Broadway history
Every Tony Award for Best Musical winner
The Tony Award for Best Musical honors the top new musical of each Broadway season. The category's first winner was Kiss Me, Kate in 1949, and winners have ranged from Golden Age classics to rock scores, puppet comedies, and shows built from pop songs.
By THEATERLE · Last checked
This list covers every winner through the 79th ceremony in June 2026, when Schmigadoon! took the prize. There was one tie, in 1960, and no ceremony in 2020; the 2019-20 season was honored in September 2021. Titles with a guide on our site are linked.
2020s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 2026 | Schmigadoon!Cinco Paul wrote it all; adapted from the Apple TV+ series, it won four Tonys |
| 2025 | Maybe Happy EndingWill Aronson and Hue Park; it won six Tonys, including Best Musical |
| 2024 | The OutsidersJonathan Clay, Zach Chance, and Justin Levine; from S. E. Hinton's novel |
| 2023 | Kimberly AkimboJeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire, from his own play |
| 2022 | A Strange LoopMichael R. Jackson wrote it all; it also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama |
| 2020/21 | Moulin Rouge! The MusicalJukebox show from Baz Luhrmann's 2001 film; won at the 74th Tonys (2019-20 season), held September 2021 |
2010s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 2019 | HadestownAnaïs Mitchell wrote it all; the first winner written solely by a woman |
| 2018 | The Band's VisitDavid Yazbek and Itamar Moses; based on a 2007 Israeli film |
| 2017 | Dear Evan HansenBenj Pasek and Justin Paul, with a book by Steven Levenson |
| 2016 | HamiltonLin-Manuel Miranda wrote it all; 16 nominations is still a record |
| 2015 | Fun HomeJeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron; the first winner written by an all-female team |
| 2014 | A Gentleman's Guide to Love and MurderSteven Lutvak and Robert L. Freedman; a comic murder tale |
| 2013 | Kinky BootsCyndi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein; based on the 2005 film |
| 2012 | OnceGlen Hansard and Markéta Irglová; based on John Carney's 2007 film, in which they starred |
| 2011 | The Book of MormonTrey Parker, Matt Stone, and Robert Lopez |
| 2010 | MemphisDavid Bryan and Joe DiPietro; loosely based on a white 1950s Memphis DJ who played Black music |
2000s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 2009 | Billy Elliot the MusicalElton John and Lee Hall; based on the 2000 film |
| 2008 | In the HeightsLin-Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes; set in Washington Heights |
| 2007 | Spring AwakeningDuncan Sheik and Steven Sater; from Frank Wedekind's 1891 play |
| 2006 | Jersey BoysBob Gaudio and Bob Crewe; the story of the Four Seasons |
| 2005 | Monty Python's SpamalotEric Idle and John Du Prez; from Monty Python and the Holy Grail |
| 2004 | Avenue QRobert Lopez and Jeff Marx; a show with puppets that beat Wicked |
| 2003 | HairsprayMarc Shaiman and Scott Wittman; based on John Waters's 1988 film |
| 2002 | Thoroughly Modern MillieJeanine Tesori and Dick Scanlan; based on the 1967 film |
| 2001 | The ProducersMel Brooks; its 12 Tonys are still the record |
| 2000 | ContactSusan Stroman and John Weidman; three short dance plays set to recorded music |
1990s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1999 | FosseA dance revue celebrating the choreography of Bob Fosse |
| 1998 | The Lion KingElton John and Tim Rice; Julie Taymor directed the puppet-filled staging |
| 1997 | TitanicMaury Yeston; it won Best Musical with no acting nominations |
| 1996 | RentJonathan Larson wrote it all; he died the night before its first Off-Broadway performance |
| 1995 | Sunset BoulevardAndrew Lloyd Webber with Don Black and Christopher Hampton; from the Billy Wilder film |
| 1994 | PassionStephen Sondheim; at 280 performances, the shortest official run of any winner |
| 1993 | Kiss of the Spider WomanJohn Kander and Fred Ebb; a book by Terrence McNally, set in a prison |
| 1992 | Crazy for YouGeorge and Ira Gershwin songs in a new show drawn from Girl Crazy |
| 1991 | The Will Rogers FolliesCy Coleman with Comden and Green; a Ziegfeld-style tribute to Will Rogers |
| 1990 | City of AngelsCy Coleman and David Zippel; a novelist's Hollywood life runs beside his film-noir script |
1980s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1989 | Jerome Robbins' BroadwayAn anthology of numbers from shows that Jerome Robbins directed or choreographed |
| 1988 | The Phantom of the OperaAndrew Lloyd Webber; it went on to become the longest-running show in Broadway history |
| 1987 | Les MisérablesSchönberg, Boublil, and Kretzmer (English lyrics); from Victor Hugo's novel |
| 1986 | The Mystery of Edwin DroodRupert Holmes wrote the book, music, and lyrics; the audience votes on the ending |
| 1985 | Big RiverRoger Miller; Huckleberry Finn set to a country and bluegrass score |
| 1984 | La Cage aux FollesJerry Herman, with a book by Harvey Fierstein |
| 1983 | CatsAndrew Lloyd Webber; built on T. S. Eliot's poems about cats |
| 1982 | NineMaury Yeston; inspired by Federico Fellini's film 8 1/2 |
| 1981 | 42nd StreetHarry Warren and Al Dubin; a backstage musical based on the 1933 film |
| 1980 | EvitaAndrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice; the story of Eva Peron |
1970s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1979 | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet StreetStephen Sondheim; a dark tale of a vengeful barber, with a book by Hugh Wheeler |
| 1978 | Ain't Misbehavin'A revue paying tribute to the music of Fats Waller, arranged by Luther Henderson |
| 1977 | AnnieCharles Strouse and Martin Charnin; based on the Little Orphan Annie comic strip |
| 1976 | A Chorus LineMarvin Hamlisch and Edward Kleban; it also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama |
| 1975 | The WizCharlie Smalls; The Wizard of Oz retold through African American culture, with an all-Black cast |
| 1974 | RaisinJudd Woldin and Robert Brittan; based on A Raisin in the Sun |
| 1973 | A Little Night MusicStephen Sondheim; includes Send in the Clowns, and most of the score is in waltz time |
| 1972 | Two Gentlemen of VeronaGalt MacDermot and John Guare; a rock musical version of the Shakespeare comedy |
| 1971 | CompanyStephen Sondheim; a concept musical about marriage, with a book by George Furth |
| 1970 | ApplauseCharles Strouse and Lee Adams; based on the film All About Eve |
1960s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1969 | 1776Sherman Edwards; the debate over signing the Declaration of Independence |
| 1968 | Hallelujah, Baby!Jule Styne with Comden and Green; it had already closed by the ceremony |
| 1967 | CabaretJohn Kander and Fred Ebb; set in a Berlin nightclub as the Nazis rise |
| 1966 | Man of La ManchaMitch Leigh and Joe Darion; Don Quixote retold as a play within a play |
| 1965 | Fiddler on the RoofJerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick; a dairyman and his five daughters |
| 1964 | Hello, Dolly!Jerry Herman; it won 10 Tonys, a total no show topped until 2001 |
| 1963 | A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumStephen Sondheim's first Broadway score with both music and lyrics |
| 1962 | How to Succeed in Business Without Really TryingFrank Loesser; it also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama |
| 1961 | Bye Bye BirdieCharles Strouse and Lee Adams; a rock star is drafted into the army |
| 1960 | Fiorello!Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick; it also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama |
| 1960 | The Sound of MusicRodgers and Hammerstein; their last show together, tied with Fiorello! |
1950s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1959 | RedheadAlbert Hague and Dorothy Fields; Gwen Verdon starred and Bob Fosse directed |
| 1958 | The Music ManMeredith Willson wrote the book, music, and lyrics, from a story he shaped with Franklin Lacey |
| 1957 | My Fair LadyFrederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner; adapted from Shaw's Pygmalion |
| 1956 | Damn YankeesRichard Adler and Jerry Ross; a baseball fan makes a deal with the devil |
| 1955 | The Pajama GameRichard Adler and Jerry Ross; a romance set in a pajama factory |
| 1954 | KismetRobert Wright and George Forrest, adapting melodies by Alexander Borodin |
| 1953 | Wonderful TownLeonard Bernstein with Comden and Green; based on the play My Sister Eileen |
| 1952 | The King and IRodgers and Hammerstein; based on the novel Anna and the King of Siam |
| 1951 | Guys and DollsFrank Loesser; based on Damon Runyon's New York stories |
| 1950 | South PacificRodgers and Hammerstein; it also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama |
1940s Best Musical winners
| Year | Best Musical |
|---|---|
| 1949 | Kiss Me, KateCole Porter; the first Best Musical winner, built around The Taming of the Shrew |
Tony Award for Best Musical: common questions
Which musical won the most Tony Awards?
The Producers holds the record with 12 Tonys, won in 2001 from 15 nominations. That beat the old high of 10, reached by South Pacific in 1950 and matched by Hello, Dolly! in 1964. Hamilton holds the record for nominations, with 16, and won 11 of them in 2016.
What won Best Musical in 2026?
Schmigadoon! won Best Musical at the 79th Tony Awards on June 7, 2026, at Radio City Music Hall. Cinco Paul wrote its book, music, and lyrics, adapting the first season of the Apple TV+ series he co-created with Ken Daurio. It opened at the Nederlander Theatre on April 20, 2026, and won four Tonys in all.
What was the first Best Musical winner?
Kiss Me, Kate was the first winner in the category, at the 1949 ceremony. The Tonys began in 1947, but Best Musical was not given in 1947 or 1948. Cole Porter wrote the score, and the show weaves a backstage story around a production of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew.
Has a jukebox musical won Best Musical?
Yes. Jersey Boys won in 2006 with the songs of the Four Seasons, and Moulin Rouge! The Musical, built from existing pop songs, won at the delayed 74th ceremony in September 2021, where every Best Musical nominee was a jukebox show. Earlier, Ain't Misbehavin' (1978), a revue honoring Fats Waller's music, and Crazy for You (1992), built on existing Gershwin songs, also won.
Has there ever been a tie for Best Musical?
Once. In 1960, Fiorello! and The Sound of Music shared the award, and no other year has had a tie. There was no Tony ceremony in 2020: the 2019-20 season, including Moulin Rouge!, was honored at the 74th Tony Awards on September 26, 2021.
Explore the winners
See how long the biggest winners ran in our longest-running Broadway shows list, or browse every musical A to Z.
Try today's Broadway puzzle →Sources (14)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Award_for_Best_Musical
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Tony_Awards
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2nd_Tony_Awards
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/74th_Tony_Awards
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/79th_Tony_Awards
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schmigadoon!_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schmigadoon!
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maybe_Happy_Ending
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Producers_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamilton_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hello,_Dolly!_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Pacific_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moulin_Rouge!_(musical)
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallelujah,_Baby!