Lea Michele v Caissie Levy Tony Race

[goodtimes123]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 3:31pm

With Lea campaigning hard for the Tony, curious if yall think it’s enough to beat out Caissie (the front runner as of now) 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 3:33pm

Her performance isn’t strong enough to win.

[darquegk]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 3:40pm

Lea traditionally gives great performances in shows that (on paper) are bad. Caissie Levy is giving a great performance in a show that is a beloved legend and critical favorite. I think it's gonna be her just on those optics alone.

[HBP]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 3:41pm

I think Caissie is giving a stronger performance all around. 

[Dolly80]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 3:51pm

Lea doesn’t even stand a chance. She comes on, belts a number and then walks off. 
 

Caissie Levy is actually playing a character. And brilliantly.

[George in DC]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 4:02pm

Personally I think Christiani Pitts for "Two Strangers ..." should win

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 4:29pm

George in DC said: "Personally I thinkChristiani Pitts for "Two Strangers ..." should win"

Honestly, out of these three options, so do I (though I wouldn't object if a stronger contender came along).

I found Levy...competent. Until her final big number when she got to belt, which she did ably enough, I didn't find anything particularly strong or interesting in her performance. It was Henry's, and to a lesser degree Uranowitz's show, and she was....there too.

Still better than Michele though, who sounded good but whose acting was less impressive.

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 5:04pm

Lea ain’t winning    Period lol

[bwaylvsong1]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 6:36pm

I also wouldn’t discount Marla Mindelle, Shoshana Bean, or Jessica Vosk, whose shows have all yet to open…

[GirlFromOz68]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 6:42pm

Dolly80 said: "Lea doesn’t even stand a chance. She comes on, belts a number and then walks off.


Caissie Levy is actually playing a character. And brilliantly."

that is really not true re Lea. you may not be a fan of her performance but she is giving an acting performance and not just singing.  as has been mentioned before she is playing Florence as very tightly wound , holding a lot in  as she is a more restrained character than others she has played before.  Apparently if Lea isn't playing an extrovert like Rachel or Fanny shes not acting to some people.

Lea talked about her take on the role extensively at the radio event yesterday and that fit with what I saw in her performance. 

I think Caissie will likely get the Tony but to say Lea isn't acting is just rubbish. 

[DaveyG]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 6:45pm

bwaylvsong1 said: "I also wouldn’t discount Marla Mindelle, Shoshana Bean, or Jessica Vosk, whose shows have all yet to open…"

I think Marla Mindelle could win Leading Actress and Best Book. It's one of those seasons where anything could happen. 

Updated On: 3/20/26 at 06:45 PM

[MB124]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 9:41pm

DaveyG said: "bwaylvsong1 said: "I also wouldn’t discount Marla Mindelle, Shoshana Bean, or Jessica Vosk, whose shows have all yet to open…"

I think Marla Mindelle could win Leading Actress and Best Book. It's one of those seasons where anything could happen."

Is it though? I think the win of this category is on lock for Levy, mainly due to a lack of competition. She’s good - but after last season’s Nicole vs Audra smack down, this years’ musicals feel particularly light in terms of truly first rate leading female performances. 

Updated On: 3/20/26 at 09:41 PM

[blug]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 9:53pm

Why is it that this "versus" **** is only done with actresses?  

[MB124]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 10:27pm

blug said: "Why is it that this "versus" **** is only done with actresses?"

I mean…simply untrue. 

2018 saw Shaloub “vs” Slater

2022 saw Frost “vs” Spivey

In plays, 2024 saw Strong “vs” Odom and Brill “vs” Stoll 

2025 saw Ricamora “vs” Jue

It has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with how competitive the category’s performances are that season. This year just happens to have a somewhat lackluster field of performances in Leading Actress (Musical), particularly compared to last. 

Updated On: 3/20/26 at 10:27 PM

[TexanAddams18]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 10:45pm

George in DC said: "Personally I thinkChristiani Pitts for "Two Strangers ..." should win"

I'm definitely with you as of right now. I think Pitts is giving the most well rounded performance. 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 11:03pm

blug said: "Why is it that this "versus" **** is only done with actresses?"


can we please have fun

[Mary_Poppins]

Posted: 3/20/26 at 11:43pm

GirlFromOz68 said: "

that is really not true re Lea. you may not be a fan of her performance but she is giving an acting performance and not just singing. as has been mentioned before she is playing Florence as very tightly wound , holding a lot in as she is a more restrained character than others she has played before. Apparently if Lea isn't playing an extrovert like Rachel or Fanny shes not acting to some people.

Lea talked about her take on the role extensively at the radio event yesterday and that fit with what I saw in her performance.

I think Caissie will likely get the Tony but to say Lea isn't acting is just rubbish."

Agreed. Lea likes to go over the top and Chess is an over the top musical. So when she surprisingly plays very subdued on Chess it's pretty clear that this is her concept of the character. I thought so from the very beginning and I wish Lea had spelled that out in interviews early on like she did at the WNYC concert+interview on Thursday.

Maybe they also want to contrast Freddie and Florence or prevent their scenes together from falling apart.

Book writer Danny Strong discussed the characters with the lead actors over summer 25 and made changes based on their suggestions. In several interviews he singled out Lea as having made the most extensive and in depth contributions. A lot of thought went into Lea's characterization of Florence.

Simply saying that she's not acting ......

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 6:22am

People on this board seem to forget the extensive good will Lea Michele worked up in Funny Girl. How many of us wished she was eligible for the Tony for that performance. Tonys are not always given out specifically for the musical performance nominated. To this theory, she might have a chance. Levy was amazing in Next to Normal, but her performance was a little too modern for Mother for my taste.

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 7:20am

I will say that RAGTIME as a whole left me cold and felt static whenever Joshua Henry was not on stage. It was competently done, but nobody aside from Henry did anything that rang bells for me. I’m digging my heels in that I want Levy to win her Tony for NEXT TO NORMAL, because THAT performance ripped me up and, honestly, bested Alice Ripley.

I love TWO STRANGERS, but I did not find Pitts dynamic enough to carry half the show. I thought Tutty was better matched with Phoenix Best. Mindelle is a formidable competitor for TITANIQUE.

I honestly can’t predict because as someone else said, it’s an anything goes and everything could type of season. I’m thinking the likeliest outcome will be Lea Michele winning for CHESS, with the asterisk of it also being for salvaging Funny Girl a few years back. Plus, Tony voters might be of the mindset that, if they want to keep Michele coming back to Broadway, the time to award her might be now. 

[OhHiii]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 8:21am

Tony voters will reward Caissie. Not in small part due to her being an industry veteran and being “her turn.” And Ragtime being a big fat hit without stars also helps the cause as others have said. Lea will win a Tony some day, but it won’t be for Chess and voters will know that. 

[GirlFromOz68]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 9:05am

OhHiii said: "Tony voters will reward Caissie. Not in small part due to her being an industry veteran and being “her turn.” And Ragtime being a big fat hit without stars also helps the cause as others have said. Lea will win a Tony some day, but it won’t be for Chess and voters will know that."

As I said earlier, I suspect Caissie will take it however if we are talking industry veterans and it being their turn,  Lea has done 6 shows over 30 years, was unlucky not to get nominated in a stacked year for best actress for SA and would have at the very least been nominated if not won for FG if she had originated.  So on that calculation we should call them even.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 9:35am

I don’t think Chess the show is really conducive to award-winning performances. Not that this cast isn’t good, sometimes very good, but it’s just kind of a dramatically thin musical with more emphasis on great singing than rich characterization.

I would say Levy is the presumptive favorite but I really wouldn’t count out Mindelle, who creates an extremely memorable character who carries the show on her back and also does double-duty as her show’s co-creator. 

[binau]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 10:54am

blug said: "Why is it that this "versus" **** is only done with actresses?"

Because this forum is full of misogynists who hate women and just want to pit them against each other. Is this what you want to hear? That is obviously the implication of your post. Well the real answer is the complete opposite, this forum loves women and loves women in musicals. They recognise they constantly give the most exciting performances and have the most exciting parts. So any “versus” comes from an immense respect that these women are at the top of their game in the top of our art form. One only needs to look at the list of best actress vs actor nominees in a musical over the last 50 years and see why women are talked about more frequently. 

[clgswff]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 12:38pm

People would have checked out ragtime regardless. Can the same be said about Chess w/o Lea  (at least after the initial chess score lovers)?

[goodtimes123]

Posted: 3/21/26 at 3:39pm

clgswff said: "People would have checked out ragtime regardless. Can the same be said about Chess w/o Lea (at least after the initial chess score lovers)?"

No doubt Lea is a star. But she isn’t giving a star turning performance. This year is interesting in that there aren’t any showy roles. Also, assuming Kristen doesn’t get nominated, this will be all first time nominees in the lead actress category. Seems like Caissie has the edge over the other presumptive nominees being in a critically acclaimed show with a solid performance AND being consistently working hard on Broadway for 20 years.