ASCAP Creators Nominated for 2026 Tony Awards
By Sarah Finegold • May 6, 2026
Great news theatre lovers – Tony nominations were announced Tuesday, May 5 by ASCAP member and 2025 Tony winner Darren Criss and Uzo Aduba. The global ASCAP musical theatre family earned multiple nominations in the Best Musical, Best Revival, Best Original Score and Best Book categories!
Break out the corn puddin’ and give three cheers for Cinco Paul! His musical theatre sendup romp Schmigadoon! (based on the hilarious Apple TV series of the same name) was nominated for 12 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Cinco himself was nominated for Best Original Score and Best Book.
ASCAP member Kyler England of the band The Rescues also has a lot to celebrate – The Lost Boys, for which she co-wrote the music, lyrics and book – took home 12 total nominations including Best Original Score, Best Musical, Best Orchestrations and Best Book.
Caroline Shaw and Steve Bargonetti earned nominations in Best Original Score for their music to plays Death of a Salesman and August Wilson's Joe Turner's Come and Gone, respectively.
Lincoln Center Theater's acclaimed Broadway revival of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty’s Ragtime had a banner day with 11 total nominations, including Best Revival.
Jukebox delight Titanique, which transferred to the Daryl Roth Theatre after its three-year off-Broadway run that concluded in June 2025, features a parade of smash hits written and co-written by many members of ASCAP’s creator family including: Kristian Lundin, Andreas Carlsson, Daniel Hill, John Sheard, Diane Warren, Howard Ashman, Aldo Nova, Jacques Duval, Walter Afanasieff, Junior Miles, Billy Steinberg, Taylor Rhodes, Louis Biancaniello, Sam Watters, Sergei Rachmaninoff and James Horner.
In the Best Orchestrations category, Doug Besterman was nominated for Schmigadoon!, Lux Pyramid was nominated for Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York), Trevor Holder and Doug Schadt were nominated for Cats: The Jellicle Ball and Brian Usifer was nominated for Chess.
Finally, congratulations to ASCAP member Michael Arden, who was nominated for Best Direction of a Musical for The Lost Boys.
Congratulations to our ASCAP family nominated for Tony Awards this year! You can check out all of our nominees below. The 79th Annual Tony Awards will return to the legendary Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sunday, June 7, 2025. Watch it on CBS or Paramount+.
BEST MUSICAL
The Lost Boys – Music & Lyrics by Kyler England
Titaníque, ASCAP songs and writers:
“I’m Alive” - Kristian Lundin, Andreas Carlsson
“Seduces Me” - Daniel Hill, John Sheard
"If You Asked Me To" - Diane Warren
“Beauty and the Beast” - Howard Ashman
“You and I” - Aldo Nova, Jacques Duval
“Tell Him” - Walter Afanasieff
“To Love You More” - Junior Miles
“I Drove All Night” - Billy Steinberg
"Because You Loved Me" - Diane Warren
“Where Does My Heart Beat Now” - Taylor Rhodes
“I Surrender” - Louis Biancaniello, Sam Watters
“All By Myself” - Sergei Rachmaninoff
“My Heart Will Go On” - James Horner
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Death of a Salesman – Music by Caroline Shaw
August Wilson's Joe Turner's Come and Gone – Music by Steve Bargonetti
The Lost Boys – Music & Lyrics by Kyler England
Schmigadoon! – Music & Lyrics by Cinco Paul
BEST ORCHESTRATIONS
The Lost Boys – Kyler England
Schmigadoon! – Doug Besterman
Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York) – Lux Pyramid
Cats: The Jellicle Ball – Trevor Holder, Doug Schadt
Chess – Brian Usifer
BEST REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL
Ragtime (Music by Stephen Flaherty, Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens)
BEST BOOK OF A MUSICAL
Schmigadoon! – Cinco Paul