The Lost Boys: A New Musical took home the top prize at the 79th annual Tony Awards, held Sunday night at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. According to Variety, the punk-rock adaptation of the 1987 cult horror film beat out Schmigadoon!, Titaníque, and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) for Best Musical.
The ceremony was split into two parts. The preshow, called The Tony Awards: Act One, was co-hosted by Laura Benanti and Tituss Burgess and streamed on Pluto TV. The main telecast broadcast live coast-to-coast on CBS and streamed on Paramount+. Pop star Pink hosted the main ceremony, marking what Billboard described as the biggest pop star ever to host the show. "For some reason, I'm your host," she told the Radio City audience, noting she has never appeared on Broadway.
Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman emerged as one of the biggest winners of the night. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it led after the preshow with three wins and continued to build during the main telecast, collecting a total of five awards by the one-hour mark. John Lithgow won Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Play for his work in Giant. Nathan Lane was nominated in the same category for Death of a Salesman but did not win.
Schmigadoon!, an adaptation of the 2021 musical television series, won Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score, among other awards. The revival category for musicals was won by Cats: The Jellicle Ball, which competed against Ragtime and The Rocky Horror Show.
The most historic moment of the evening came early. Costume designer Qween Jean, whose work on Cats: The Jellicle Ball earned her a nomination, became the first openly trans woman to win a Tony Award. She had also been nominated in a second category, Best Costume Design for a Play, for her work on Liberation. Taking the stage in a ruffled lavender gown, she opened with a shouted "Happy Pride!" before addressing the audience directly.
"This experience has been monumental. We are here for the legacy of queer people, trans people...We have to take up space. We have to shift the paradigm. So, I just want to say, thank you all so much for this incredible honor," she said, as reported by Deadline.
Jeff Mahshie won Best Costume Design for a Play for Fallen Angels. He was not present to accept the award.
The red carpet drew a wide range of celebrities from theater and film, including Queen Latifah, Billy Crystal, Daniel Radcliffe, Rose Byrne, Adrien Brody, Rachel Zegler, Lea Michele, Neil Patrick Harris, and Bernadette Peters, among many others noted by The Hollywood Reporter.
The 2026 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre went to three recipients: André Bishop, who served as artistic director of Lincoln Center Theater from 1992 to 2025; lighting designer Jules Fisher; and playwright and director James Lapine. The evening also featured anniversary performances celebrating The Book of Mormon, Chicago, and A Chorus Line.
