Broadway Purists Are Shaking Over These Unapologetically Queer Tony Nominations
The 79th annual Tony Award nominations landed on 11 May 2026, and Broadway’s queer wing did not come to play. Camp cult musical The Rocky Horror Show led the day with nine nominations, including Best Revival of a Musical and Best Actor for Luke Evans as Dr Frank-N-Furter. Céline Dion-inspired pop opera Titanique picked up four, including Best Musical. The ceremony airs live on Sunday 7 June 2026 from Radio City Music Hall on CBS, with streaming on Paramount+.
Rocky Horror has nine nominations and refuses to sit down
The Rocky Horror Show revival pulled the biggest queer haul of the morning. Welsh actor Luke Evans is up for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for his turn as Frank-N-Furter, with Stephanie Hsu nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role and Rachel Dratch picking up a Featured Actress nod. The production is also in the running for Best Revival of a Musical, alongside the full design sweep: scenic, costume, lighting, sound and choreography. The cast performed Sweet Transvestite on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last month, in case anyone needed a reminder of what kind of energy this revival is dealing in.
Titanique sailed in with four
Titanique, the camp pop opera that retells the Titanic story through the imagined eyes of Céline Dion, is up for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. Marla Mindelle, who plays Céline and co-wrote the show, is nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical. British performer Layton Williams is up for Best Featured Actor. The Broadway cast also includes Jim Parsons as Ruth DeWitt Bukater and Frankie Grande in a dual role as Luigi / Victor Garber. The show has been a queer fan favourite Off-Broadway since 2022, and the transfer to Broadway has not toned it down.
Beyond the camp, the queer bench is deep
Nathan Lane picked up his seventh career Tony nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Play, for his Willy Loman in the new Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman at the Winter Garden Theatre. Lane told NPR that the role has been “the most rewarding thing I’ve done,” with audience members coming up after to tell him “You were my father.”
Ragtime led the musical race with 11 nominations, including Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical nods for both Brandon Uranowitz and Joshua Henry. Uranowitz, an out gay actor who has been with his partner Zachary Prince since 2011, is one of several queer names in his category this year. Drag-ball-rooted Cats: The Jellicle Ball and the original musical Schmigadoon! (12 nominations, tied at the top with The Lost Boys) round out a slate that is loud about queerness without filing it under sidebar.
When are the 2026 Tony Awards on?
The 79th Annual Tony Awards air live on Sunday 7 June 2026 from Radio City Music Hall in New York City, broadcasting on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.
Why we are paying attention
At DNA, we have watched Broadway have queerer years on paper, but rarely louder ones. A mad scientist in fishnets is the favourite for a Tony. A Céline Dion fan-fiction musical is up for Best Musical. The most decorated American comic actor of his generation is nominated for the saddest part in the American canon. Whichever way it lands on 7 June, the queer wing of theatre has had a season.
