The 2026 Tony Awards on Sunday celebrated the very best in theater across New York City’s plays, musicals and revivals – and the nominees are already looking ahead to this next Broadway season.
While “Death of a Salesman,” “The Lost Boys,” “Ragtime,” “Schmigadoon!” and “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” all won multiple awards at the Radio City Music Hall ceremony hosted by Pink, those in attendance revealed what they’d like to see as 2026-27 plays out.
“We have a long way to go in terms of making ticket prices equitable. That is a really big issue. I don’t know the answer to it, but I hope it’s one that can be solved. I love this artform more than anything in the world,” pre-show co-host Laura Benanti told TheWrap on the blue carpet. “There are so many types of shows, such varied shows and varied performances. It shows how open Broadway is to all different artists.”
“Broadway shows need to make money, it’s a necessity. So we need Hollywood to put butts in seats. But I love that the people here are Hollywood who’ve done theater before and who know what theater is and are able to bring that,” “Giant” nominee Aya Cash agreed. “My category is everybody over 40, some significantly. I’m younger by a couple decades. That is a beautiful thing, the idea that there will be beautiful roles for women out there as we age.”
But it’s not only about audiences, the creatives behind this year’s top productions are aware that more work needs to be done when it comes to welcoming people onto Broadway as well.
“People need the theater and want to go to the theater, and ambitious plays can really resonate. We learned how much audiences want to be there and be together. There’s no substitute for a live experience,” winning “Liberation” writer Bess Wohl said, while director Whitney White echoed: “We’re making great work, but we’re still not making work by everybody and thus not for everybody. I should not be the only woman nominated in my category. There’s so many incredible people out there, so how do we get the right people in the right institution with the right team? Because you can be great, but you can’t be great on your own. It’s about the pipeline of support, and that’s what I’m trying to think about for next season.”
“Right now, people want joy. We need to laugh. But we also need to see things that are reflected back to us, what America is and who we are – it starts conversations and makes us talk to our family members. We have important conversations because of the theater,” choreographer Ellenore Scott said. “We’re going to be seeing a lot more intense stories. This season broke open, like, ‘Let’s look at ourselves, let’s talk about serious subject matter.’ Playwrights are really going to want to be putting that onstage. But also poking fun at the theater, parodying might be opened up more. The ‘Oh, Mary!’ pipeline.”
“We are overjoyed that every night there are 6-year-olds and 80-year-olds twerking in the theater having their own individual experience, and that there are people walking out really contemplating what made them cry, what made them reach out to a friend’s hand, what made them introduce themselves to someone they didn’t know, what made them Google something they hadn’t heard of?” winning “Cats” director Zhailon Levingston explained. “We can do this still in this country, we can find third spaces. The theater is always going to be one of them.”
Ultimately, the Broadway community just wants to continue putting on good shows that reflect where we are in modern society.
“People want complicated work. Audiences don’t just crave escapism – there is a place for escapism, please; we need that – but we also need complex work that holds up a mirror to our current situation,” “Ragtime” nominee Ben Levi Ross said. “We’ve seen a lot of people who have been working their butts off for a really long time and are getting recognized, and we’re seeing a lot of newcomers, too. This community spans generations.”
“There’s a good mix of big names and not. The work really can speak for itself sometimes and that’s really what’s most important to me,” “Chess” nominee Hannah Cruz added. “Trusting in talent rather than name-brand recognition.”
“I’d like to see what we have this year: a mix of old and new. I’m always excited by new musicals with brand-new composing teams; I also love to hear the tried and true,” Best Orchestrations winner Doug Besterman (“Schmigadoon!”) shared, while “Chess’” Brian Usifer concluded: “Everybody wants new musicals. It’d be really exciting to see lots and lots of those.”
The eligibility window for next year’s 80th Annual Tony Awards from The American Theatre Wing began on April 27.
