Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons Won Tony for Best Choreography for Cats: The Jellicle Ballat 2026 Tonys

 

Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons Won Tony for Best Choreography for Cats: The Jellicle Ballat 2026 Tony

Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons Won Tony for Best Choreography for Cats: The Jellicle Ball at the 2026 Tonys

Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons won the Tony Award for Best Choreography for their work on Cats: The Jellicle Ball at the 79th Annual Tony Awards, presented live from Radio City Music Hall.

The duo's choreography for the reimagined Cats: The Jellicle Ball was described as acrobatic and visually massive, matching the show's overall theatrical spectacle. Cats: The Jellicle Ballalso won Best Costume Design of a Musical for Qween Jean in the pre-show awards.

When asked about what other types of projects they'd like to choreograph for Broadway, Wiles and Lyons mentioned Fame, the iconic 1980s musical about high school dance students. They expressed interest in bringing new energy to the dance-heavy show, which has been a Broadway staple since the 1980s and is known for its bombastic musical numbers and ballet sequences.

The 2026 Best Choreography nominees included Christopher Gattelli for Schmigadoon!, Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant for The Lost Boys, Ani Taj for The Rocky Horror Show, and Ellenore Scott for Ragtime.

This win comes on a night where Schmigadoon! led early wins with Best Book and Best Orchestrations, while The Lost Boys took Best Lighting Design of a Musical for Jen Schriever and Michael Arden.