DRAMA DESK
2025 WINNERS ANNOUNCED
The winners of the 2025 Annual Drama Desk Awards were revealed on Sunday, June 1, during a live ceremony at NYU Skirball (556 LaGuardia Place). The evening was hosted by acclaimed performers Debra Messing and Tituss Burgess.
The complete list of this year’s award recipients can be found below.
In alignment with the Drama Desk’s mission, the awards recognized outstanding productions from Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off Broadway that opened during the 2024–2025 season. Eligible shows had to present at least 21 unique live performances.
This year’s ceremony was executive produced by Staci Levine and Jessica R. Jenen.
As with the previous year, all performance categories were gender-free. These categories included: Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical, Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play, and Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical. Each featured a larger nominee pool and two winners—except in the case of Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical, where a three-way tie resulted in three winners.
When reviewing revivals or returning productions, the committee only considered aspects that constituted new work. Eligible examples included Buena Vista Social Club, Hold On to Me Darling, Job, Odd Man Out, Our Class, Still, Teeth, The Christine Jorgensen Show, and Yellow Face. Though some creatives were involved in the 1996 premiere of Floyd Collins, the committee determined their work on this season’s revival qualified as original.
Productions deemed ineligible—either due to having been considered in full in previous seasons or opting out of consideration—included A Child’s Christmas in Wales, All In: Comedy About Love, Bringer of Doom, Dead Outlaw, English, Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha, Invasive Species, Oh, Mary!, On Beckett, and The Dead, 1904. Due to scheduling, Grief Camp and Rheology will be reviewed during the 2025–2026 season.
Drama Desk co-presidents David Barbour and Charles Wright announced that 100% of this year’s net proceeds will benefit the Entertainment Community Fund.
Among this year’s special honorees:
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Gavin Creel received the Harold S. Prince Award for Lifetime Achievement (posthumously).
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Brian Stokes Mitchell was honored with the William Wolf Award for his distinguished career on stage and screen.
What distinguishes the Drama Desk Awards is that they are voted on by working theater critics, journalists, editors, and publishers, making them one of the few honors in New York theater that recognize excellence across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off Broadway on equal footing.
The 2024–25 Drama Desk Nominating Committee includes:
Martha Wade Steketee (Chair; freelance: UrbanExcavations.com), Linda Armstrong (New York Amsterdam News), Dan Dinero (Theatre is Easy), Peter Filichia (Broadway Radio), Kenji Fujishima (freelance: Theatermania), Raven Snook (TDF Stages, freelance: Time Out New York), and Charles Wright, ex-officio.
2025 DRAMA DESK WINNERS
(Winners are highlighted in red and starred)
Outstanding Play
Blood of the Lamb, by Arlene Hutton
Deep Blue Sound, by Abe Koogler
Grangeville, by Samuel D. Hunter
John Proctor is the Villain, by Kimberly Belflower
Liberation, by Bess Wohl
**Purpose, by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Outstanding Musical
BOOP! The Musical
Death Becomes Her
Just in Time
**Maybe Happy Ending
Music City
Outstanding Revival of a Play
**Eureka Day
Garside’s Career
Home
Wine in the Wilderness
Yellow Face
Outstanding Revival of a Musical
Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
Floyd Collins
**Gypsy
Once Upon a Mattress
See What I Wanna See
Sunset Blvd.
Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play
Betsy Aidem, The Ask
**Laura Donnelly, The Hills of California
Patsy Ferran, A Streetcar Named Desire
Danny J. Gomez, All of Me
Doug Harris, Redeemed
Patrick Keleher, Fatherland
Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Lily Rabe, Ghosts
Jay O. Sanders, Henry IV (Theatre for a New Audience)
**Sarah Snook, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Paul Sparks, Grangeville
Olivia Washington, Wine in the Wilderness
Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical
Tatianna Córdoba, Real Women Have Curves
Darren Criss, Maybe Happy Ending
Sutton Foster, Once Upon a Mattress
Tom Francis, Sunset Blvd.
Jonathan Groff, Just in Time
Grey Henson, Elf
Jeremy Jordan, Floyd Collins
**Audra McDonald, Gypsy
**Jasmine Amy Rogers, BOOP! The Musical
Nicole Scherzinger, Sunset Blvd.
Helen J Shen, Maybe Happy Ending
Jennifer Simard, Death Becomes Her
Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play
Greg Keller, Pre-Existing Condition
Julia Lester, All Nighter
Adrienne C. Moore, The Blood Quilt
Deirdre O’Connell, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
Maria-Christina Oliveras, Cymbeline
Maryann Plunkett, Deep Blue Sound
Michael Rishawn, Table 17
Jude Tibeau, Bad Kreyòl
Anjana Vasan, A Streetcar Named Desire
Frank Wood, Hold On to Me Darling
**Amalia Yoo, John Proctor is the Villain
**Kara Young, Purpose
Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical (3 way tie)
**Brooks Ashmanskas, Smash
Nicholas Barasch, Pirates! The Penzance Musical
André De Shields, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
John El-Jor, We Live in Cairo
Jason Gotay, Floyd Collins
Gracie Lawrence, Just in Time
**Jak Malone, Operation Mincemeat
Lesli Margherita, Gypsy
Zachary Noah Piser, See What I Wanna See
Jenny Lee Stern, Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song
**Michael Urie, Once Upon a Mattress
Natalie Walker, The Big Gay Jamboree
Outstanding Solo Performance
David Greenspan, I’m Assuming You Know David Greenspan
Ryan J. Haddad, Hold Me in the Water
Sam Kissajukian, 300 Paintings
Mark Povinelli, The Return of Benjamin Lay
**Andrew Scott, Vanya
Outstanding Direction of a Play
David Cromer and Caitlin Sullivan, The Antiquities
Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Tyne Rafaeli, Becoming Eve
Jack Serio, Grangeville
**Danya Taymor, John Proctor is the Villain
Whitney White, Liberation
Kip Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Outstanding Direction of a Musical
**Michael Arden, Maybe Happy Ending
Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
Jamie Lloyd, Sunset Blvd.
Jerry Mitchell, BOOP! The Musical
Alex Timbers, Just in Time
George C. Wolfe, Gypsy
Outstanding Choreography
Camille A. Brown, Gypsy
Warren Carlyle, Pirates! The Penzance Musical
Jakob Karr, Ain’t Done Bad
Arturo Lyons and Omari Wiles, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
**Jerry Mitchell, BOOP! The Musical
Sergio Trujillo, Real Women Have Curves
Outstanding Music
**Will Aronson and Hue Park, Maybe Happy Ending
David Foster, BOOP! The Musical
Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez, Real Women Have Curves
Zoe Sarnak, The Lonely Few
The Lazours, We Live in Cairo
Outstanding Lyrics
Gerard Alessandrini, Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song
**Will Aronson and Hue Park, Maybe Happy Ending
David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts, Operation Mincemeat
Adam Gwon, All the World’s a Stage
Marla Mindelle and Philip Drennen, The Big Gay Jamboree
Luis Quintero, Medea: Re-Versed
Outstanding Book of a Musical
**Will Aronson and Hue Park, Maybe Happy Ending
David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts, Operation Mincemeat
Warren Leight and Isaac Oliver, Just in Time
Bob Martin, BOOP! The Musical
Marla Mindelle and Jonathan Parks-Ramage, The Big Gay Jamboree
Marco Pennette, Death Becomes Her
Outstanding Orchestrations
Will Aronson, Maybe Happy Ending
Doug Besterman, BOOP! The Musical
Joseph Joubert and Daryl Waters, Pirates! The Penzance Musical
**Andrew Resnick and Michael Thurber, Just in Time
Michael Starobin, All the World’s a Stage
Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play
Miriam Buether, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
**Miriam Buether, and Jamie Harrison and Chris Fisher (illusions and visual effects), Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Gabriel Hainer Evansohn and Grace Laubacher, Life and Trust
Rob Howell, The Hills of California
Johan Kølkjær, Dark Noon
Matt Saunders, Walden
Outstanding Scenic Design of a Musical
Clifton Chadick, Music City
Rachel Hauck, Swept Away
**Dane Laffrey and George Reeve, Maybe Happy Ending (includes video design)
Derek McLane, Just in Time
David Rockwell and Finn Ross (projections), BOOP! The Musical
Outstanding Costume Design of a Play
Brenda Abbandandolo, The Antiquities
**Dede Ayite, Our Town
Christopher Ford, The Beastiary
Camilla Lind, Dark Noon
Karl Ruckdeschel, Twelfth Night
Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical
**Gregg Barnes, BOOP! The Musical
Sarah Cubbage, The Big Gay Jamboree
Toni-Leslie James, Gypsy
Qween Jean, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
Paul Tazewell, Death Becomes Her
Catherine Zuber, Just in Time
Outstanding Lighting Design of a Play
Isabella Byrd, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
**Jon Clark, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Natasha Katz, John Proctor is the Villain
Tyler Micoleau, The Antiquities
Paul Whitaker, SUMO
Outstanding Lighting Design of a Musical
Kevin Adams, Swept Away
Adam Honoré, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
**Jack Knowles, Sunset Blvd.
Philip S. Rosenberg, BOOP! The Musical
Scott Zielinski and Ruey Horng Sun (projections), Floyd Collins
Outstanding Sound Design of a Play
**Paul Arditti, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Johnny Gasper, Two Sisters Find a Box of Lesbian Erotica in the Woods
Matt Otto, All of Me
Bray Poor, Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.
Clemence Williams, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Fan Zhang, Good Bones
Outstanding Sound Design of a Musical
Adam Fisher, Sunset Blvd.
**Peter Hylenski, Just in Time
Scott Lehrer, Gypsy
Mick Potter, Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends
Dan Moses Schreier, Floyd Collins
Outstanding Projection and Video Design
Nathan Amzi and Joe Ransom, Sunset Blvd.
Jake Barton, McNeal
**David Bergman, The Picture of Dorian Gray
Jesse Garrison, The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy [redux]
Hana S. Kim, Redwood
Outstanding Wig and Hair
Alberto “Albee” Alvarado, SUMO
**Charles G. LaPointe, Death Becomes Her
Sabana Majeed, BOOP! The Musical
Nikiya Mathis, Cats: “The Jellicle Ball”
Nikiya Mathis, Liberation
Outstanding Puppetry
Dorothy James, Bill’s 44th
Tom Lee, See What I Wanna See
Simple Mischief Studio, Small Acts of Daring Invention
**Amanda Villalobos, Becoming Eve
Kirjan Waage, Dead as a Dodo
Outstanding Fight Choreography
Drew Leary, Romeo + Juliet
Chelsea Pace and James Yaegashi, SUMO
**Rick Sordelet and Christian Kelly-Sordelet, Pirates! The Penzance Musical
Bret Yount, King Lear
Outstanding Adaptation
Becoming Eve, by Emil Weinstein
Cymbeline, by Andrea Thome
Medea: Re-Versed, by Luis Quintero
**Pirates! The Penzance Musical, by Rupert Holmes
The Devil’s Disciple, by David Staller
Outstanding Revue
**Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song
Mama, I’m a Big Girl Now!
The Jonathan Larson Project
The World According to Micki Grant
Unique Theatrical Experience
Odd Man Out
The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy [redux]
**The Picture of Dorian Gray
The Voices in Your Head
The Wind and the Rain: A story about Sunny’s Bar
Special Awards
Ensemble Award
The ensemble of Roundabout Theatre Company's Liberation (Betsy Aidem, Audrey Corsa, Kayla Davion, Susannah Flood, Kristolyn Lloyd, Irene Sofia Lucio, Charlie Thurston, and Adina Verson) for bringing to vibrant life the specific and universal stories of women staring across the social battle lines of the 1970s from their perch "somewhere in Ohio" in Bess Wohl's beautiful new play.
Sam Norkin Off-Broadway Award
The incredibly versatile Stephen Michael Spencer for his electric and empathetic performances in two of this season’s strongest new Off-Broadway musicals. In Medea: Re-Versed, Spencer’s funny yet revelatory take on a character we all thought we knew allowed us the rare opportunity to actually understand Jason’s motivations. And then in Music City, Spencer was almost unrecognizable as TJ, a charismatic singer-songwriter who we couldn’t help but root for.
Additional Special Awards
Pregones/PRTT: Pregones (founded in 1979) and the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater (founded in 1967) merged in 2014 to become a powerhouse producer of Latinx shows on two NYC stages: one in Manhattan's Theater District, the other in the South Bronx, both evoking an atmosphere of warmth and inclusivity. This season brought the blazing world premiere of Matthew Barbot’s the beautiful land i seek (la linda tierra que busco yo), a history-inspired fantasia about two Puerto Rican freedom fighters that deftly explores colonialism while riffing on Waiting for Godot, plus dozens of one-offs showcasing Latinx artists and culture.
Lighting designer Stacey Derosier for her deeply intimate and consistently gorgeous work across this season’s Off-Broadway stages. Whether lighting the minimalist theatricality of The Welkin and Grangeville, or the rich naturalism of The Counter and Danger and Opportunity, Derosier shows us not only that less is often so much more, but also that just a single light can have such a profound impact in the darkness.
The team behind Danger and Opportunity – playwright Ken Urban, director Jack Serio, and ensemble Juan Castano, Julia Chan, and Ryan Spahn – for their genuinely serious, deeply moving consideration of the messy implications of a three-way relationship, done in an imaginatively immersive way that made such a small-scale story feel like a meaningful event.
Shows with Multiple Awards
6 Wins
Maybe Happy Ending
3 Wins
BOOP! The Musical
Stranger Things: The First Shadow
The Picture of Dorian Gray
2 Wins
Danger and Opportunity (2 Special Awards)
Gypsy
John Proctor is the Villain
Just in Time
Pirates! The Penzance Musical
Purpose
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