Lead
On May 5, the Tony Awards announced nominations for the 79th annual ceremony via the official Tony Awards YouTube channel, with nominees revealed by Uzo Aduba and Darren Criss. The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! each led the ballot with 12 nominations, while Ragtime followed closely with 11. The ceremony, hosted by P!NK, will be held June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall and will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+.
Key Takeaways
- The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! each received 12 nominations, the most of any production this year.
- Ragtime earned 11 nominations, making it the third-most nominated production in 2026.
- Lifetime Achievement Special Tony Awards will honor André Bishop, Jules Fisher and James Lapine; Mary-Mitchell Campbell receives the Isabelle Stevenson Award.
- Tony Honors for Excellence go to 1/52 Project, Jake Bell, Kenn Lubin and Loren Plotkin.
- The ceremony is scheduled for June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall and will be broadcast on CBS and Paramount+.
- Major categories include Best Musical (The Lost Boys; Schmigadoon!; Titanique; Two Strangers) and Best Play (The Balusters; Giant; Liberation; Little Bear Ridge Road).
- Prominent acting nominees include Nathan Lane, John Lithgow, Daniel Radcliffe, Lesley Manville, Stephanie Hsu and Joshua Henry.
Background
The Tony Awards, now in their 79th year, remain the marquee honors for American theatre, recognizing productions and individuals from Broadway seasons. Nomination announcements are customarily shared publicly in early May, giving shows six weeks to campaign and build public momentum ahead of the awards ceremony in June. This year’s field mixes large-scale musicals, revivals of canonical works and contemporary plays that reflect both commercial and artistic trends on Broadway.
Producers, unions and creative teams watch nomination tallies closely because nominations can significantly affect box office receipts and touring prospects. The inclusion of revivals such as Ragtime and new adaptations like The Lost Boys — alongside long-running cultural touchstones revived for reinvention — highlights Broadway’s dual drive: to honor historical repertoire while elevating fresh storytelling and unusual adaptations.
Main Event
The nominations were announced May 5 on the Tony Awards’ official channel by nominees Uzo Aduba and Darren Criss. Best Musical nominees are The Lost Boys; Schmigadoon!; Titanique; and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York). Best Play nominees include The Balusters by David Lindsay-Abaire; Giant by Mark Rosenblatt; Liberation by Bess Wohl; and Little Bear Ridge Road by Samuel D. Hunter.
Best Revival of a Musical nominees are Cats: The Jellicle Ball; Ragtime; and The Rocky Horror Show. Best Revival of a Play nominees are Becky Shaw; Death of a Salesman; Every Brilliant Thing; Fallen Angels; and Oedipus (adapted by Robert Icke). The range of revivals spans classical (Sophocles’ Oedipus) to mid-20th-century American canon (Death of a Salesman) to contemporary reimaginings.
Lead performance categories feature established screen and stage names: Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play includes Rose Byrne, Carrie Coon, Susannah Flood, Lesley Manville and Kelli O’Hara. Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Play nominees are Will Harrison, Nathan Lane, John Lithgow, Daniel Radcliffe and Mark Strong. Musical lead nominees include Sara Chase, Stephanie Hsu, Caissie Levy, Marla Mindelle and Christiani Pitts for actresses; and Nicholas Christopher, Luke Evans, Joshua Henry, Sam Tutty and Brandon Uranowitz for actors.
Creative and design categories highlighted multiple productions: Michael Arden is nominated for Direction of a Musical for The Lost Boys; Lear deBessonet for Ragtime; Christopher Gattelli for Schmigadoon!; and others. Technical categories show broad competition across set, costume, lighting, sound and orchestrations, with Ragtime, Cats: The Jellicle Ball and The Lost Boys repeatedly appearing across those lists.
Analysis & Implications
The tie at the top between The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! underscores a shift in voter appetite: original-stage adaptations and genre-playing musicals are resonating strongly. High nomination counts often translate into increased media attention and box-office surges; both shows can expect a spike in ticket demand as marketing teams amplify the nominations.
Ragtime’s 11 nominations reflect the continuing appeal of revisiting landmark works with new creative teams, while Cats: The Jellicle Ball and The Rocky Horror Show signal that reinterpretations of cult or classic properties remain a viable awards strategy. For producers, these results may encourage further investments in revivals and reimaginings that balance familiarity with fresh production values.
For actors and directors, nominations for performers such as John Lithgow and Nathan Lane indicate the Tony electorate’s continued recognition of veteran stage artists who bring name recognition and critical gravitas. Rising nominees from newer shows may benefit from this association, gaining industry standing that could lead to tours, transfers and awards-season momentum beyond Broadway.
Comparison & Data
| Production | Nominations |
|---|---|
| The Lost Boys | 12 |
| Schmigadoon! | 12 |
| Ragtime | 11 |
| Death of a Salesman | 9 |
| Cats: The Jellicle Ball | 9 |
| The Rocky Horror Show | 9 |
This table highlights the most-nominated productions; the distribution shows a cluster at the top (12 and 11 nominations) and a broader middle tier with 5–9 nominations. Historically, productions with double-digit nominations are statistically more likely to convert multiple nominations into wins, though conversion rates vary year to year based on category competition.
Reactions & Quotes
“The nominations for the 79th Annual Tony Awards were announced on May 5.”
Tony Awards (official announcement)
The official announcement emphasized the range of shows honored and the upcoming ceremony date. Industry professionals note that nomination day often prompts renewed publicity and week-to-week box office movement.
“The ceremony will take place on June 7 at Radio City Music Hall, broadcast on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.”
Tony Awards (official announcement)
That scheduling detail confirms the mid-season awards window and national broadcast strategy, which typically increases public engagement and viewer ratings for the theatre community.
Unconfirmed
- No unconfirmed claims about nominations or ceremony details were identified in the Tony Awards’ official announcement; the lists above reflect the published nominees.
Bottom Line
The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! leading the nominations signals a strong year for bold musical projects, while Ragtime’s high tally confirms the continued resonance of well-mounted revivals. These results will shape box-office dynamics and awards-season narratives in the coming weeks as campaigns intensify ahead of June 7.
Industry watchers should monitor nomination-to-win conversion in major categories, and audiences can expect elevated demand for leading shows now carrying the Tony spotlight. The ceremony at Radio City Music Hall will consolidate these storylines and reset priorities for producers, creatives and performers across Broadway.
Sources
- Broadway.com (trade press summary of Tony nominations)
- Tony Awards (official organization announcement)