In a livestreamed event at 11:00 this morning, co-hosted by Sarah Hyland (The Great Gatsby) and Orville Peck (Cabaret) at Lincoln Center’s New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, nominations for the 91st annual Drama League Awards, honoring outstanding accomplishments in Broadway and Off-Broadway theater, were announced in seven competitive categories, along with four previously announced special honors. To be eligible for this year’s awards, shows (non-virtual only) were required to have begun their preview performances between April 21, 2024-April 20, 2025.
First presented in 1922, and formalized in 1935, The Drama League Awards are the oldest theatrical honors in the US and the only major theatrical awards chosen by the entire theater community of Drama League members nationwide, including award-winning actors, designers, directors, playwrights, producers, industry veterans, critics, and dedicated audiences who attend Broadway and Off-Broadway productions
This year’s special honorees are:
Contribution to the Theater Award – Kate Navin and Audible Theater;
Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater – Lea Salonga;
Founders Award for Excellence in Directing – Whitney White;
Gratitude Award – Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron.
And the nominees for the 2025 Drama League Awards are:
Outstanding Production of a Play – The Antiquities, Playwrights Horizons, written by Jordan Harrison; Becoming Eve, Abrons Arts Center, written by Emil Weinstein, based on the memoir by Abby Chava Stein; English, Todd Haimes Theatre, written by Sanaz Toossi; Good Bones, The Public Theater, written by James Ijames; Good Night, and Good Luck, Winter Garden Theatre, written by George Clooney and Grant Heslov; Here There Are Blueberries, New York Theatre Workshop, written by Moisés Kaufman and Amanda Gronich; John Proctor Is the Villain, Booth Theatre, written by Kimberly Belflower; Liberation, Laura Pels Theatre, written by Beth Wohl; Oh, Mary!, Lyceum Theatre, written by Cole Escola; The Picture of Dorian Gray, Music Box Theatre, new adaptation written by Kip Williams; Purpose, Hayes Theatre, written by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins; Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Marquis Theatre, written by Kate Trefry; and Walden, Second Stage Theater, written by Amy Berryman.
Outstanding Revival of a Play – The Cherry Orchard, St. Ann’s Warehouse, written by Anton Chekhov, new version written by Benedict Andrews; Eureka Day, Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, written by Jonathan Spector; Ghosts, Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre, written by Henrik Ibsen, new version by Mark O’Rowe; Glengarry Glen Ross, Palace Theatre, written by David Mamet; Home, Todd Haimes Theatre, written by Samm-Art Williams; Othello, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, written by William Shakespeare; Romeo + Juliet, Circle in the Square Theatre, written by William Shakespeare; A Streetcar Named Desire, Brooklyn Academy of Music, written by Tennessee Williams; Vanya, Lucille Lortel Theatre, after Anton Chekhov, adapted by Simon Stephens and Sam Yates; Wine in the Wilderness, written by Alice Childress; and Yellow Face, Todd Haimes Theatre, written by David Henry Hwang.
Outstanding Production of a Musical – BOOP! The Musical, Broadhurst Theatre, book by Bob Martin, music by David Foster, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead; Buena Vista Social Club, Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, book by Marco Ramirez, music by Buena Vista Social Club; Dead Outlaw, Longacre Theatre, book by Itamar Moses, music and lyrics by David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna; Death Becomes Her, Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, book by Marco Pennette, music and lyrics by Julia Mattison and Noel Carey; Drag: The Musical, New World Stages, book, music, and lyrics by Justin Andrew Honard (Alaska Thunderfuck), Tomas Costanza, and Ashley Gordon; Just in Time, Circle in the Square Theatre, book by Warren Leight and Isaac Oliver, music and lyrics by various artists; Macbeth in Stride, Brooklyn Academy of Music, written by Whitney White; Maybe Happy Ending, Belasco Theatre, book by Will Aronson and Hue Park, music by Will Aronson, lyrics by Hue Park; Operation Mincemeat, John Golden Theatre, book, music, and lyrics by David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts; Real Women Have Curves, James Earl Jones Theatre, book by Lisa Loomer with Nell Benjamin, based on the play by Josefina López, music and lyrics by Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez; Smash, Imperial Theatre, book by Bob Martin and Rick Elice, based on the series created by Theresa Rebeck, music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman; and Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends, Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, devised by Cameron Mackintosh.
Outstanding Revival of a Musical – Cats: The Jellicle Ball, Perelman Performing Arts Center, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by T.S. Eliot, additional lyrics by Trevor Nunn and Richard Stilgoe; Floyd Collins, book by Tina Landau, music and lyrics by Adam Guettel, additional lyrics by Tina Landau; Gypsy, Majestic Theatre, book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; The Last Five Years, Hudson Theatre, book, music, and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown; Once upon a Mattress, Hudson Theatre, book by Jay Thompson, Marshall Barer, and Dean Fuller, adapted by Amy Sherman-Palladino, music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer; The Marriage of Figaro, music and libretto by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Pirates! The Penzance Musical, Todd Haimes Theatre, music by Arthur Sullivan, libretto by W. S. Gilbert, adapted by Rupert Holmes; Sunset Blvd., St. James Theatre, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton; and Urinetown, New York City Center, music and lyrics by Mark Hollmann, book and lyrics by Greg Kotis.
Outstanding Direction of a Play – Knud Adams, English, Roundabout Theatre Company/Todd Haimes Theatre; Saheem Ali, Good Bones, The Public Theater; David Cromer, Good Night, and Good Luck, Winter Garden Theatre; Sam Pinkleton, Oh, Mary!, Lyceum Theatre; Tyne Rafaeli, Becoming Eve, New York Theatre Workshop; Anna D. Shapiro, Eureka Day, Manhattan Theatre Club/Samuel J. Friedman Theatre; Danya Taymor, John Proctor Is the Villain, Booth Theatre; Whitney White, Liberation, Roundabout Theatre Company/Laura Pels Theatre; Kip Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Music Box Theatre; and Sam Yates, Vanya, Lucille Lortel Theatre.
Outstanding Direction of a Musical – Michael Arden, Maybe Happy Ending, Belasco Theatre; Saheem Ali, Buena Vista Social Club, Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre; Christopher Gattelli, Death Becomes Her, Lunt-Fontanne Theatre; Robert Hastie, Operation Mincemeat, John Golden Theatre; Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, Cats: The Jellicle Ball, Perelman Arts Center; Jamie Lloyd, Sunset Blvd., St. James Theatre; Jerry Mitchell, BOOP! The Musical, Shubert Theatre; Susan Stroman, Smash, Imperial Theatre; Alex Timbers, Just in Time, Circle in the Square Theatre; Annie Tippe, Three Houses, Signature Theatre Company; Sergio Trujillo, Real Women Have Curves, James Earl Jones Theatre; and George C. Wolfe, Gypsy, Majestic Theatre.
Distinguished Performance Award – Tala Ashe, English; Brooks Ashmanskas, Smash; Stori Ayers, Home; Natalie Venetia Belcon, Buena Vista Social Club; George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck; Kit Connor, Romeo+Juliet; Tatianna Córdoba, Real Women Have Curves; Darren Criss, Maybe Happy Ending; Kieran Culkin, Glengarry Glen Ross; André De Shields, Cats: The Jellicle Ball; Tommy Dorfman, Becoming Eve; Robert Downey, Jr., McNeal; Adam Driver, Hold On To Me Darling; Andrew Durand, Dead Outlaw; Cole Escola, Oh, Mary!; Mia Farrow, The Roommate; Tom Francis, Sunset Blvd.; Amber Gray, Eureka Day; David Greenspan, I’m Assuming You Know David Greenspan; Jonathan Groff, Just in Time; Jake Gyllenhaal, Othello; Ryan J. Haddad, Hold Me in the Water; Megan Hilty, Death Becomes Her; Robyn Hurder, Smash; LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Purpose; Nick Jonas, The Last Five Years; Ramin Karimloo, Pirates! The Penzance Musical; Gracie Lawrence, Just in Time; Beth Leavel, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends; Justina Machado, Real Women Have Curves; Jak Malone, Operation Mincemeat; Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow; Idina Menzel, Redwood; Paul Mescal, A Streetcar Named Desire; Jinkx Monsoon, Pirates! The Penzance Musical; Marjan Neshat, English; Sandra Oh, The Welkin; Lily Rabe, Ghosts; Jasmine Amy Rogers, BOOP! The Musical; Lea Salonga, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends; Nicole Scherzinger, Sunset Blvd.; Andrew Scott, Vanya; Helen J. Shen, Maybe Happy Ending; Jennifer Simard, Death Becomes Her; Sarah Snook, The Picture of Dorian Gray; Ephraim Sykes, Our Town; Alaska Thunderfuck, Drag: The Musical; Adrienne Warren, The Last Five Years; Denzel Washington, Othello; Joy Woods, Gypsy; and Kara Young, Purpose and Table 17.
The Drama League also acknowledged previous recipients of the Distinguished Performance Award who appeared in Broadway or Off-Broadway productions this season. As the Award can only be won once in a performer’s lifetime, they are ineligible to be nominated but their exemplary work was recognized and applauded: Annaleigh Ashford, All In; Danny Burstein, Gypsy; Norbert Leo Butz, Vladimir; Sutton Foster, Once upon a Mattress; Neil Patrick Harris, Shit. Meet. Fan.; Patti LuPone, The Roommate; Audra McDonald, Gypsy; Lin-Manuel Miranda, All In; and Bernadette Peters, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.
Congratulations to all the honorees and nominees for The Drama League’s recognition of their excellent work and important contributions to NYC theater.
The 91st Annual Drama League Awards, hosted by Frank DiLella, will be presented on Friday, May 16, 2025, 11 am-3 pm, at a luncheon ceremony at The Ziegfeld Ballroom, 141 West 54th Street, NYC. For tickets (priced at $350-1000), register online.
