What play has won the most tony awards

CNN Editorial Research

Here’s a look at the Tony Awards which honor achievements on Broadway.

June 12, 2022 – The 75th Annual Tony Awards take place.

September 26, 2021 – The 74th Annual Tony Awards take place. The ceremony was originally scheduled for June 7, 2020, but was postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Facts

The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League.

Only productions staged in designated Broadway theatres are eligible for nominations.

The musical that holds the record for most Tony Awards is “The Producers,” in 2001. It won 12 awards out of 15 nominations.

The hip-hop infused musical “Hamilton” earned a record-setting 16 Tony nominations on May 3, 2016, including Best Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for playwright/star Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Producer/director Harold “Hal” Prince has won the most Tony Awards overall (21).

Actress Audra McDonald has won the most Tony awards as a performer (six).

The Tonys are named after Antoinette Perry, a Broadway actress and director who died in 1946.

Her charitable work with the American Theatre Wing during WWII inspired the Broadway community to create an award in her honor.

The American Theatre Wing became famous for the “Stage Door Canteens,” in which GIs could drop in and be entertained by famous Hollywood and Broadway stars.

If there is only one nominee, the category is submitted to the Tony Voters. An affirmative vote of 60% of the total ballots cast will grant an Award in that category.

Timeline

April 6, 1947 – The first Tony Awards are presented at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York.

The first “Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play” award is a tie with Ingrid Bergman for “Joan of Lorraine” and Helen Hayes for “Happy Birthday.”

The first “Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play ” award is also a tie, between Jose Ferrer for “Cyrano de Bergerac” and Fredric March for “Years Ago.”

1956 – The Tonys are broadcast on television for the first time, on the Dumont Network.

2022 Tony Award Winners (selected)

Best Play
“The Lehman Trilogy”

Best Musical
“A Strange Loop”

Best Revival of a Play
“Take Me Out”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Simon Russell Beale for “The Lehman Trilogy”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Deirdre O’Connell for “Dana H.”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Myles Frost for “MJ”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Joaquina Kalukango for “Paradise Square”

2020 Tony Award Winners (selected)

Best Play
“The Inheritance”

Best Musical
“Moulin Rouge! The Musical”

Best Revival of a Play
“A Soldier’s Play”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Andrew Burnap for “The Inheritance”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Mary-Louise Parker for “The Sound Inside”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Aaron Tveit for “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Adrienne Warren for “Tina – The Tina Turner Musical”

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Broadway musicals pair solid storytelling with exciting lyrics and superstar performances. They are some of the most thrilling in the theater world. However, one takes the cake with the most Tony Award wins for its Broadway excellence. Hint: It’s not Hamilton.

What play has won the most tony awards

Phillipa Soo, Christopher Jackson, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Anthony Ramos attend Lin-Manuel Miranda’s final performance of “Hamilton” on Broadway at Richard Rodgers Theatre on July 9, 2016, in New York City | Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images

The most Tony Award nominations goes to ‘Hamilton’

Hamilton is the top Broadway musical when it comes to Tony nominations.

Lin-Manuel Miranda took the story of Alexander Hamilton’s life and turned it on its head. Its hip-hop-infused soundtrack reached the top of the Billboard charts.

It sparked a renewed interest in American History. Subsequently, Hamilton received a whopping 16 Tony nominations in 2016.

These included best musical and performances by the show’s leading and featured actors and actresses.

Hamilton’s winning streak continued with nominations that year for best book, original score, scenic, lighting, and costume design. Additionally, the show’s direction, choreography, and orchestration also received nominations.

Most importantly, the musical won a total of 11 Tony Awards.

Which musical has won the most Tony Awards?

What play has won the most tony awards

Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick | Producers 2002/Getty Images

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However, Hamilton isn’t the ultimate Broadway musical Tony-winner. That honor goes to The Producers, the new Mel Brooks Musical with 12 overall Tony Award wins in one year.

The Producers uses Brooks’ signature politically incorrect humor to push the envelope of good taste. This pairs with great music, lyrics, and big dance numbers. The show celebrates all that is big and bold about Broadway musicals.

The Producers led the Tony nominations pack in 2001. It was honored as best musical for its original score, book, director, actress, and actor in featured and leading roles.

In addition, the show was honored for its choreography, lighting, costume design, and orchestrations. In total, The Producers scored 15 nominations.

What is ‘The Producers: a new Mel Brooks musical’ about?

What play has won the most tony awards

A poster of the Broadway musical “The Producers” | Spencer Platt/Newsmakers

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The Broadway play The Producers had its adaptation from Brooks’ 1968 movie of the same name.

It tells the story of Max Bialystock, the one­time king of Broadway producers.

Along with Leo Bloom, an accountant with dreams of becoming a theatre producer, the two decide to make quick cash by producing a flop rather than a hit. Their life turns upside down when their musical surprisingly becomes a Broadway smash.

Audra McDonald and Leslie Odom Jr. host this year’s Tony Awards ceremony.

McDonald helms the live broadcast of the 74th Annual Tony Awards at 7 p.m. EST on Paramount+. Odom Jr. serves as host for The Tony Awards Present Broadway’s Back!, the live concert event celebrating Broadway’s return at 9 p.m. EST on CBS.