Tony Awards 2015: "Fun Home" wins best musical
"Fun Home" has claimed the best musical prize at the 69th annual Tony Awards.
The musical, based on Alison Bechdel's graphic memoir about growing up with a closeted father at a funeral home, beat out fellow contenders "An American in Paris," "Something Rotten!" and "The Visit" for the top honor.
"Fun Home" picked up five awards in all, including making history when songwriters Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron became the first female writing team to win a Tony for best musical score (the award was handed out during a commercial break, so viewers at home didn't get to see).
The award for best play went to "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," a London import based on the novel of the same name about a teenager with Asperger's syndrome who tries to find a dog's killer. The production also won for best direction, scenic and lighting design and for leading actor Alex Sharp, who, in his Broadway debut, beat out the likes of Bradley Cooper and Bill Nighy.
Helen Mirren won the first award of the evening, leading actress in a play, for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in "The Audience." Richard McCabe also won the featured actor prize for playing one of Britain's prime ministers in the show.
"This is an unbelievable honor. I am so thrilled," Mirren said as she accepted the prize.
The Tony Award for best revival of a play went to "Skylight," while best revival of a musical went to "The King and I," which also earned Kelli O'Hara her first Tony win (for leading actress in a musical) after six nominations. Ruthie Ann Miles also won best featured actress for her role in the show.
Other winners included Michael Cerveris for his leading role in "Fun Home," Christian Borle of "Something Rotten!" for best featured actor in a musical and Annaleigh Ashford for featured actress in a play for "You Can't Take It With You." Christopher Wheeldon won for choreographing "An American in Paris," which also earned prizes for best orchestrations, lighting and scenic design.
Hosts Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming -- both Broadway veterans and Tony winners themselves -- kicked off the telecast with a musical opener, to the tune of Broadway hits including "Willkommen" from "Cabaret," "Popular" from "Wicked," "There Is Nothing Like a Dame" (directed at nominee Helen Mirren) and even an encouragement to producer Harvey Weinstein to "Smile," despite his "Finding Neverland" getting snubbed in the best musical category.
The Tonys telecast boasts Broadway insiders, lots of performances and a dash of Hollywood sparkle from nominees and presenters alike.
Heading into the evening, the musicals "An American in Paris" and "Fun Home" were tied for the most nominations with 12 apiece. The casts of both productions took to the Tonys stage to perform during the telecast, as did the rest of the best musical and best musical revival nominees.
Musicals that missed out on nominations in those categories weren't left out in the cold -- there were performances from "Gigi" with Vanessa Hudgens, "Finding Neverland" with Matthew Morrison and Kelsey Grammer and "It Shoulda Been You" with Tyne Daly.
Josh Groban also took the stage for an "In Memoriam" segment, singing "You Never Walk Alone" from the musical "Carousel" while backed by 175 other performers -- the most in a single number in Tonys history.
Presenters included Jason Alexander, Rose Byrne, Bobby Cannavale, Anna Chlumsky, Bradley Cooper, Misty Copeland, Bryan Cranston, Larry David, Taye Diggs, Sutton Foster, Marg Helgenberger, Joe Manganiello, Debra Messing, Jennifer Nettles, Jim Parsons, David Hyde Pierce, Thomas Sadoski, Amanda Seyfried, Taylor Schilling, Corey Stoll, Kiefer Sutherland, Sting, Ashley Tisdale, Rita Wilson and four-time Tonys host Neil Patrick Harris.
The telecast ended with a performance from the cast of "Jersey Boys," which sang "Oh What a Night" to mark the musical's 10th year on Broadway.