Drama League 2023 Distinguished Performance Award

Until now I totally missed that the Drama League nominations are being announced tomorrow! Any last-minute thoughts/predictions on who’s in the running for the Distinguished Performance Award? And who could/should be nominated?

I’ll throw out a bunch of names for potential nominations. This list is way too long, but I figured I’d cast a wide net. And I’m sure I’ve still forgotten some people. This is a mix of nominations I think are likely + nominations I just personally want.

Ben Platt, Nathan Lane, Danny Burstein, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, and Norbert Leo Butz are ineligible due to having won before.



Yahyah Abdul-Mateen II - Topdog Underdog
Hiran Abeysekera - Life of Pi
Analeigh Ashford - Sweeney
Sara Bareilles - Into the Woods
Francois Battiste - Raisin in the Sun’s
Quincy Tyler Bernstein - Evanston Salt Costs Climbing
Danielle Brooks - Piano Lesson
Rachel Brosnahan - Sidney Brustein
Andrew Burnap - Camelot
Darcy Carden - Thanksgiving Play
Carolee Carmello - Bad Cinderella
Victoria Clark - Kimberly Akimbo
Jessica Chastain - Doll’s House
Sharon D. Clarke - Death of a Salesman
Jodie Comer - Prima Facie
Hannah Cruz - Only Gold
Micaela Diamond - Parade
Ralph Fiennes - Straight Line Crazy
Katie Finneran - Thanksgiving Play
K Todd Friedman - Downstate
J. Harrison Ghee - Some Like it Hot
Josh Groban - Sweeney Todd
Danai Gurira - Richard III
Corey Hawkins - Topdog Underdog
Sean Hayes - Good Night Oscar
Jessica Hecht - Letters From Max + Summer 1976
Stephen McKinley Henderson - Between Riverside
Adrianna Hicks - Some Like it Hot
Anastasia Hille - Oresteia
Bill Irwin - Endgame
Oscar Isaac - Sidney Brustein
Billy Eugene Jones - Fat Ham + Where the Mountain Meets the Sea
Arinze Kene - Misty
David Krumholtz - Leopoldstadt
Melanie La Berrie - & Juliet
Crystal Lucas-Perry - 1776 + Ain’t No Mo
Jefferson Mays - Christmas Carol
Grace McLean - Bad Cinderella
Lindsey Mendez - Merrily
Bonnie Milligan - Kimberly Akimbo
Marla Mindelle - Titanique
Alex Newell - Shucked
Suzan-Lori Parks - Plays for the Plague Year
Wendell Pierce - Death of a Salesman
Tonya Pinkins - Raisin in the Sun
Jeremy Pope - The Collaboration
Parker Posey - Seagull
Daniel Radcliffe - Merrily
Colton Ryan - New York New York
Phillipa Soo - Camelot + Into the Woods
Marcel Spears - Fat Ham
David Straithairn - Remember This
Katy Sullivan - Cost of Living
Will Swenson - Beautiful Noise
Shannon Tyo - Peerless + Far Country + Regretfully So the Birds Are
Brandon Uranowitz - Leopoldstadt
Ana Uzele - New York New York
John David Washington - Piano Lesson
Angus Wright - Oresteia + Hamlet
Kara Young - Cost of Living

I’m wary of this award after they decided to give it to Sutton Foster for THE MUSIC MAN last year.

(A friend of mine within the Drama League said that’s EXACTLY why she got it)

Comer.

They feel like the type of group that would like to give a special award to Lea Michele.

Lea Michele. I doubt they will give to Jodi Comer as this is her Broadway debut but you never know?

^(if this comment is directed at me - Crystal Lucas-Perry is in fact on the list 😊 - but there’s a trillion names there, so it’s an entirely reasonable mistake)

Can’t tell if the Lea Michele this is a joke, but she’s not eligible as a replacement. Even with the Drama League’s unusual eligibility rules, at least they have that in common with the other bodies

JoeW4 said: "Can’t tell if the Lea Michele this is a joke, but she’s not eligible as a replacement. Even with the Drama League’s unusual eligibility rules, at least they have that in common with the other bodies"

I'm aware that Lea Michele isn't eligible, but I would not be surprised one bit if they announce a special, non-competitive award for her. Which is why I brought it up. As far as NYC theatre awards organizations go, the Drama League is perhaps the least reputable, and the most easily-"bought"

I know Jessica Hecht & Laura Linney (yet again) are in an uphill battle for Lead Actress for Summer, 1976 with Jodie Comer giving that blistering performance nightly. However, after seeing and being completely won over yet again by the two of them in a show I just shouldn’t have like but really did, I can’t see them nominating one but not the other.

Pass. I think this goes to Jodie Cromer. I sure wish people would just stop the Lea Michelle conversation. There is no eligibility there. She is great in the role and saved the show, but the rules are the rules.

I would love to see Linda Lavin win.

Per that Playbill article:

"Off-Broadway's Merrily We Roll Along will be considered next season, in conjunction with its upcoming Broadway transfer. Kimberly Akimbo was eligible during its 2021 Off-Broadway run, making the Broadway transfer ineligible this season. Cost of Living was deemed a transfer of the earlier Off-Broadway production, and thus was ruled eligible in the Outstanding Production of a Play categories. Between Riverside and Crazy, The Thanksgiving Play, and Wolf Play were deemed different enough from earlier runs that they were ruled eligible in the revival categories."

Interesting...they must have changed them. Jennifer Simard, Ben Platt, Hamilton, LMM were all nominated twice for off b'way and on B'way.

The following is what this tells us about the Tonys:

Alex Newell is the clear front runner for Featured Actor in a musical, and that they might be Shucked's only acting nomination

J. Harrison Ghee possibly being the only acting nominee from Some Like It Hot

Bad Cinderella seems more and more likely to be shut out of the Tony's especially with the lack of recognition for either Carolee nor Grace's performances despite community support.

Lead actress in a musical noms are wide open with 7 actresses nominated, and this does not include front runner Victoria Clark who was not elligible and the same can be said for Leading Actor in a Play.

Some miscellaneous thoughts:

Pretty sure these are new rules, and they’re very confusing. Some of the ones they deemed “different enough” seem kind of arbitrary. I have to wonder if, in fact, some of these productions (especially Merrily) simply didn’t invite the voters.

Of the people I DID predict, who did NOT get in, the ones I’m most disappointed/surprised by are:
--Shannon Tyo – while none of her individual performances were necessarily knockout roles, she is on an incredible hot streak right now in the Off-Broadway sphere, and since the Drama League’s acknowledge multiple performances per nomination if applicable, I’m surprised they didn’t go for her. FWIW I also think she’s one of the most skilled actors working in NYC right now.
--Nobody from Raisin in the Sun?
--Nobody Seagull / Woodstock?
--Grace McLean – Bad Cinderella
--Quincy Tyler Bernstein - Evanston Salt Costs Climbing
--Wendell Piece – Death of a Salesman

Of people I did NOT predict, who DID get in, I’m most happy about:
--Marylouise Burke -- Epiphany. Loved that play, and I forgot it was eligible
--Brittany Bradford – Wedding Band. A fantastic performance, again forgot it was eligible
--Jordan E. Cooper – Ain’t No Mo
--Esco Jouley – Wolf Play