Tony Awards Eligibility 2023-2024

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Tony-Awards-Administration-Committee-Meets-to-Determine-Eligibility-for-2023-24-Season-20231130

The committee made the following determinations:

Briga Heelan and Justin Guarini will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress/Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical categories for their respective performances in Once Upon a One More Time.

Anna Fleischle and Sven Ortel will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Once Upon a One More Time.

Arielle Jacobs will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical category for her performance in Here Lies Love.

Eric McCormack and Laura Bell Bundy will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Leading Role in a Play categories for their respective performances in The Cottage.

Casey Likes will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for his performance in Back to the Future: The Musical.

Tim Hatley and Finn Ross will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Back to the Future: The Musical.

Duncan Henderson and Nina Dunn for PixelLux will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Play category for their work on The Shark is Broken.

Justin Ellington and Stefania Bulbarella will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Sound Design of a Play category for their work on Jaja’s African Hair Braiding.

Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by Actor/Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical categories for their respective performances in Merrily We Roll Along.

Updated On: 11/30/23 at 05:09 PM

So I guess Kara Young is featured then? I thought they might push her for leading.

Also, will Gutenberg! and Here Lies Love be considered new musicals or revivals?

I have no issue with Mendez or Radcliffe's placements. At this early point in the season, both have fairly easy shots at winning (especially Radcliffe).

It makes sense for Mendez and Radcliffe to be featured. Personally, I’d award Mendez way before I’d award Radcliffe based on the performances they’re giving. And I’d say Neiwirth and Joy Woods are pretty formidable opponents for Mendez.

EDSOSLO858 said: "Also, willGutenberg!andHere Lies Lovebe considered new musicals or revivals?"

A major question that the committee did not answer and really would change the game in quite a few respects…

Also interesting to note they are keeping gendered categories, even after all of the discussion last season. If they were going to make any changes, this would’ve been the meeting it was announced in. Would be interested to know if they discussed it at all and perhaps there was not full support.

quizking101 said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "Also, willGutenberg!andHere Lies Lovebe considered new musicals or revivals?"

A major question that the committee did not answer and really would change the game in quite a few respects…"

Gutenberg was submitted as a revival

Here's what I would like to do about hair & makeup. Open up the costume category to include (when warranted) hair and/or make up. IMO, there are so few truly UNIQUE hair/make up designs that it warrants their own category. How often do we get a CATS make up design? Or anything beyond a period piece? Sixties hairstyles are sixties hairstyles. Yes, I realize that choices are still made, and they are artistic - I just think there are few that are jaw dropping. Years that we get truly outstanding/unique hair or make up can be nominated either stand alone or along with the outstanding costume. (I wouldn't be opposed, to both being nominated instead of jointly, either.)

So Gutenberg now has a significantly better chance at a nomination (no universe where it would beat Merrilly or Cabaret unless some bizarre vote split thing occurs) but I see it slipping into slot #4 with The Wiz and Spamalot sitting out

I think Gutenbug has definitely the best chance of winning a Tony or even getting nominated if they frame it as a revival, so that's probably ideal. Same thing with Hedwig from 2014, though that show had a chance of actually winning best musical in that season. Gutenburg is very earnest and fun but something about it just screams "I won't win best musical!" I find the Mendez placing a bit odd but understandable. It's interesting, though. I mean, Harvey Fierstein and Bertie Carvel are Leading Actors and Daniel Radcliffe is a Featured Actor. It's weird how that works out, but it isn't too horribly illogical. And here's a controversial take from one of the gayest and most transiest theatre kids in America:

It's not really strictly necessary to make the performance categories nongendered. I mean I understand why people want it so much with non binary performers and such but I'm kind of an opera head. Male and female voices are inherently different physiologically, and singing is a huge part of acting in musicals. From that perspective, I just can't see desegregating the categories. However, if L Morgan Lee was nominated in the Featured Actress Category and Alex Newell won for Featured Actor, then I see no reason that they should stay segregated. Y'know it's like if they want them segregated they could at least do a policy that makes sense but now it's not based entirely on identity or physiology and because of that it just seems pointless. Now, this isn't like sports where males have an inherent advantage, but I do worry that some years will be lopsided by desegregated performance categories. But that's another thing that kind of messes with it-- if you look at newly desegregated awards, you'll see that the ones that give out two awards in the performance categories try to give them to one male and one female. At that point, it's basically exactly the same as it was before but just with more nominations per list. I think that changing it won't do much and will be hard to agree on. Not changing it will be illogical and kind of silly but honestly makes more sense.

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "BeingAlive44Ever said: "I think Gutenbug has definitely the best chance of winning a Tony or even getting nominated if they frame it as a revival"

GUTENBERG will be lucky to be nominated, considering all the revivals this season (MERRILY, CABARET, THE WIZ, TOMMY, SPAMALOT, perhaps others to be announced).

imho, it's a pretty poor piece of writing, elevated by its two performers. Recoupment is the best award it could hope for."

The Wiz is getting terrible reviews on the road and this revival of Spamalot is good but its not really reinventing the wheel

BeingAlive44Ever said: "Here's a controversial take from one of the gayest and most transiest theatre kids in America:

It's not really strictly necessary to make the performance categories nongendered. I mean I understand why people want it so much with non binary performers and such but I'm kind of an opera head. Male and female voices are inherently different physiologically, and singing is a huge part of acting in musicals. From that perspective, I just can't see desegregating the categories.However, if L Morgan Lee was nominated in the Featured Actress Category and Alex Newell won for Featured Actor, then I see no reason that they should stay segregated. Y'know it's like if they want them segregated they could at least do a policy that makes sense but now it's not based entirely on identity or physiology and because of that it just seems pointless. Now, this isn't like sports where males have an inherent advantage, but I do worry that some years will be lopsided by desegregated performance categories. But that's another thing that kind of messes with it-- if you look at newly desegregated awards, you'll see that the ones that give out two awards in the performance categories try to give them to one male and one female. At that point, it's basically exactly the same as it was before but just with more nominations per list. I think that changing it won't do much and will be hard to agree on. Not changing it will be illogical and kind of silly but honestly makes more sense."

Here's something else to think about: If the acting categories were degendered last season, only Victoria Clark or J. Harrison Ghee would’ve won Best Lead Performance in a Musical. Had Ghee won, it would’ve been at the expense of Clark winning for what is sure to go down as a legendary performance. Had Clark won, it would’ve been at the expense of Ghee’s history-making win. I doubt anyone would've really wanted either scenario to happen.

Updated On: 12/3/23 at 06:30 AM