The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre. The award is given to actresses for quality leading roles in a Broadway play.[1] Despite the award first being presented in 1947, there were no nominees announced until 1956. There have been two ties in this category, and one three-way tie.
| Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play | |
|---|---|
 2022 Recipient: Deirdre O'Connell | |
| Awarded for | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play |
| Location | New York City |
| Presented by | American Theatre Wing, The Broadway League |
| Currently held by | Deirdre O'Connell for Dana H. (2022) |
| Website | TonyAwards.com |
Winners and nomineesEdit
indicates the winner
1940sEdit
| Year | Actress | Play | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 1st Tony Awards | |||
| Ingrid Bergman | Joan of Lorraine | Mary Grey / Joan of Arc | |
| Helen Hayes | Happy Birthday | Addie Bemis | |
| 1948 2nd Tony Awards | |||
| Judith Anderson | Medea | Medea | |
| Katharine Cornell | Antony and Cleopatra | Cleopatra | |
| Jessica Tandy | A Streetcar Named Desire | Blanche DuBois | |
| 1949 3rd Tony Awards | |||
| Martita Hunt | The Madwoman of Chaillot | Countess Aurelia |
1950sEdit
1960sEdit
1970sEdit
1980sEdit
1990sEdit
Maggie Smith won for Lettice and Lovage (1990)
Mercedes Ruehl won for Lost in Yonkers (1991)
Madeline Kahn won for The Sisters Rosenweig (1993)
Judi Dench won for Amy's View (1999)
2000sEdit
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Jennifer Ehle won for The Real Thing (2000)
Lindsay Duncan won for Private Lives (2002)
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Vanessa Redgrave won for Long Day's Journey into Night (2003)
Phylicia Rashad won for Raisin in the Sun (2004)
Marcia Gay Harden won for God of Carnage (2009)
2010sEdit
Viola Davis won for Fences (2010)
Cicely Tyson, age 91, won for A Trip to Bountiful (2012)
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Audra McDonald won for Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (2014)
Helen Mirren won for The Audience (2015)
Elaine May, age 87, won for The Waverly Gallery (2019)
2020sEdit
Mary-Louise Parker won for Proof (2001) and The Sound Inside (2020)
| Year | Actor | Play | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 74th Tony Awards | |||
| Mary-Louise Parker | The Sound Inside | Bella Baird | |
| Joaquina Kalukango | Slave Play | Kaneisha | |
| Laura Linney | My Name Is Lucy Barton | Lucy Barton | |
| Audra McDonald | Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune | Frankie | |
| 2021 Ceremony not held |
N/A | ||
| 2022 75th Tony Awards | |||
| Deirdre O'Connell | Dana H. | Dana H. | |
| Gabby Beans | The Skin of Our Teeth | Sabina | |
| LaChanze | Trouble in Mind | Wiletta Mayer | |
| Ruth Negga | Macbeth | Lady Macbeth | |
| Mary-Louise Parker | How I Learned to Drive | Li'l Bit | |
Multiple winsEdit
Multiple nominationsEdit
Multiple character winsEdit
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Multiple character nominationsEdit
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Productions with multiple nominationsEdit
- The Chalk Garden -- Gladys Cooper and Siobhán McKenna
- Toys In The Attic -- Maureen Stapleton and Irene Worth
- The Killing of Sister George -- Beryl Reid (winner) and Eileen Atkins
- 'night, Mother -- Kathy Bates and Anne Pitoniak
- A Streetcar Named Desire -- Blythe Danner and Frances McDormand
- The Sisters Rosensweig -- Madeline Kahn (winner) and Jane Alexander
- A Delicate Balance -- Rosemary Harris and Elaine Stritch
- August: Osage County -- Deanna Dunagan (winner) and Amy Morton
- God of Carnage -- Marcia Gay Harden (winner) and Hope Davis
- Mary Stuart -- Janet McTeer and Harriet Walter (God of Carnage and Mary Stuart were produced in the same year)
Multiple awards and nominationsEdit
Actress who have been nominated multiple times in any acting categories
ReferencesEdit
- ^ Kirkley, Donald (April 21, 1968). "Operation Frenzy Before the Tony Awards". The Baltimore Sun. p. T2. Retrieved December 24, 2011.