which was awarded to Renee Elise Goldsberry. Cynthia Erivo won Best Lead Actress for her role in the revival of The Color Purple.
The nominees for different categories were diverse as well. Both Christopher Jackson from Hamilton and Brandon Victor Dixon from Shuffle Along were in the running for best featured actor. Diggs said diverse productions like Hamilton serve as inspiration for young children of color who want to get involved in theater. “There is so much diversity on Broadway right now,” he said. “It’s nice to have it feeling a little more mainstream and a lot more inclusive.”
See a full list of winners below:
Hamilton (WINNER)
Bright Star
School of Rock—The Musical
Shuffle Along, Or the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed
Waitress
Best Play
The Humans (WINNER)
Eclipsed
The Father
King Charles III
Best Revival of a Musical
The Color Purple (WINNER)
Fiddler on the Roof
She Loves Me
Spring Awakening
Best Revival of a Play
Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge (WINNER)
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible
Blackbird
Long Day’s Journey Into Night
Noises Off
Best Book of a Musical
Hamilton: Lin-Manuel Miranda (WINNER)
Bright Star: Steve Martin
School of Rock—The Musical: Julian Fellowes
Shuffle Along, Or the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed:George C. Wolfe
Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
Hamilton (WINNER)
Music & Lyrics: Lin-Manuel Miranda
Bright Star
Music: Steve Martin and Edie Brickell
Lyrics: Edie Brickell
School of Rock—The Musical
Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber
Lyrics: Glenn Slater
Waitress
Music & Lyrics: Sara Bareilles
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Frank Langella, The Father (WINNER)
Gabriel Byrne, Long Day’s Journey Into Night
Jeff Daniels, Blackbird
Tim Pigott-Smith, King Charles III
Mark Strong, Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge