2019 Races for Best Leading Actor and Actress in a Play

We talk so much about musicals on here, but I thought it was worth pointing out the embarrassment of riches we have in the Lead Actor and Actress in a Play races this season. I tried compiling a list of all those eligible below (with a short list of those I was unsure about at the bottom—please feel free to correct me on any of them!):

Lead Actor in a Play
Bobby Cannavale, The Lifespan of a Fact
Paddy Considine, The Ferryman
Bryan Cranston, Network
Jeff Daniels, To Kill a Mockingbird
Adam Driver, Burn This
Nathan Lane, Gary
Tracy Letts, All My Sons
John Lithgow, Hillary & Clinton
Jim Parsons, The Boys in the Band
Steven Pasquale, American Son
Daniel Radcliffe, The Lifespan of a Fact
Michael Urie, Torch Song

Lead Actress in a Play
Annette Bening, All My Sons
Laura Donnelly, The Ferryman
Glenda Jackson, King Lear
Cherry Jones, The Lifespan of a Fact
Andrea Martin, Gary
Elaine May, The Waverly Gallery
Laurie Metcalf, Hillary & Clinton
Janet McTeer, Bernhardt/Hamlet
Keri Russell, Burn This
Kerry Washington, American Son

Unsure if Lead/Featured
Any roles from Choir Boy
Paul Dano, True West
Ethan Hawke, True West
Lucas Hedges, The Waverly Gallery
Celia Keenan-Bolger, To Kill a Mockingbird
Tatiana Maslany, Network
Kristine Nielsen, Gary
Mercedes Ruehl, Torch Song

Updated On: 12/5/18 at 12:33 PM

My two winners are Bryan Cranston and Elaine May.

Kristine Nielsen is in Gary, too. And it's only a three-person cast, so I assume she'll have plenty to do.

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Updated On: 12/5/18 at 01:29 PM

Definitely an embarrassment of riches in the plays this year, but you can take out the two men from Bernhardt/Hamlet - they ruled on that one already and they’re both being considered as Featured.

For Choir Boy, I’d imagine that Jeremy Pope will be considered Leading, and everyone else will be Featured. (That’s just my guess, though. Bernhardt/Hamlet is official.)

My prediction (without having seen many of these since they’re not open yet)

Laura Donnelly
Glenda Jackson
Andrea Martin
Elaine May (winner)
Laurie Metcalf

Paddy Consadine
Bryan Cranston (winner)
Jeff Daniels
Nathan Lane
John Lithgow

All of those people would be deserving (assuming the spring performances are up to par with their usual excellent work), but it’s also #TonysSoWhite, so...

It also leaves out a lot of really fantastic, award-worthy performances. I hope there will be six nominees in a few of these play acting categories this year. I have no idea how they’re going to choose.

I think the sentimental factor with Elaine May is going to be hard for anyone else to overcome. “When is she going to have another chance?” I think that worked in Glenda’s favor last year, but here she is back again this year. I don’t see that happening with May though.

Then again Lois Smith keeps getting work and June Squibb is on Broadway, so who knows.

Also, I think if Cannavale were to drop back into the featured category, he would have a chance at winning. He saved that play for me. His main competition would be one of the kids from Ferryman, but it’s hard to pick one out (Tom Glynn-Carney would be my choice but Fra Free has a more central role).

Updated On: 12/6/18 at 12:23 AM