Tony Awards: 'The Book of Mormon' wins best musical; 'War Horse' named best play

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Actor Alec Baldwin has had an interesting off-season from “30 Rock.” He’s defended disgraced Congressman Anthony Weiner in a much publicized Huffington Post op-ed. He’s also rumored to be eyeing a run for the New York mayor’s office. But perhaps the most shocking development is Baldwin’s rapidly developing Santa Claus beard, debuting tonight on the Tony Awards. Will his campaign promise be toys for all boys and girls in NYC? (Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images)

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The Oscars are usually condemned as deadly dull, ditto for the Emmy Awards. But only the Tony Awards and the Grammy Awards ask their nominees to show up and perform a bit. Every year, the casts of current-run Broadway shows head backstage, get in costume and sing their hearts out before they get a chance to go home with a Tony Award. This year, the casts of “The Book of Mormon,” “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” “The Scottsboro Boys” and “Catch Me If You Can” all sang and danced for their win. Would it be too hard to get the Oscar nominees to give us a little line reading on Oscar night? Just a thought... (Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images)

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One week ago, MTV Movie Awards host Jason Sudeikis was trying his darndest to score with Arnold Schwarzenegger love-child jokes. They bombed. This week, John Leguizamo tossed one off at the beginning of a lengthy monologue on his Broadway career and he nailed the laugh. “I am also Arnold Schwarzenegger’s love child,” he said. Simple, yet successful. Sudeikis, are you writing this stuff down? (Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images)

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Or perhaps she gets them excited by looking like their favorite Hogwarts professor? Or maybe she lost a bet. Or maybe Sunday is laundry day at the Goldberg house. Or (insert your own reason here). (Jason Kempin / Getty Images)

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Perhaps you could have put a little more effort into your awards night gear. The jean jacket isn’t a Whoopi-level disaster, but the Tonys isn’t exactly popping down to the corner store, either. (Jeff Christensen / Associated Press)

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It’s big, it’s expensive, it’s had more drama off-stage than on, so it’s only fitting that “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” would be the subject of a few jokes. But Neil Patrick Harris made it the subject of an entire bit, telling six Spider-Man jokes in 60 seconds. One highlight: “Julie Taymor found out it was over when she woke up to find the head of War Horse in her bed.” Later, two cast members from the musical attempted to make it all more enticing by performing a song that didn’t require heavy wire-work. (Jeff Christensen / Associated Press)

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“Driving Miss Daisy” stars Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones, who received a standing ovation when they came on stage to present an award. Then soaked in their time out there by delivering their lines as slow as they wanted. (Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images)

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The musical by “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone picked up nine Tonys, including best musical. Presenter Chris Rock was so sure of “Mormon’s” success, he spent his time complaining about missing “the best basketball game ever” between the Mavericks and the Heat to hang with Nathan Lane. He said, “I can remember my first musical like it was yesterday. Because it was yesterday.” (Jeff Christensen / Associated Press)

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He didn’t need to outdo himself at the end of the show, but that’s exactly what Neil Patrick Harris did, with his wrap-up rap recapping the events of the award show just ended. In just a few minutes, he turned three hours of show into many lines of verse (with a huge assist from Tony winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote it.) (Jeff Christensen / Associated Press)

By Sherry Stern

June 12, 2011 12 AM PT

Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

“The Book of Mormon,” the irreverent musical comedy about two mismatched Mormon missionaries from the creators of “South Park,” was named best musical at the 2011 American Theatre Wing’s Tony Awards on Sunday night at the Beacon Theatre in New York. The Broadway hit won nine awards.

Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Robert Lopez won two Tonys each, for the book and for the music and lyrics. Parker and Casey Nicholaw won for direction of a musical. Other “Mormon” winners were Larry Hochman and Stephen Oremus for orchestration, Brian MacDevitt for lighting design of a musical, Brian Ronan for sound design of a musical and Scott Pask for scenic design of a musical.

Nikki M. James won her first Tony, for performance by an actress in a featured role in a musical in the role as the optimistic Ugandan girl Nabalungi.

The musical was the heavy favorite going into the ceremony, with 14 nominations.

“War Horse,” the hit British play based on Michael Morpurgo’s book about the horrors of World War I that uses life-size puppets to portray the equine characters, was named best play at the 2011 American Theatre Wing’s Tony Awards on Sunday night at the Beacon Theatre in New York. This was its fifth award of the evening: Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris won for direction of a play, Rae Smith for scenic design of a play, Paule Constable for lighting design of a play and Christopher Shutt for sound design of a play.

“The Normal Heart,” Larry Kramer’s searing look at the early days of the AIDS epidemic, was named best revival of a play 26 years after its debut, the third award of the night for the drama.

Sutton Foster, the young Broadway belter, won for actress in a leading role in a musical for “Anything Goes.” The remounting of Cole Porter’s 1934 shipboard musical-comedy was named best revival of a musical. It also won the choreography award, given to Kathleen Marshall.

Norbert Leo Butz won his second Tony, as actor in a leading role of a musical as the lawman in “Catch Me If You Can,” the crowd-pleasing musical based on the hit Steven Spielberg movie.

Frances McDormand won for leading actress in a play for “Good People,” David Lindsay-Abaire’s drama about a woman’s struggle to escape her dead-end life in South Boston.

Mark Rylance won his second Tony, as actor in a leading role of a play for “Jerusalem,” Jez Butterworth’s drama exploring the contemporary English psyche through the character of a deranged drug dealer who lives in the woods.

John Larroquette won for actor in a featured role in a musical for the revival of “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The actor, best known for his television roles, plays J.B. Bigley, the role originated by Rudy Vallee in the 1962 Frank Loesser classic musical. He thanked the musical’s star, “Harry Potter” actor Daniel Radcliffe “without whom I would be sitting in my underwear watching this on TV.”

Ellen Barkin and John Benjamin Hickey won their first Tony Awards for best performances by an actress and actor in featured roles in the revival of Larry Kramer’s “The Normal Heart.”

The actress, best known for her film roles, called working on Kramer’s searing look at the early days of the AIDS epidemic the “proudest moment in my career.” Barkin plays a wheelchair-bound doctor confronting the AIDS crisis during the ‘80s. Hickey plays Felix Turner, a closeted journalist.

Desmond Heeley won for costume design in a play for “The Importance of Being Earnest.” Tim Chappel and Lizzy Gardiner won for costume design in a musical “Priscilla Queen of the Desert.”

The 65th annual awards awards were presented on a national broadcast on CBS, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris. The Tonys are organized by the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League.

This year’s regional theater award went to Chicago’s Lookingglass Theatre Company.

Athol Fugard, the prolific South African-born playwright, received a lifetime achievement award. Fugard -- whose most notable dramas include “Boesman and Lena” and “Master Harold ... and the Boys” -- has explored issues of race and class in apartheid-era South Africa.

Eve Ensler, the author of “The Vagina Monologues,” received the Isabelle Stevenson Award, which honors individuals who has made commitments in the fields of humanitarian and social work.

Other recipients of special awards include Philip J. Smith, William Berloni and the Drama Book Shop. The Handspring Puppet Company, which designed the equine puppetry in “War Horse,” also received a special award.

Tony Awards: ‘The Book of Mormon’ wins best musical; ‘War Horse’ named best play

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