RECORD TONY HAUL FOR ‘HAMILTON’
The Bay Area-bound hip-hop musical celebrating Founding Father Alexander Hamilton earns an unprecedented 16 Tony nominations.
Founding father Alexander Hamilton made history and the Broadway musical named after him is no different. The monster hit “Hamilton” has earned a record-breaking 16 Tony Award nominations.
Lin Manuel-Miranda’s epic hip-hop musical, which comes to San Francisco in March 2017, was nominated in every category for which it was eligible, from acting and writing to directing and set design. Miranda also scored his second nomination for Best Actor in a Musical.
The awards will be handed out June 12. “Hamilton” will be looking to break “The Producers” record of 12 Tony wins.
But it will be up against some big names and Broadway pedigree, especially in the Best Musical category. Also nominated in that category are Steve Martin’s “Bright Star” and the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Julian Fellowes adaptation of “School of Rock,” as well as “Shuffle Along” and “Waitress.”
The best play nominees are “Eclipsed,” “The Father,” “The Humans” and “King Charles III.”
Hollywood stars snubbed by Tony voters include Clive Owen, Al Pacino, Bruce Willis, Keira Knightley, Saoirse Ronan and George Takei.
Jennifer Hudson also was overlooked for her Broadway debut in the musical revival of “The Color Purple,” although she was heavily favored to receive a nod.
She posted an angry tweet about the snub, which she subsequently deleted, and later congratulated two “Purple” co-stars who were recognized.