# 77th Tony Awards

The 77th Tony Awards were held on June 16, 2024, to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2023–24 season. The ceremony was held at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater in New York City, and aired on CBS. Ariana DeBose hosted for the third year in a row.
Having already become the most nominated play in the history of the ceremony, Stereophonic won 5 awards, including Best Play, winning the most awards of the evening. The musical adaptation of The Outsiders, which won Best Musical, earned 4 awards, as did the Best Revival of a Musical recipient Merrily We Roll Along.
For the first time in the history of the ceremony, all eight winners in the performance categories were receiving the award for the first time, with six of them winning for their first career nomination.

## Ceremony information

Pluto TV streamed the pre-ceremony broadcast The Tony Awards: Act One, hosted by Julianne Hough and Utkarsh Ambudkar.

### Presenters

* Taraji P. Henson – presented Best Actor in a Play
* Danai Gurira – introduced a performance from Alicia Keys, Jay-Z & the cast of Hell's Kitchen
* Jesse Tyler Ferguson – presented Best Featured Actor in a Play
* Pete Townshend – introduced a performance from the cast of The Who's Tommy
* Taylor Tomlinson & Wendell Pierce – presented Best Featured Actress in a Play
* Ashley Park & Renée Elise Goldsberry – presented Best Direction of a Play & Best Direction of a Musical
* Patrick Wilson – introduced a performance from the cast of Water for Elephants
* Anthony Ramos & Ben Platt – presented Best Featured Actor in a Musical & Best Featured Actress in a Musical
* Julianne Hough – introduced a performance from the cast of Illinoise
* Utkarsh Ambudkar – presented Best Score
* Andrew Rannells & Josh Gad (as "Doug" and "Bud" from Gutenberg! The Musical!) – introduced Jim Parsons
* Jim Parsons – presented Best Revival of a Play
* Audra McDonald, Bebe Neuwirth & Brian Stokes Mitchell – lead a special tribute to Chita Rivera, who died earlier in 2024 at the age of 91.
* Tamara Tunie – introduced Nate Burleson & Solomon Thomas
* Nate Burleson & Solomon Thomas – introduced Jeffrey Wright
* Jeffrey Wright – presented Best Play
* Hillary Clinton – introduced a performance from the cast of Suffs
* Angelina Jolie – introduced a performance from the cast of The Outsiders
* Jennifer Hudson – presented Best Revival of a Musical
* Sean Hayes – presented Best Actress in a Play
* Brooke Shields – introduced Nicole Scherzinger & the "In Memoriam" tribute
* Nick Jonas & Adrienne Warren – presented Best Actress in a Musical & Best Actor in a Musical
* Cynthia Erivo & Idina Menzel – presented Best Musical

### Performances

The musicals, plays, and guest performers that performed during the ceremony are as follows:
* "The Gospel" / "Authors of Forever" / "Fallin'" / "Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down" / "Empire State of Mind" – Hell's Kitchen (with Alicia Keys and Jay-Z)
* "See Me, Feel Me" / "Pinball Wizard" – The Who's Tommy (with Pete Townshend)
* "Second Transition" / "Old Friends" – Merrily We Roll Along
* "Anywhere/Another Train" / "The Road Don't Make You Young" – Water for Elephants
* "The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out to Get Us!" – Illinoise
* "Masquerade" – Stereophonic
* "Wilkommen" – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
* "Keep Marching" – Suffs
* "Tulsa '67" / "Grease Got a Hold" / "The Rumble" – The Outsiders
* "What I Did for Love" – Nicole Scherzinger (In Memoriam)

## Eligibility

The Tony Awards eligibility dates for the 2023-2024 Broadway season were April 28, 2023, through April 25, 2024. Productions must meet all other eligibility requirements as set forth by the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League. There are 41 legitimate Broadway-eligible theaters in which a production must be performed in to attain eligibility for award consideration. Nominations for the 2024 Tony Awards were announced on April 30, 2024.

## Winners and nominations

The nominees for the 77th Tony Awards were announced on April 30, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. ET by Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Renée Elise Goldsberry.
| Best Play ‡ | Best Musical ‡ |
| Stereophonic Jaja's African Hair Braiding Mary Jane Mother Play Prayer for the French Republic | The Outsiders Hell's Kitchen Illinoise Suffs Water for Elephants |
| Best Revival of a Play ‡ | Best Revival of a Musical ‡ |
| Appropriate An Enemy of the People Purlie Victorious | Merrily We Roll Along Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Gutenberg! The Musical! The Who's Tommy |
| Best Actor in a Play | Best Actress in a Play |
| Jeremy Strong – An Enemy of the People as Doctor Thomas Stockmann William Jackson Harper – Uncle Vanya as Astrov Leslie Odom Jr. – Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch as Purlie Victorious Judson Liev Schreiber – Doubt: A Parable as Father Brendan Flynn Michael Stuhlbarg – Patriots as Boris Berezovsky | Sarah Paulson – Appropriate as Antoinette "Toni" Lafayette Betsy Aidem – Prayer for the French Republic as Marcelle Salomon Benhamou Jessica Lange – Mother Play as Phyllis Rachel McAdams – Mary Jane as Mary Jane Amy Ryan – Doubt: A Parable as Sister Aloysius Beauvier |
| Best Actor in a Musical | Best Actress in a Musical |
| Jonathan Groff – Merrily We Roll Along as Franklin Shephard Brody Grant – The Outsiders as Ponyboy Curtis Dorian Harewood – The Notebook as Noah Calhoun (older) Brian d'Arcy James – Days of Wine and Roses as Joseph "Joe" Clay Eddie Redmayne – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club as the Emcee | Maleah Joi Moon – Hell's Kitchen as Ali Eden Espinosa – Lempicka as Tamara de Lempicka Kelli O'Hara – Days of Wine and Roses as Kirsten Arnesen-Clay Maryann Plunkett – The Notebook as Allison "Allie" Calhoun (older) Gayle Rankin – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club as Sally Bowles |
| Best Featured Actor in a Play | Best Featured Actress in a Play |
| Will Brill – Stereophonic as Reg Eli Gelb – Stereophonic as Grover Jim Parsons – Mother Play as Carl Tom Pecinka – Stereophonic as Peter Corey Stoll – Appropriate as Beauregard "Bo" Lafayette | Kara Young – Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch as Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins Quincy Tyler Bernstine – Doubt: A Parable as Mrs. Muller Juliana Canfield – Stereophonic as Holly Celia Keenan-Bolger – Mother Play as Martha Sarah Pidgeon – Stereophonic as Diana |
| Best Featured Actor in a Musical | Best Featured Actress in a Musical |
| Daniel Radcliffe – Merrily We Roll Along as Charley Kringas Roger Bart – Back to the Future: The Musical as Doc Brown Joshua Boone – The Outsiders as Dallas “Dally” Winston Brandon Victor Dixon – Hell's Kitchen as Davis Sky Lakota-Lynch – The Outsiders as Johnny Cade Steven Skybell – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club as Herr Schultz | Kecia Lewis – Hell's Kitchen as Miss Liza Jane Shoshana Bean – Hell's Kitchen as Jersey Amber Iman – Lempicka as Rafaela Nikki M. James – Suffs as Ida B. Wells Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer – Monty Python's Spamalot as the Lady of the Lake Lindsay Mendez – Merrily We Roll Along as Mary Flynn Bebe Neuwirth – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club as Fraulein Schneider |
| Best Direction of a Play | Best Direction of a Musical |
| Daniel Aukin – Stereophonic Anne Kauffman – Mary Jane Kenny Leon – Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch Lila Neugebauer – Appropriate Whitney White – Jaja's African Hair Braiding | Danya Taymor – The Outsiders Maria Friedman – Merrily We Roll Along Michael Greif – Hell's Kitchen Leigh Silverman – Suffs Jessica Stone – Water for Elephants |
| Best Book of a Musical | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre |
| Shaina Taub – Suffs Kristoffer Diaz – Hell's Kitchen Bekah Brunstetter – The Notebook Justin Levine and Adam Rapp – The Outsiders Rick Elice – Water for Elephants | Suffs – Shaina Taub (music and lyrics) Days of Wine and Roses – Adam Guettel (music and lyrics) Here Lies Love – David Byrne and Fatboy Slim (music and lyrics) Stereophonic – Will Butler (original songs by) The Outsiders – Jamestown Revival (Zach Chance and Jonathan Clay) and Justin Levine (music and lyrics) |
| Best Scenic Design of a Play | Best Scenic Design of a Musical |
| David Zinn – Stereophonic dots – Appropriate dots – An Enemy of the People Derek McLane – Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch David Zinn – Jaja's African Hair Braiding | Tom Scutt – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club AMP featuring Tatiana Kahvegian – The Outsiders Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini – Hell's Kitchen Takeshi Kata – Water for Elephants David Korins – Here Lies Love Tim Hatley and Finn Ross – Back to the Future: The Musical Riccardo Hernández and Peter Nigrini – Lempicka |
| Best Costume Design of a Play | Best Costume Design of a Musical |
| Dede Ayite – Jaja's African Hair Braiding Dede Ayite – Appropriate Enver Chakartash – Stereophonic Emilio Sosa – Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch David Zinn – An Enemy of the People | Linda Cho – The Great Gatsby Dede Ayite – Hell's Kitchen David Israel Reynoso – Water for Elephants Tom Scutt – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Paul Tazewell – Suffs |
| Best Lighting Design of a Play | Best Lighting Design of a Musical |
| Jane Cox – Appropriate Isabella Byrd – An Enemy of the People Amith Chandrashaker – Prayer for the French Republic Jiyoun Chang – Stereophonic Natasha Katz – Grey House | Hana S. Kim and Brian MacDevitt – The Outsiders Brandon Stirling Baker – Illinoise David Bengali and Bradley King – Water for Elephants Isabella Byrd – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Natasha Katz – Hell's Kitchen |
| Best Sound Design of a Play | Best Sound Design of a Musical |
| Ryan Rumery – Stereophonic Stefania Bulbarella and Justin Ellington – Jaja's African Hair Braiding Leah Gelpe – Mary Jane Tom Gibbons – Grey House Will Pickens and Bray Poor – Appropriate | Cody Spencer – The Outsiders M. L. Dogg and Cody Spencer – Here Lies Love Kai Harada – Merrily We Roll Along Nick Lidster for Autograph – Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club Gareth Owen – Hell's Kitchen |
| Best Choreography | Best Orchestrations |
| Justin Peck – Illinoise Camille A. Brown – Hell's Kitchen Shana Carroll and Jesse Robb – Water for Elephants Jeff Kuperman and Rick Kuperman – The Outsiders Annie-B Parson – Here Lies Love | Jonathan Tunick – Merrily We Roll Along Adam Blackstone and Tom Kitt – Hell's Kitchen Will Butler and Justin Craig – Stereophonic Matt Hinkley, Justin Levine, and Jamestown Revival (Zach Chance and Jonathan Clay) – The Outsiders Timo Andres – Illinoise |
‡ The award is presented to the producer(s) of the musical or play.

### Productions with multiple nominations

Productions with multiple nominations :
| Nominations | Production |
| 13 | Hell's Kitchen |
| 13 | Stereophonic |
| 12 | The Outsiders |
| 9 | Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club |
| 8 | Appropriate |
| 7 | Merrily We Roll Along |
| 7 | Water for Elephants |
| 6 | Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch |
| 6 | Suffs |
| 5 | An Enemy of the People |
| 5 | Jaja's African Hair Braiding |
| 4 | Here Lies Love |
| 4 | Illinoise |
| 4 | Mary Jane |
| 4 | Mother Play |
| 3 | Days of Wine and Roses |
| 3 | Doubt: A Parable |
| 3 | Lempicka |
| 3 | The Notebook |
| 3 | Prayer for the French Republic |
| 2 | Back to the Future: The Musical |
| 2 | Grey House |
Productions with multiple wins :
| Awards | Production |
| 5 | Stereophonic |
| 4 | Merrily We Roll Along |
| 4 | The Outsiders |
| 3 | Appropriate |
| 2 | Hell's Kitchen |
| 2 | Suffs |

#### Individuals with multiple nominations

| Individual | Nominations | Awards |
| Justin Levine | 3 | 0 |
| David Zinn | 3 | 1 |
| Dede Ayite | 3 | 1 |
| Will Butler | 2 | 0 |
| Isabella Byrd | 2 | 0 |
| Natasha Katz | 2 | 0 |
| Peter Nigrini | 2 | 0 |
| Jamestown Revival (Zach Chance and Jonathan Clay) | 2 | 0 |
| Tom Scutt | 2 | 1 |
| Shaina Taub | 2 | 2 |

## Non-competitive awards

The recipients of three Special Tony Awards include Alex Edelman for his "exemplary debut" in his solo show Just for Us, Abe Jacob for his contributions to modern sound design in theater, and Nikiya Mathis for her hair and wig design for the play Jaja's African Hair Braiding. The recipients for the Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre this year are scenic projection designer Wendall K. Harrington, ASU Gammage Executive Director and Broadway League member Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, outgoing Playwrights Horizons Board Chair Judith O. Rubin, the Dramatists Guild Foundation, and the Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts. Billy Porter is the 2024 recipient of the Isabelle Stevenson Award for his activism in the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly with the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation and the Entertainment Community Fund. Directors Jack O'Brien and George C. Wolfe received Special Tony Awards for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre. The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia is the 2024 recipient of the Regional Theatre Tony Award. The recipient of the Excellence in Theatre Education Award is CJay Philip, the founder and creative director of Dance & BMore in Baltimore, Maryland.

## Controversy

Days before the ceremony, it was announced that many Broadway press outlets were denied access to the red carpet for coverage including SiriusXM’s On Broadway's Julie James, BroadwayWorld’s Richard Ridge, TheaterMania’s David Gordon, Broadway News’ Ruthie Fierberg, and Theatrely's Kobi Kassal. Eventually the decision was reversed after public outcry, an open letter from the Editor-in-Chief of Theatrely, and multiple news articles called out the decision.

## Reception

The night's performances received mixed reviews. Alicia Keys's live performance of "Empire State of Mind", with the cast of Hell's Kitchen onstage and Jay-Z joining remotely, was noted as a highlight by the live audience and by critics. The opening number featuring Ariana DeBose, on the other hand, drew criticism. The awards were celebrated for more strongly featuring straight plays than in past years, with clips and interviews preceding awards in play categories.
The ceremony drew 3.5 million viewers on CBS, marking a 14% decrease from the previous year's ceremony.
The broadcast was nominated for a 2025 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Variety or Talk Show Episode.