The Tony Awards, much like the world of theatre in general, is a place that excels in extremes. There is nothing like the high of finishing Broadway's biggest night as one of the evening's biggest winners. But not everyone is so lucky. Which shows ended this year's ceremony empty-handed?
This year, wins were fairly evenly spread. The most Tony-winning show of the night was Maybe Happy Ending, but it only took six categories. Six is, needless to say, no small feat, but it's also nowhere near matching the history-making totals of, say, The Producers.
And so it's especially surprising that some of the year's most-nominated shows didn't earn even a single win at the 78th Annual Tony Awards June 8, at Radio City Music Hall. John Proctor is the Villain was the most nominated play (in seven categories) but didn't win any categories, and Dead Outlaw was the second most-nominated musical, also with seven nominations, but did not take home any statuettes.
Similar fates befell Floyd Collins; Just in Time; Good Night, and Good Luck; Gypsy; Real Women Have Curves; SMASH; and BOOP! The Musical. And though it's slightly less surprising because they had already closed by the time nominations were out and voters were voting, also ending the night empty-handed were The Hills of California, English, and Swept Away.
There's also a handful of shows that were only up for awards in a single category, but lost out. That bunch includes A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical, Swept Away, Romeo + Juliet, Our Town, The Roommate, and Pirates! The Penzance Musical.
But here's the good news. Losing a Tony Award only means you lost the Tony Award. Lots of great shows, excellent performances, and fabulous work lose out on Tony statuettes every year, and that shouldn't diminish their greatness even a centimeter. And the visibility of being nominated鈥攁nd being seen on the all-important international broadcast鈥攊s the real win of the Tony Awards. All of this year's nominees got that. Especially as we cap off a season that ended as the highest-grossing in Broadway history and the best attended in years, that's really something to celebrate.
