The Awardist Tony Awards Tony Awards 2020: See the full list of nominees By Jessica Derschowitz Jessica Derschowitz Jessica Derschowitz is the former digital features director at Entertainment Weekly. She left EW in 2022. EW's editorial guidelines Updated on October 16, 2020 07:53AM EDT Photo: © Matthew Murphy, 2019; Manuel Harlan; Richard Hubert Smith Broadway has been dark for the last seven months (and will continue to be until at least next summer), but the curtain is finally lifting on the delayed — and now virtual — 2020 Tony Awards. Nominations were announced Thursday for the annual accolades honoring the best of the Broadway season, a roster far different from usual due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has forced theaters closed since March 12. The Alanis Morissette-soundtracked Jagged Little Pill and the flashy, screen-to-stage Moulin Rouge! The Musical led with 15 and 14 nominations, respectively, with both appearing in the Best Musical category alongside Tina – The Tina Turner Musical. Jeremy O. Harris' searing debut work Slave Play leads the contenders for Best Play with 12 nominations in all — setting a record for most nominations earned by a play — and is in that category alongside Grand Horizons, The Inheritance, Sea Wall/A Life, and The Sound Inside. Just four new musicals were eligible for awards because of the shortened season, along with 10 new plays and four play revivals (nominees for that award are Betrayal, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, and A Soldier's Play), making for a much shorter roster than usual because many shows weren't able to open — or had opened but weren't able to have enough Tony nominators and voters attend before the shutdown. Last year, for context, 34 shows were eligible in all. Another interesting twist from the truncated season: There's only one actor nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a MusicalL= Aaron Tveit for Moulin Rouge! Tonys rules state that voters will still have to cast a ballot, and he'll need to receive 60 percent of those votes to receive the award. The 74th annual Tony Awards were originally slated for a June 7 broadcast on CBS, before being postponed in the wake of the pandemic. In August, after months of uncertainty over when and how the ceremony would proceed, it was announced that the show would take place in a digital format in the fall. (An exact date has not yet been announced.) "Though unprecedented events cut the Broadway season short, it was a year full of extraordinary work that deserves to be recognized," Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, and Heather Hitchens, president & CEO of the American Theatre Wing, said in a joint statement. "We are thrilled not only to have found a way to properly celebrate our artists' incredible achievements this season, but also to be able to uplift the entire theatre community and show the world what makes our Broadway family so special at this difficult time. The show must go on, no matter what — and it will." Thursday's nominations were announced by Tony winner James Monroe Iglehart. See the full list of nominees below: Best Play Grand Horizons The Inheritance Sea Wall/A Life Slave Play The Sound Inside Best Musical Jagged Little Pill Moulin Rouge! The Musical Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Revival of a Play Betrayal Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune A Soldier's Play Best Book of a Musical Diablo Cody, Jagged Little Pill John Logan, Moulin Rouge! The Musical Katori Hall, Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre A Christmas Carol, Music: Christopher Nightingale The Inheritance, Music: Paul Englishby The Rose Tattoo, Music: Fitz Patton and Jason Michael Webb Slave Play, Music: Lindsay Jones The Sound Inside, Music: Daniel Kluger Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play Ian Barford, Linda Vista Andrew Burnap, The Inheritance Jake Gyllenhaal, Sea Wall/A Life Tom Hiddleston, Betrayal Tom Sturridge, Sea Wall/A Life Blair Underwood, A Soldier's Play Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play Joaquina Kalukango, Slave Play Laura Linney, My Name is Lucy Barton Audra McDonald, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune Mary-Louise Parker, The Sound Inside Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical Aaron Tveit, Moulin Rouge! The Musical **From The Tony Awards Rules: If the Tony Awards Nominating Committee has determined that if there is only one nominee in a category listed, such category shall be submitted to the Tony Voters which may, by the affirmative vote of sixty (60%) percent of the total ballots cast, grant an Award in that category. Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical Karen Olivo, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalElizabeth Stanley, Jagged Little PillAdrienne Warren, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play Ato Blankson-Wood, Slave PlayJames Cusati-Moyer, Slave PlayDavid Alan Grier, A Soldier's PlayJohn Benjamin Hickey, The InheritancePaul Hilton, The Inheritance Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play Jane Alexander, Grand HorizonsChalia La Tour, Slave PlayAnnie McNamara, Slave PlayLois Smith, The InheritanceCora Vander Broek, Linda Vista Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical Danny Burstein, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalDerek Klena, Jagged Little PillSean Allan Krill, Jagged Little PillSahr Ngaujah, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalDaniel J. Watts, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical Kathryn Gallagher, Jagged Little PillCelia Rose Gooding, Jagged Little PillRobyn Hurder, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalLauren Patten, Jagged Little PillMyra Lucretia Taylor, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Scenic Design of a Play Bob Crowley, The InheritanceSoutra Gilmour, BetrayalRob Howell, A Christmas CarolDerek McLane, A Soldier's PlayClint Ramos, Slave Play Best Scenic Design of a Musical Riccardo Hernández and Lucy Mackinnon, Jagged Little PillDerek McLane, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalMark Thompson and Jeff Sugg, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Costume Design of a Play Dede Ayite, Slave PlayDede Ayite, A Soldier's PlayBob Crowley, The InheritanceRob Howell, A Christmas CarolClint Ramos, The Rose Tattoo Best Costume Design of a Musical Emily Rebholz, Jagged Little PillMark Thompson, Tina - The Tina Turner MusicalCatherine Zuber, Moulin Rouge! The Musical Best Lighting Design of a Play Jiyoun Chang, Slave PlayJon Clark, The InheritanceHeather Gilbert, The Sound InsideAllen Lee Hughes, A Soldier's PlayHugh Vanstone, A Christmas Carol Best Lighting Design of a Musical Bruno Poet, Tina - The Tina Turner MusicalJustin Townsend, Jagged Little PillJustin Townsend, Moulin Rouge! The Musical Best Sound Design of a Play Paul Arditti & Christopher Reid, The InheritanceSimon Baker, A Christmas CarolLindsay Jones, Slave PlayDaniel Kluger, Sea Wall/A LifeDaniel Kluger, The Sound Inside Best Sound Design of a Musical Jonathan Deans, Jagged Little PillPeter Hylenski, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalNevin Steinberg, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Direction of a Play David Cromer, The Sound InsideStephen Daldry, The InheritanceKenny Leon, A Soldier's PlayJamie Lloyd, BetrayalRobert O'Hara, Slave Play Best Direction of a Musical Phyllida Lloyd, Tina - The Tina Turner MusicalDiane Paulus, Jagged Little PillAlex Timbers, Moulin Rouge! The Musical Best Choreography Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Jagged Little PillSonya Tayeh, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalAnthony Van Laast, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Best Orchestrations Tom Kitt, Jagged Little PillKatie Kresek, Charlie Rosen, Matt Stine and Justin Levine, Moulin Rouge! The MusicalEthan Popp, Tina - The Tina Turner Musical Related content: Broadway shutdown extended again, theaters to remain closed until June 2021 The Tony Awards are actually happening (in a digital format) The best moments of the 2019 Tony Awards