The Lebanese-American actor Tony Shalhoub and the musician David Yazbek won the Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical Award and the Best Original Score Award at the 72nd Tony Award for their remarkable work in “The Band’s Visit.” The Tony Award recognizes excellence in live Broadway theater. In his speech, Shalhoub celebrated his family and said that this award honors their courage, aspirations, and selflessness. “May we, their descendants, never lose sight of what they taught us,” the actor concluded.
As for Yazbek, he said that working on a show about love, music, silence, and connection keeps people sane during a time of lies, bigotry, divisiveness, and racism. https://youtu.be/opfNi8XsWKg “The Band’s Visit” is a stage musical that follows an Egyptian band. While in a bus station in Tel Aviv, a member of the crew bought the wrong tickets and the musicians ended up in the middle of nowhere. A local café owner named Dina offers the band a meal and a place to stay for the night. The lives of the locals and the musicians intertwine in unexpected ways. https://youtu.be/WxI3kOvW_Ng The movie won 10 Tony Awards!
- Best Musical
- Best Actor in a Musical: Tony Shalhoub
- Best Actress in a Musical: Katrina Lenk
- Best Featured Actor in a Musical: Ari’el Stachel
- Best Direction of a Musical: David Cromer
- Best Book of a Musical: Itamar Moses
- Best Original Score: David Yazbek
- Best Orchestrations: Jamshied Sharifi
- Best Lighting Design in a Musical: Tyler Micoleau
- Best Sound Design in a Musical: Kai Harada
Congratulations!