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