'Hell's Kitchen' and 'Stereophonic' lead Tony Awards with 13 nominations each

It was a crowded Tony Award season this year, with 36 eligible musicals and plays opening on Broadway stages. But by the time Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Renée Elise Goldsberry finished reading the nominations on YouTube, there were some clear front-runners: Hell's Kitchen, a musical based on Alicia Keys' life, and Stereophonic, a play with a lot of music that's about a Fleetwood Mac-style band developing an album, both had 13 nominations each. They were closely followed by The Outsiders, a musical based on the S.E. Hinton book and also a fan-favorite 1983 film. The revival Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club had nine.

Surprisingly, the season's runaway hit, the revival of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along, starring Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez, had just seven nominations, tied with the circus musical Water for Elephants, based on the book by Sarah Gruen.

The awards are taking place on Sunday, June 16 at 8:00 p.m. ET at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York. Ariana DeBose is returning for her third time as host. They'll air live on CBS or on Paramount+ with Showtime. Paramount+ Essential subscribers can watch on demand the next day.

Best Musical

• Hell's Kitchen
• Illinoise
• The Outsiders
• Suffs
• Water for Elephants

Best Revival of a Musical

• Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
• Gutenberg! The Musical!
• Merrily We Roll Along
• The Who's Tommy

Best Direction of a Musical

• Maria Friedman, Merrily We Roll Along
• Michael Greif, Hell's Kitchen
• Leigh Silverman, Suffs
• Jessica Stone, Water for Elephants
• Danya Taymor, The Outsiders

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical

• Brody Grant, The Outsiders
• Jonathan Groff, Merrily We Roll Along
• Dorian Harewood, The Notebook
• Brian d'Arcy James, Days of Wine and Roses
• Eddie Redmayne, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical

• Edin Espinosa, Lempicka
• Maleah Joi Moon, Hell's Kitchen
• Kelli O'Hara, Days of Wine and Roses
• Maryann Plunkett, The Notebook
• Gayle Rankin, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical

• Roger Bart, Back To The Future: The Musical
• Joshua Boone, The Outsiders
• Brandon Victor Dixon, Hell's Kitchen
• Sky Lakota-Lynch, The Outsiders
• Daniel Radcliffe, Merrily We Roll Along
• Steven Skybell, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical

• Shoshana Bean, Hell's Kitchen
• Amber Iman, Lempicka
• Nikki M. James, Suffs
• Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer, Monty Python's Spamalot
• Kecia Lewis, Hell's Kitchen
• Lindsay Mendez, Merrily We Roll Along
• Bebe Neuwirth, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Book of a Musical

• Kristoffer Diaz, Hell's Kitchen
• Bekah Brunstetter, The Notebook
• Adam Rapp and Justine Levine, The Outsiders
• Shaina Taub, Suffs
• Rick Elice, Water for Elephants

Best Play

• Jaja's African Hair Braiding
• Mary Jane
• Mother Play
• Prayer for the French Republic
• Stereophonic

Best Revival of a Play

• Appropriate
• An Enemy of the People
• Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch

Best Direction of a Play

• Daniel Aukin, Stereophonic
• Anne Kauffman, Mary Jane
• Kenny Leon, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
• Lila Neugebauer, Appropriate
• Whitney White, Jaja's African Hair Braiding

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play

• William Jackson Harper, Uncle Vanya
• Leslie Odom, Jr., Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
• Liev Schreiber, Doubt: A Parable
• Jeremy Strong, An Enemy of the People
• Michael Stuhlbarg, Patriots

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play

• Betsy Aidem, Prayer for the French Republic
• Jessica Lange, Mother Play
• Rachel McAdams, Mary Jane
• Sarah Paulson, Appropriate
• Amy Ryan, Doubt: A Parable

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play

• Will Brill, Stereophonic
• Eli Gelb, Stereophonic
• Jim Parsons, Mother Play
• Tom Pecinka, Stereophonic
• Corey Stoll, Appropriate

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play

• Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Doubt: A Parable
• Juliana Canfield, Stereophonic
• Celia Keenan-Bolger, Mother Play
• Sarah Pidgeon, Stereophonic
• Kara Young, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch

Best Original Score

• Adam Guettel, Days of Wine and Roses
• David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, Here Lies Love
• Will Butler, Stereophonic
• Shaina Taub, Suffs
• Jamestown Revival and Justin Levine, The Outsiders

Best Orchestrations

• Timo Andres, Illinoise
• Will Butler and Justin Craig, Stereophonic
• Justin Levine, Matt Hinkley and Jamestown Revival (Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance), The Outsiders
• Tom Kitt and Adam Blackstone, Hell's Kitchen
• Jonathan Tunick, Merrily We Roll Along

Best Choreography

• Annie-B Parson, Here Lies Love
• Camille A. Brown, Hell's Kitchen
• Rick Kuperman and Jeff Kuperman, The Outsiders
• Justin Peck, Illinoise
• Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, Water for Elephants

Best Scenic Design of a Musical

• AMP featuring Tatiana Kahvegian, The Outsiders
• Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini, Hell's Kitchen
• Takeshi Kata, Water for Elephants
• David Korins, Here Lies Love
• Riccardo Hernández and Peter Nigrini, Lempicka
• Tim Hatley and Finn Ross, Back To The Future: The Musical
• Tom Scutt, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club

Best Costume Design of a Musical

• Dede Ayite, Hell's Kitchen
• Linda Cho, The Great Gatsby
• David Israel Reynoso, Water for Elephants
• Tom Scutt, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
• Paul Tazewell, Suffs

Best Lighting Design of a Musical

• Brandon Stirling Baker, Illinoise
• Isabella Byrd, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
• Natasha Katz, Hell's Kitchen
• Bradley King and David Bengali, Water for Elephants
• Brian MacDevitt and Hana S. Kim, The Outsiders

Best Sound Design of a Musical

• M.L. Dogg and Cody Spencer, Here Lies Love
• Kai Harada, Merrily We Roll Along
• Nick Lidster for Autograph, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
• Gareth Owen, Hell's Kitchen
• Cody Spencer, The Outsiders

Best Scenic Design in a Play

• dots, Appropriate
• dots, Enemy of the People
• Derek McLane, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
• David Zinn, Jaja's African Hair Braiding
• David Zinn, Stereophonic

Best Costume Design of a Play

• Dede Ayite, Appropriate
• Dede Ayite, Jaja's African Hair Braiding
• Enver Chakartash, Stereophonic
• Emilio Sosa, Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch
• David Zinn, An Enemy of the People

Best Lighting Design of a Play

• Isabella Byrd, An Enemy of the People
• Amith Chandrashaker, Prayer for the French Republic
• Jiyoun Chang, Stereophonic
• Jane Cox, Appropriate
• Natasha Katz, Grey House

Best Sound Design of a Play

• Justin Ellington and Stefania Bulbarella, Jaja's African Hair Braiding
• Leah Gelpe, Mary Jane
• Tom Gibbons, Grey House
• Bray Poor and Will Pickens, Appropriate
• Ryan Rumery, Stereophonic