New York City honored Broadway’s best last night at the 77th annual Tony Awards.
Wouldn’t you know it? A bunch of D.C. area artists had a big night in the Big Apple!
Best Musical went to “The Outsiders,” starring Shenandoah University’s Brody Grant as Pony Boy and VCU’s Joshua Boone as Dally, who are both nominated for their performances but respectively lost to Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe for “Merrily We Roll Along.” Brent Comer of Frederick, Maryland also stars as Darry.
“The Outsiders” also featured the Music Direction of D.C. native Mark G. Meadows, who has joined WTOP many times for his work around town, namely Signature Theatre in Shirlington, Virginia. Likewise, his “Outsiders” colleague Brian MacDevitt, professor at the University of Maryland, won for Best Lighting Design of a Musical, defeating Frederick, Maryland native David Bengali who was nominated for the musical “Water for Elephants.”
By winning the top prize, “The Outsiders” upset the Alicia Keys musical “Hell’s Kitchen,” which entered the night with a leading 13 nominations, co-produced by D.C. native Marjuan Canady and starring Brandon Victor Dixon from Gaithersburg, Maryland. Still, its stars Maleah Joi Moon and Kecia Lewis both won for their performances, the latter beating Howard University alum Amber Iman for “Lempicka” for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.
D.C. native Justin Peck won Best Choreography for the musical “Illinoise,” Leigh Silverman of Rockville, Maryland was nominated for Best Director for the women’s suffrage musical “Suffs,” and Talking Heads alum David Byrne, who grew up near Baltimore, shared a Best Original Score nomination with Fatboy Slim for “Here Lies Love.”
On the non-musical side, “Stereophonic” won Best Play, defeating “Mother Play” by D.C. playwright Paula Vogel and starring Jessica Lange as a mother moving her children into a D.C. apartment in 1962. University of Maryland professor Amith Chandrashaker was nominated for Best Lighting Design for “A Prayer for the French Republic.”
Last but not least, the Excellence in Theatre Education Award went to Baltimore’s own CJay Philip, Artistic Director of Dance & Bmore, inspiring the next generation of theater stars dreaming of Broadway nights like this.