2025-2026 Drama Desk Awards nominations announced

70th anniversary ceremony set for May 17 at The Town Hall in New York City

NEW YORK—The 70th Annual Drama Desk Awards nominations are here, highlighting the best of Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off Broadway from the 2025–2026 season. The ceremony returns on Sunday, May 17 at 7:30 PM at The Town Hall in New York City. Notably, this marks the first time the awards return to the venue since the 2020 shutdown. Raúl Esparza and Helen J. Shen announced this year’s nominees at The Lambs.

Leading nominations

Beau the Musical and Mexodus lead the field with 10 nominations each. Meanwhile, The Seat of Our Pants follows with nine. Ragtime and The Balusters each earned eight nominations.

Top categories

Outstanding Musical nominees include Beau the Musical, Mexodus, Schmigadoon!, The Seat of Our Pants, and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York). Outstanding Play nominees include The Balusters, Prince Faggot, Caroline, Cold War Choir Practice, and Meet the Cartozians. Revival contenders include Death of a Salesman, Becky Shaw, Ragtime, and The Rocky Horror Show.

Performance highlights

Notable acting nominees include Nathan Lane, Laurie Metcalf, Kara Young, Joshua Henry, Caissie Levy, and Amber Iman.

Full list of categories and nominations

See below for the complete list of nominees across major categories, followed by productions with multiple nominations.

Outstanding Play: Caroline; Cold War Choir Practice; Meet the Cartozians; Prince Faggot; The Balusters; The Porch on Windy Hill; Well, I’ll Let You Go.
Outstanding Musical: Beau the Musical; Mexodus; Schmigadoon!; The Seat of Our Pants; Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York).
Outstanding Revival of a Play: Becky Shaw; Ceremonies in Dark Old Men; Death of a Salesman; Titus Andronicus; You Got Older.
Outstanding Revival of a Musical: Ragtime; The Baker’s Wife; The Rocky Horror Show; Chess; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

Productions with multiple nominations

10 nominations: Beau the Musical; Mexodus
9 nominations: The Seat of Our Pants
8 nominations: Ragtime; The Balusters
7 nominations: The Baker’s Wife
6 nominations: Death of a Salesman; The Rocky Horror Show
5 nominations: The Lost Boys; Well, I’ll Let You Go
4 nominations: Becky Shaw; CATS: The Jellicle Ball; Goddess; Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole; Oedipus; Schmigadoon!; Spelling Bee; Titus Andronicus

Ticket and website information

Tickets for the ceremony are now available to the public. Visit www.DramaDesks.com for more information and to purchase tickets. A limited number of tickets are also available via Ticketmaster.

2026 Drama Desk Awards: Full nominations list 

Outstanding Play

Caroline

Cold War Choir Practice

Meet the Cartozians

Prince Faggot

The Balusters

The Porch on Windy Hill

Well, I’ll Let You Go

Outstanding Musical

Beau the Musical

Mexodus

Schmigadoon!

The Seat of Our Pants

Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)

Outstanding Revival of a Play

Becky Shaw

Ceremonies in Dark Old Men

Death of a Salesman

Los Soles Truncos

Titus Andronicus

You Got Older

Outstanding Revival of a Musical

Amahl and the Night Visitors

Chess

Ragtime

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

The Baker’s Wife

The Rocky Horror Show

Lead Performance in a Play

Quincy Tyler Bernstine – Well, I’ll Let You Go

Noah Galvin – The Reservoir

John Krasinski – Angry Alan

Nathan Lane – Death of a Salesman

Laurie Metcalf – Death of a Salesman

Kara Young – Gruesome Playground Injuries

Lead Performance in a Musical

Joshua Henry – Ragtime

Caissie Levy – Ragtime

Amber Iman – Goddess

Brian Quijada – Mexodus

Sam Tutty – Two Strangers

Brandon Uranowitz – Ragtime

Featured Performance in a Play

Linda Emond – Becky Shaw

Alden Ehrenreich – Becky Shaw

David Greenspan – Prince Faggot

Richard Thomas – The Balusters

Featured Performance in a Musical

Stephanie Hsu – The Rocky Horror Show

Judy Kuhn – The Baker’s Wife

Ruthie Ann Miles – The Seat of Our Pants

Layton Williams – Titanique

Direction of a Play

Trip Cullman – Becky Shaw

Kenny Leon – The Balusters

Joe Mantello – Death of a Salesman

Direction of a Musical

Lear deBessonet – Ragtime

David Mendizábal – Mexodus

Leigh Silverman – The Seat of Our Pants

Choreography

Christopher Gattelli – Schmigadoon!

Omari Wiles – CATS: The Jellicle Ball

Music

Ethan Lipton – The Seat of Our Pants

Douglas Lyons – Beau the Musical

Quijada & Robinson – Mexodus

Lyrics

Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)

The Seat of Our Pants

Mexodus

Book of a Musical

Beau the Musical

The Seat of Our Pants

Mexodus

Productions with multiple nominations

10: Beau the Musical; Mexodus

9: The Seat of Our Pants

8: Ragtime; The Balusters

7: The Baker’s Wife

6: Death of a Salesman; The Rocky Horror Show

5: The Lost Boys; Well, I’ll Let You Go