13 Actors Over 50 Score Tony Award Nods

Actors over 50 took 13 of the 41 nominations for Broadway’s 2019 Tony Awards, announced April 30. Those likeliest to win include Fionnula Flanagan, 77 (The Ferryman), Beth Leavel, 63 (The Prom), and either Bryan Cranston, 63 (Network) or Jeff Daniels, 64 (To Kill a Mockingbird). James Corden will host the 73rd annual Tony Awards presentation on June 9, telecast live on CBS from Radio City Music Hall.

Many Broadway insiders were startled by the Tonys’ snub of Glenda Jackson, 82, whose performance as King Lear got better reviews than the production did. Last year, her Tony win for Three Tall Women was regarded as long overdue; this time, the judges overlooked her. Janet McTeer, 57, was a bit of a surprise nomination for Bernhardt/Hamlet, but she is unlikely to beat the frontrunner for best leading actress in a play, Elaine May, 87 (The Waverly Gallery).

Eight of the 10 nominees for musical or play direction also are over 50, including probable winners Daniel Fish, 52 (Oklahoma!), and Sam Mendes, 53 (The Ferryman).

2019 Tony Award Nominees for Acting

 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play

Annette Bening, 60, Arthur Miller’s All My Sons

Laura Donnelly, The Ferryman

Elaine May, 87, The Waverly Gallery

Janet McTeer, 57, Bernhardt/Hamlet

Laurie Metcalf, 63, Hillary and Clinton

Heidi Schreck, What the Constitution Means to Me

 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play

Paddy Considine, The Ferryman

Bryan Cranston, 63, Network

Jeff Daniels, 64, To Kill a Mockingbird

Adam Driver, Burn This

Jeremy Pope, Choir Boy

 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical

Stephanie J. Block, The Cher Show

Caitlin Kinnunen, The Prom

Beth Leavel, 63, The Prom

Eva Noblezada, Hadestown

Kelli O’Hara, Kiss Me, Kate

 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical

Brooks Ashmanskas, The Prom

Derrick Baskin, Ain’t Too Proud - The Life and Times of the Temptations

Alex Brightman, Beetlejuice

Damon Daunno, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

Santino Fontana, Tootsie

 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play

Fionnula Flanagan, 77, The Ferryman

Celia Keenan-Bolger, To Kill a Mockingbird

Kristine Nielsen, 63, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus

Julie White, 57, Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus

Ruth Wilson, King Lear

 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play

Bertie Carvel, Ink

Robin De Jesús, The Boys in the Band

Gideon Glick, To Kill a Mockingbird

Brandon Uranowitz, Burn This

Benjamin Walker, Arthur Miller’s All My Sons

 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical

Lilli Cooper, Tootsie

Amber Gray, Hadestown

Sarah Stiles, Tootsie

Ali Stroker, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

Mary Testa, 63, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical

André De Shields, 73, Hadestown

Andy Grotelueschen, Tootsie

Patrick Page, 57, Hadestown

Jeremy Pope, Ain’t Too Proud - The Life and Times of the Temptations

Ephraim Sykes, Ain’t Too Proud - The Life and Times of the Temptations