18 Tony Nominees Nominated for Back-to-Back Performances | Playbill

Tony Awards 18 Tony Nominees Nominated for Back-to-Back Performances Which of the 2017 Tony Nominees have earned recognition for consecutive Broadway bows?

Of the 95 artists nominated for 2017 Tony Awards, 34 are first timers and, of those, 18 are making their Broadway debut. But on the opposite end of the spectrum are stars who earned Tony nominations for back-to-back Broadway appearances.

Their ability to garner the attention of the Nominating Committee speaks to their consistency in delivering award-worthy performances, and puts them in the upper echelon of theatre’s top honorees. Here are the 17 artists nominated for back-to-back appearances on the Great White Way:

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Laura Linney Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Laura Linney, Leading Actress in a Play
Nominated for: Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes
Linney returns to Broadway after a seven-year hiatus, and she makes up for lost time by playing two roles. Alternating with her co-star Cynthia Nixon as lead Regina Giddens and Birdie, Linney scores her second consecutive nomination. Linney’s last Broadway outing in 2010’s Time Stands Still earned her a Tony nomination for her work as a photojournalist injured during her time covering the war in Iraq. As the Southern-bred Regina, Linney proves once again her penchant for portraying fierce, independent women.

Watch: LAURA LINNEY AND CYNTHIA NIXON PERFORM THE SAME SCENE IN SWAPPED ROLES IN THE LITTLE FOXES

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Laurie Metcalf Marc J. Franklin

Laurie Metcalf, Leading Actress in a Play
Nominated for: A Doll’s House, Part 2
Last year, Metcalf wowed with a terrifying performance in Misery as the deranged superfan holding her favorite author captive until he writes a satisfying ending for her beloved character. Never one to shy away from heavy lifting, Metcalf appears this season as Nora in a commanding performance.

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Christian Borle Marc J. Franklin

Christian Borle, Leading Actor in a Musical
Nominated for: Falsettos
As a two-time Tony winner, Borle now has the opportunity to complete the theatrical hat trick. The actor won his first Tony for Black Stache in 2012’s Peter and the Starcatcher and immediately followed up with his Tony-winning turn as the egomaniacal Shakespeare in 2015’s Something Rotten!. This year, he’s nominated for his emotional and grounded performance as Marvin in Falsettos.

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Andy Karl Marc J. Franklin

Andy Karl, Leading Actor in a Musical
Nominated for: Groundhog Day
Karl earned his first Tony nod for his dramatic performance in Rocky in 2014. In 2015, he caught the Committee’s attention with his outstanding comedic chops in On The Twentieth Century. In this year’s Groundhog Day, Karl brings both drama and comedy to the weatherman who relives the title day over and over again. Could this third time be the charm?

To purchase tickets to The Little Foxes, click here. For discount tickets on select performances, click here!

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David Hyde Pierce Marc J. Franklin

David Hyde Pierce, Leading Actor in a Musical
Nominated for: Hello, Dolly!
While technically Pierce was not nominated for his last Broadway credit (as director of It Shoulda Been You) he did receive Tony recognition for his last onstage appearance, so we include him here. Nominated in 2013 for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Pierce’s performance as Horace Vandergelder is more than a match for Tony winner Bette Midler.

Meet the 2017 Tony Nominees

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Santo Loquasto Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Jayne Houdyshell, Featured Actress in a Play
Nominated for: A Doll’s House, Part 2
As noted in our “Trends and Tallies” story, Jayne Houdyshell won the 2016 Featured Actress in a Play Tony for her work in The Humans. As matriarch of the Blake family dealing with two difficult daughters, a troubled husband and an ailing mother-in-law, her vulnerability hit audiences in the gut eight shows a week. Come June 11 we’ll see if her sensitivity and strength as Anne Marie can make her a back-to-back winner.

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Jane Greenwood Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Brandon Uranowitz, Featured Actor in a Musical
Nominated for: Falsettos
Uranowitz broke out in 2015 with his endearing performance (and stunning vocals) as lovestruck musician Adam Hochberg in An American in Paris—a performance for which he earned his first Tony nomination. This season, as Mendel in Falsettos, Uranowitz brought that same charm and vocal prowess to the stage—with just a touch of neuroses.

Watch: BRANDON URANOWITZ SINGS HIS FALSETTOS AUDITION SONG AND MORE

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Jennifer Tipton Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Stephanie J. Block, Featured Actress in a Musical
Nominated for: Falsettos
After making her Broadway debut as Liza Minnelli in The Boy From Oz and donning the green makeup in Wicked, Block’s star continued to rise. She earned her first Tony nomination in 2013 for her work in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Back on Broadway for the first time since then, Block nailed it as the frustrated woman stuck in a world where the men act like boys.

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Bartlett Sher Marc J. Franklin

Tim Minchin, Best Original Score
Nominated for: Groundhog Day
Minchin clinched a nomination in 2013 for his debut score to Broadway’s Matilda The Musical. Now the irreverent comedic songwriter has a chance to use that adult sense of humor for the blowhard weatherman at the center of his second Broadway appearance.

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Matthew Warchus Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Rob Howell, Scenic Design of a Musical
Nominated for: Groundhog Day
Howell’s mesmerizing design for Matilda The Musical created a sense of wonder upon entering the Shubert Theatre. The imaginative creator reunites with his Matilda creative team for Groundhog Day this season (his first work back on Broadway since that collaboration) and delivers a feat of visual gymnastics audiences love exploring over and over again.

To purchase tickets to Groundhog Day, click here. For discount tickets on select performances, click here!
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Andy Blankenbuehler Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Santo Loquasto, Scenic Design of a Musical
Nominated for: Hello, Dolly!
With 74 Broadway productions to his name, Loquasto earned his 19th Tony nomination last season for his design of original musical Shuffle Along. This year, Loquasto puts his take on the extravagant revival of Hello, Dolly!.

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Billy Elliot choreographer Peter Darling

Jane Greenwood, Costume Design of a Play
Nominated for: Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes
Though she received the Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2014, Greenwood continues to produce stunning work for Broadway. Nominated last year for her work on Long Day’s Journey Into Night, the legendary designer brings an elegance and detail to her costumes for this Southern-set drama (her 136th Broadway production).

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Larry Hochman Monica Simoes

Jennifer Tipton, Lighting Design of a Play
Nominated for: A Doll’s House, Part 2
Tipton’s subtle work in A Doll’s House, Part 2 was just enough to capture the attention of the nominating committee this year. A two-time Tony Award winner, Tipton was nominated for her last Broadway design, The Testament of Mary in 2013.

To purchase tickets to A Doll’s House, Part 2, click here. For discount tickets on select performances, click here!
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David Korins Marc J. Franklin

Bartlett Sher, Direction of a Play
Nominated for: Oslo
Sher continues to weave deftly between musicals and plays, receiving Tony nominations for his last two Broadway outings: Fiddler on the Roof and The King & I. Not only has Sher been nominated for consecutive productions, this marks a consecutive nomination for Direction of a Play, as he earned a nod for Golden Boy, the last Main Stem play he helmed.

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Natasha Katz Joseph Marzullo/WENN

Matthew Warchus, Direction of a Musical
Nominated for: Groundhog Day
Warchus seems to have found the dream team, as he joins the ranks of his collaborators Minchin, Howell, and Darling in back-to-back nominations after their work on Matilda. Again, Warchus uses complexity and tonal disparity to his advantage in a new musical that rings both hilarious and heartfelt.

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Andy Blankenbuehler, Choreography
Nominated for: Bandstand
A winner for Hamilton last year, Blankenbuehler put on two hats as director and choreographer of Bandstand. Doing double duty, his choreography shines in an explosive and emotional display of swing, jazz, and his own signature Blankenbuehler style.

Read More: HOW ANDY BLANKENBUEHLER UNLOCKED THE UNSPOKEN EMOTION OF BANDSTAND THROUGH DANCE

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Peter Darling, Choreography
Nominated for: Groundhog Day
Darling co-choreographed Groundhog Day with Ellen Kane, his associate choreographer on Matilda (which was also Tony-nominated for choreography). In an intricate web of repetition, Darling masterfully creates and re-creates the world of Phil Connors’ trapped weatherman through decisive and specific movement.

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Larry Hochman: Orchestrations
Nominated for: Hello, Dolly!
Hochman is another nominee nominated three years running. In 2015, he earned recognition for his work on Something Rotten! then last year for his expanded orchestrations for the revival of She Loves Me and now for his work on the 2017 revival of Hello, Dolly!

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Honorable mention to David Korins, Scenic Design of a Musical
Nominated for: War Paint
The Hamilton set designer earned a nomination last year for his inspired work on the hip-hop musical. (Watch the Hamilton set built before your eyes here.) An in-demand designer, Korins provided the design for three new Broadway musicals this season: Dear Evan Hansen, War Paint, and Bandstand. While technically he was not nominated for back-to-back productions (since his nomination comes for War Paint and Dear Evan Hansen opened between Hamilton and the LuPone-Ebersole-tuner), Korins has been nominated in back-to-back years. No easy feat.

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Honorable mention to Natasha Katz, Lighting Design of a Musical
Nominated for: Hello, Dolly!
Katz took home the Tony in 2016 for Lighting Design of a Play for Long Day’s Journey Into Night. While she did design a few shows for Broadway in between the play and the revival of Hello, Dolly! (and technically was not nominated for back-to-back productions), she has been nominated in back-to-back years.

Tune in to the Tony Awards on CBS June 11.

For more information visit TonyAwards.com.

 
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