'Strange Loop,' 'Lehman Trilogy' earn Tony honors as Broadway celebrates return

msn.com:

By Lisa Richwine(Reuters) - "A Strange Loop," the story of a Black gay man and his mental struggles as a playwright, won the Tony award on Sunday for best new musical as Broadway honored its first season since the long pandemic shutdown. "The Lehman Trilogy," about the rise and fall of investment firm Lehman Brothers, took the best new play honor at a live ceremony held at Radio City Music Hall in New York. "Strange Loop" triumphed over "MJ," a crowd-pleasing musical about Michael Jackson.

Star Myles Frost won best actor in a musical for playing the King of Pop. Being on stage to accept the Tony felt like a "miracle," said Ben Power, the writer of "Lehman Trilogy", after COVID-19 halted preview shows of the play for 577 days. "In New York, even after everything, even after today, anything is possible," Power said, adding that the play had been written as "a hymn to the city of New York. " "Strange Loop" writer Michael R.

Jackson based the musical on his own internal doubts as well as external obstacles as he tried to pen a Broadway show. "I just wanted to create a little bit of a life raft for myself as a Black gay man," he said.

Best actor winner Frost addressed his mother in the audience as he accepted his award for "MJ. " "Mom, I made it," he said, and thanked her for bringing him up to be a "strong Black man. " For best revival of a musical, voters honored "Company," the final project backed by composer and theater legend Stephen Sondheim, who died in November.