Frontmezzjunkies Tries to Predict: The Winners of the 2025 Tony Awards
By Ross
The 2025 Tony Awards are getting closer and closer to being handed out on June 8th, and I can’t help myself but be pulled into the non-stop debate of who will win, and who should win as we get closer to that night. I, quite happily, will not be attending the celebrations, but I will be gathering together with my group of fellow theatre junkies to sit back in the comfort of our living room and watch the festivities unfold in the comfort of our community.
The nominations have been announced, ending lots and lots of speculation and debate among my fellow theatre junkies and myself, but now a different, seemingly more urgent and important debate has begun. Who will The Tonys recognize this season, in a season which began last June with the revival of Samm-Art Williams’s Home and concluded with the double-opening of Dead Outlaw and Real Women Have Curves? And all that came to be in between.
Three musicals dominated the nominations with 10 each: the thrilling Buena Vista Social Club, the hilarious Death Becomes Her, and the touching and sweet Maybe Happy Ending. The recently transferred Dead Outlaw musical, after a run at the Audible/Minetta Lane Theatre, and the London transfer of Sunset Blvd both garnered 7, including a Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for the controversial but adored Nicole Scherzinger.
In the play categories, the intense John Proctor is the Villain, and the powerful The Hills of California both gathered up 7 nominations, including nods to their dynamic leads and directors. And all the announcements of the other Awards, such as the Outer Critics Circle Awards, the Drama Desk Awards (out June 1st), the Drama League, and the Chita Rivera Awards, are keeping that speculation pot a-stirring. And I’m right there, with one hand on that spoon, keeping the act of prediction alive and well.
So let the public game of speculation begin here with my predictions for the 2025 Tony Awards.
✅ – who I think will win (2pts)
🤞 – who I really want to win (1pt)
🏆 – who DID end up winning
Below is the list of the nominations. Check back after the awards night and see how we did. Score-wise. And category-wise. The actual winners will be announced on June 8th.
The Tony Award Nominations
Best Musical
Buena Vista Social Club
Dead Outlaw
Death Becomes Her
🤞✅ Maybe Happy Ending
Operation Mincemeat
Best Play
English
🤞The Hills of California
John Proctor is the Villain
✅ Oh, Mary!
Purpose
Best Revival of a Play
✅ Eureka Day
Romeo + Juliet
Our Town
🤞Yellow Face
Best Revival of a Musical
🤞Floyd Collins
Gypsy
Pirates! The Penzance Musical
✅ Sunset Blvd
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
🤞 Darren Criss, Maybe Happy Ending
Andrew Durand, Dead Outlaw
Tom Francis, Sunset Blvd
✅ Jonathan Groff, Just in Time
James Monroe Iglehart, A Wonderful World
Jeremy Jordan, Floyd Collins
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical
Megan Hilty, Death Becomes Her
Audra McDonald, Gypsy
✅ 🤞Jasmine Amy Rogers, BOOP! The Musical
Nicole Scherzinger, Sunset Blvd
Jennifer Simard, Death Becomes Her
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play
George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck
🤞✅ Cole Escola, Oh, Mary!
Jon Michael Hill, Purpose
Daniel Dae Kim, Yellow Face
Harry Lennix, Purpose
Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play
🤞Laura Donnelly, The Hills of California
Mia Farrow, The Roommate
LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Purpose
Sadie Sink, John Proctor is the Villain
✅ Sarah Snook, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
Brooks Ashmanskas, SMASH
Jeb Brown, Dead Outlaw
Danny Burstein, Gypsy
🤞✅ Jak Malone, Operation Mincemeat
Taylor Trensch, Floyd Collins
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
🤞Natalie Venetia Belcon, Buena Vista Social Club
Julia Knitel, Dead Outlaw
Gracie Lawrence, Just in Time
✅ Justina Machado, Real Women Have Curves
Joy Woods, Gypsy
Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play
Glenn Davis, Purpose
Gabriel Ebert, John Proctor is the Villain
✅ Francis Jue, Yellow Face
Bob Odenkirk, Glengarry Glen Ross
🤞Conrad Ricamora, Oh, Mary!
Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play
Tala Ashe, English
🤞Jessica Hecht, Eureka Day
Marjan Neshat, English
Fina Strazza, John Proctor is the Villain
✅ Kara Young, Purpose
Best Scenic Design of a Play
Marsha Ginsberg, English
🤞Rob Howell, The Hills of California
Marg Horwell and David Bergman, The Picture of Dorian Gray
✅ Miriam Buether and 59, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Scott Pask, Good Night, and Good Luck
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Rachel Hauck, Swept Away
🤞✅ Dane Laffrey and George Reeve, Maybe Happy Ending
Arnulfo Maldonado, Buena Vista Social Club
Derek McLane, Death Becomes Her
Derek McLane, Just in Time
Best Costume Design of a Play
Brenda Abbandandolo, Good Night, and Good Luck
🤞Marg Horwell, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Rob Howell, The Hills of California
Holly Pierson, Oh, Mary!
✅ Brigitte Reiffenstuel, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Costume Design of a Musical
Dede Ayite, Buena Vista Social Club
✅ Gregg Barnes, BOOP! The Musical
🤞Clint Ramos, Maybe Happy Ending
Paul Tazewell, Death Becomes Her
Catherine Zuber, Just in Time
Best Lighting Design of a Play
Natasha Chivers, The Hills of California
✅ Jon Clark, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Heather Gilbert and David Bengali, Good Night, and Good Luck
Natasha Katz and Hannah Wasileski, John Proctor is the Villain
🤞Nick Schlieper, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Jack Knowles, Sunset Blvd
Tyler Micoleau, Buena Vista Social Club
Scott Zielinski and Ruey Horng Sun, Floyd Collins
🤞Ben Stanton, Maybe Happy Ending
✅Justin Townsend, Death Becomes Her
Best Sound Design of a Play
✅ Paul Arditti, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Palmer Hefferan, John Proctor is the Villain
Daniel Kluger, Good Night, and Good Luck
Nick Powell, The Hills of California
🤞Clemence Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Sound Design of a Musical
Jonathan Deans, Buena Vista Social Club
✅ Adam Fisher, Sunset Blvd
Peter Hylenski, Just in Time
🤞Peter Hylenski, Maybe Happy Ending
Dan Moses Schreier, Floyd Collins
Best Direction of a Play
Knud Adams, English
Sam Mendes, The Hills of California
✅ Sam Pinkleton, Oh, Mary!
🤞Danya Taymor, John Proctor is the Villain
Kip Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Best Direction of a Musical
Saheem Ali, Buena Vista Social Club
🤞Michael Arden, Maybe Happy Ending
David Cromer, Dead Outlaw
Christopher Gattelli, Death Becomes Her
✅ Jamie Lloyd, Sunset Blvd
Best Choreography
Joshua Bergasse, SMASH
Camille A. Brown, Gypsy
Christopher Gattelli, Death Becomes Her
Jerry Mitchell, BOOP! The Musical
🤞✅Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck, Buena Vista Social Club
Best Orchestrations
🤞✅ Andrew Resnick and Michael Thurber, Just in Time
Will Aronson, Maybe Happy Ending
Bruce Coughlin, Floyd Collins
Marco Paguia, Buena Vista Social Club
David Cullen and Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sunset Blvd
Best Book of a Musical
Buena Vista Social Club
Marco Ramirez
Dead Outlaw
Itamar Moses
Death Becomes Her
Marco Pennette
✅ Maybe Happy Ending
Will Aronson and Hue Park
🤞Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical
David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts
Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
🤞Dead Outlaw
Music & Lyrics: David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna
Death Becomes Her
Music & Lyrics: Julia Mattison and Noel Carey
✅ Maybe Happy Ending
Music: Will Aronson
Lyrics: Will Aronson and Hue Park
Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical
Music & Lyrics: David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts
Real Women Have Curves: The Musical
Music & Lyrics: Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez
Special Awards
The musicians who make up the band of Buena Vista Social Club – Marco Paguia (Music Director, Conductor/Piano); David Oquendo (Associate Music Director, Guitar); Renesito Avich (Tres); Gustavo Schartz (Bass); Javier Días, Román Diaz, Mauricio Herrera (Percussion); Jesus Ricardo (Trumpet); Eddie Venegas (Trombone); Hery Paz (Woodwinds); Leonardo Reyna (Piano);
The Illusions & Technical Effects of Stranger Things: The First Shadow (Jamie Harrison, Chris Fisher, Gary Beestone & Edward Pierce).
Lifetime Achievement
Harvey Fierstein
Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award
Celia Keenan-Bolger
Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre
Great Performances
Michael Price
New 42
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Tony Nominations by Production
Notations: wins/nominations
Buena Vista Social Club – 10
Death Becomes Her – 10
Maybe Happy Ending – 10
Dead Outlaw – 7
John Proctor is the Villain – 7
Sunset Blvd. – 7
The Hills of California – 7
Floyd Collins – 6
Just in Time – 6
Purpose – 6
The Picture of Dorian Gray – 6
English – 5
Good Night, and Good Luck – 5
Gypsy – 5
Oh, Mary! – 5
Stranger Things: The First Shadow – 5
Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical – 4
BOOP! The Musical – 3
Yellow Face – 3
Eureka Day – 2
Real Women Have Curves: The Musical – 2
SMASH – 2
A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical – 1
Glengarry Glen Ross – 1
Pirates! The Penzance Musical – 1
Romeo + Juliet – 1
Swept Away – 1
The Roommate – 1
Thornton Wilder’s Our Town – 1
