Last night’s Tony Awards served as yet another pulpit from which current historical hip-hop musical smash Hamilton could officially proclaim its greatness.
The show won 11 of the record-breaking 16 Tony awards it was nominated for. One of those awards, Best Featured Actor in a Musical, went to Daveed Diggs, who plays Thomas Jefferson/Marquis de Lafayette. Diggs also moonlights as the main MC in noise rap project clipping.
The show also won Best Lead Actor in a Musical, Best Choreography, Best Lighting, Best Set Design, Best Featured Actress in a Musical, Best Book, Best Original Score, Best Direction of a Musical and finally, the coveted Best Musical. Hamilton finished just one award short of the record for the most Tonys: an even dozen, set by The Producers in 2001.
Beyond Hamilton, Jessica Lange of American Horror Story and Blue Sky fame was also victorious, taking home Best Lead Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Mary Cavan Tyrone in the Ryan Murphy-produced revival of Long Day’s Journey Into Night. Co-star and occasional General Zodd Michael Shannon was nominated for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play.
Finally, 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt star Jane Krakowski was nominated for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in She Loves Me, but she lost to Hamilton’s Renée Elise Goldsberry. Go figure.
Find a full list of the night’s winners here. Below, watch Hamilton creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda offer a heartfelt sonnet to the victims of yesterday’s tragic Orlando shooting and revisit our feature on his musical’s effect on hip-hop here.