(l to r) Daveed Diggs, Okieriete Onaodowan, Anthony Ramos, and Lin-Manuel Miranda in ‘Hamilton.’ (Photo: Joan Marcus)
Beloved Broadway stars and shows took home Emmy Awards at Sunday night’s ceremony. One of the night’s biggest prizes, Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded), went to Hamilton, streaming on Disney+. Original Hamilton cast stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr., Daveed Digs, Jonathan Groff, Anthony Ramos, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Phillipa Soo were also nominated for their performances, and Thomas Kail was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.
Other Broadway alums walked away with trophies; Jean Smart, who was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for the 2000 Broadway revival of The Man Who Came to Dinner, was a double nominee on Sunday, one for Mare of Easttown and one for Hacks, for which she won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. Ewan McGregor, who appeared in The Real Thing in 2014 and 2015, won for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for his titular role in Halston.
Several other Broadway stars were nominated on Sunday, including Uzo Aduba, Cynthia Erivo, Allison Janney, John Lithgow, William H. Macy, and Billy Porter.
The Emmys kick off an awards season that is on a unique schedule due to COVID-19; The 74th Annual Tony Awards will be held on September 26, 2021, to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2019–20 season. After being delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the ceremony was finalized for September 26, 2021, at the Winter Garden Theatre.
Jagged Little Pill leads the nominations with fifteen total, and Slave Play‘s 12 nominations broke the record for most nominations for a non-musical play (with 11 noms), the previous record set by Angels in America at the 2018 ceremony. Special Tony Award recipients had been announced for The Broadway Advocacy Coalition, David Byrne’s American Utopia, and Freestyle Love Supreme. In addition, the Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre award will be given to Graciela Daniele.
