Rank the 2026 Tony Performances

If you feel inclined, rank the 2026 Tony performances! 

Here are mine (I left off In Memoriam because I missed some of it and always feel weird including it in this sort of ranking)

1. Pink's Opening Number
Best opening since NPH in 2013 and fun to have NPH with a nod to that
2. Two Strangers
I haven't seen Two Strangers yet and hope it hangs on for me to see it this summer. I thought it was super charming and showcased the chemistry between the leads.
3. The Rocky Horror Show
I'm not a fan of Rocky Horror in any form but I thought this was an energetic and fun performance. It left me with less complaints than performances from shows I enjoy much more.
4. Chicago Anniversary
Pink definitely continued to prove her Broadway-level vocal prowess here and Alex Newell sounded great as always. It was sleek and strong.
5. The Book of Mormon Anniversary
Fun to have the original cast back. I don't love the song they did but they stepped right back in. Andrew Rannells has not aged a day.
6. Ragtime
Vocally it was exceptionally strong, by far the best of the night. But to do the same song and not quite as well as the iconic 1998 Tony performance left me a bit cold.
7. Cats: The Jellicle Ball
I thought they staged this well for the space but the cameras did not always keep up. I also wish there had been a bit more singing in it, the extended dance sequence went on a long time.
8. Schmigadoon!
The setup was fun but I thought the performance itself felt a little underwhelming. Maybe it was an audio thing but it sounded awfully empty to me.
9. A Chorus Line Tribute
Rachel sounded great but what in the world was the point of this? I kept expecting there to be SOMETHING and it was just her singing the song. Felt very unnecessary.
10. The Lost Boys
I get the disadvantage of not being able to do some of their tricks (surely why they insisted on a video before) but this whole performance left me feeling a whole lot of nothing.
11. Titanique
This just didn't work at all. Marla sounded off and I feel like it didn't really capture the vibe of the show at all.

I knew what I was ranking #1 since earlier this week. Still, nothing could’ve prepared me for that opener after getting my hands on the P&P demo.

CHICAGO and MORMON with great tributes. They’re probably the only ones that sold any tickets.

RAGTIME was good. Hits more live. 

ROCKY HORROR and TWO STRANGERS were middle of the pack. SCHMIGADOON, meh. 

LOJ with a beautiful In Memoriam, but guitar guy stole the show for me. :)

CATS wasn’t the worst perf of the night, but a big missed opportunity with no ballroom “cat-egories” to be found. All the fan clacking in the audience prob made for a good picture. 

TITANÍQUE and the CHORUS LINE tribute, two thumbs down. 

And LOST BOYS did a solid job setting up its universe. Again, middle of the pack. 

 

 

• 1. Opening Number
• 2. Chicago
• 3. BOM
• 4. Ragtime
• 5. In Memoriam
• 6. Rocky Horror
• 7. Two Strangers
• 8. Lost Boys
• 9. Schmig
• 10. Cats
• 11. Chorus Line
• 12. Titaníque 

Updated On: 6/8/26 at 12:54 AM

I don’t really think any show sold many tickets with their performances. The winners will get short-term pops, although Ragtime doesn’t really need theirs - aside from price increases.

1. Pink’s opening number. It took me a second viewing to get more of the jokes, and I suspect I missed a few. But Pink, with a little help from Neil Patrick Harris and a cast of many, sold it wonderfully. A little inside baseball for outsiders, but it was a lot of fun - and Pink has a terrific voice!

2. Chicago. I would say this might sell tickets, but Pink and Alex Newell aren’t headed into the show. Still, it was very good, and Pink again got to showcase her vocals.

3. Ragtime. One of my unpopular opinions is that I don’t think Ragtime is a very good musical, but it does have some very good songs - and this is one that features the entire cast and establishes its themes from the outset. It’s a safe choice but a smart one.

4. In memoriam. I am always looking for names during this segment so am always a little distracted but Odom’s performance was lovely.

After that, I am into a mixed bag that weren’t standouts or problems.

Schmigadoon! I have not seen the live production but have seen the TV series so I know all the characters. But I wasn’t sure how this would grab viewers at home. It’s a parody. Is that obvious? Does it look intriguing or dumb? No idea. My problem, having seen the series, is it felt like seeing a revival of something I just saw. Why would I want to see it again, even if it’s well performed?

Two Strangers. That opening, with the British guy confusing NYC landmarks, made it sound painfully dumb. But the stars have charm so the song was likeable enough. Did the performance make me regret skipping it on my March trip? Not really.

Book of Mormon. It wasn’t my favorite song choice. 

Rocky Horror. Luke Evans was great and they just should have stuck with ‘Sweet Transvestite.’ The rest of it was kind of a mess.

Problems or lost opportunities…

A Chorus Line tribute. Can you imagine Michael Bennett approving a tribute to that show that included no dancing at all? I already have bought Evita tickets, but Rachel Zegler didn’t do all that much for me on a familiar song. My comp is Nicole Scherzinger’s In Memoriam segment when she was starting to promote Sunset Blvd. She sounded fantastic. Zegler was OK. It was a wasted promotional opportunity and a poor tribute to A Chorus Line.

The Lost Boys. I haven’t seen the show but the critiques I have heard concern the score and second act. This performance focused on set-up but it was mostly pretty dull. I gather they used the one rocker in the score, which is probably smart (though the song didn’t do much for me), but what was lost is the vampire part. Or any flying.

Cats: The Jellicle Ball. My bias here stems from having seen the revival, which I thought was exciting and fun - but also surprisingly easy to track (at least for me). I was worried that the Tony performance would turn into a mess that couldn’t translate the show. And that’s exactly what happened. The cameras were all over the place and there wasn’t enough of a focus. I thought the show needed a knockout Tony Awards performance and it didn’t happen.

Titanique. Not much to add that hasn’t been said. I have never seen it but that performance made me think, ‘Not for me.’

Ragtime suffered by cutting the dialogue. The number feels so rushed without it. I know that they probably didn't have a choice due to time constraints, but the song needs it.

The Chicago performance was the most impressive, it new what it was, it was polished, all sounded good


Of the new musicals I thought Two Strangers was the best tho I think they probably should have only done American Express.

 

I was pleasantly surprised that BOM did Man up-my favorite song in the show.

 

Lost Boys had a performance that was more exciting than I felt in the show which is good for them.

 

Schmigadoon and Ragtime both did more or less what was expected of them and did it well but as someone who follows the other performances they’ve done, I was bored by their usual entries.

 

Titanique I seem to like more than others. I thought their performance was perfectly structured for the Tonys-I think they captured the show well. It did seem like there was some vocal fatigue or something happening tho.

 

I loved the first half of Cats but they need to transition into Skimbleshanks or Mistofolees or Tugger to give a bump to the ending. The way they had Temptress strut out didn’t land for me.

 

Rocky Horror was fine. 
 

Maybe I’m weird but the opening number wasn’t for me. I felt like it was aimed at the viewers who don’t actually care for musicals 
 

 

1. Cats: The Jellicle Ball

2. Opening number

3. Chicago tribute

4. In Memoriam

5. Ragtime

6. Rocky Horror

7. The Lost Boys

8. Titanique

9. Book of Mormon (I know they wanted to feature Gad, but "Man Up" has never been one of the show's better songs)

10. Chorus Line (she sounded great, but this was staged like it was the in memoriam)

11. Schmigadoon (The only show I haven't seen yet, and...this didn't make me excited to, even though I AM going to go) 

12. Two Strangers (I know they wanted to feature Christiani Pitts, but they should've stuck to the opening)

1. Opening Number

2. Chicago

3. BOM

4. Two Strangers 

5. In Memoriam

6. Ragtime 

7. Rocky 

8. Schmigadoon 

9. Cats

10. Lost Boys 

11. Chorus Line

12. Titaníque 

I actually felt bad for the Titanique folks, something felt very off. Not sure if it was due to fatigue at the end of a arduous awards season or if they were having issues with sound (which were also evident in the opening number). I also thought a full Radio City My Heart Will Go On sing along would've been more effective than attempting any sort of a medley. They tried to make it look more like a traditional musical and the show just isn't that. Have Marla crack some jokes as Celine, pause "Radio City....shall we go for it?" and then right into that song from the beginning would've been authentic to the show.

That Titanique performance was awful. I don't get it. Was the actress making fun of Celine Dion? Her voice and mannerisms made me physically uncomfortable.

The Cats performance was energetic, but I don't think I'd want to watch two hours of that. To be fair, I don't want to watch two hours of the original Cats either.

Schmigadoon was fine but it didn't make me want to see the show.

I grew up with the movie version of the Lost Boys and just can't take it seriously.

 

 

 

EvanstonDad said: "That Titanique performance was awful. I don't get it. Was the actress making fun of Celine Dion? Her voice and mannerisms made me physically uncomfortable."

....so you haven't been paying attention to anything since 2022 when this show started making a name for itself? 

RippedMan said: "Lost Boys was the only one that made me want to buy a ticket."

Interesting. I previously wanted to see Lost Boys, but their Tony performance made me rethink that. They un-sold me.

....so you haven't been paying attention to anything since 2022 when this show started making a name for itself? 

 

No, I have not been paying attention to this show since 2022. I have had other things to do since 2022. Hence my question....