Berklee, Boston Conservatory Alumni Nominated for Top Tony Awards in 2016
Alex Lacamoire '95 was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Orchestrations for his work on "Hamilton."
Tea for Two Photography
August Eriksmoen '95 was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Orchestrations for his work on "Bright Star."
Photo by Internet Broadway Database
Jennifer Simard '92 (the Boston Conservatory) was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for her performance in "Disaster!"
Photo by Internet Broadway Database
Alumni from Berklee and the Boston Conservatory have been nominated for 2016 Tony Awards in categories including Best Musical, Best Orchestrations, Best Revival of a Musical, and Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical—the latter a nod to 1992 Boston Conservatory musical theater alumna Jennifer Simard's performance in Disaster!, which the New York Times described as "heaven-sent."
Two of the four nominees in this year's Best Orchestrations category are Berklee composers: Alex Lacamoire '95 is nominated for his work on the megahit musical Hamilton, and August Eriksmoen '95 is nominated for orchestrating work on Steve Martin and Edie Brickell's musical, Bright Star. If either Lacamoire or Eriksmoen wins, it will be the second year in a row that a Berklee composer takes home the Best Orchestrations Tony (last year, Bill Elliott, professor in Berklee's Contemporary Writing and Production Department, snagged the award for his work on An American in Paris).
The 70th Annual Tony Awards will be presented and broadcast live on CBS on Sunday, June 12, at 8:00 p.m. ET at a ceremony hosted by James Corden.
Berklee and Boston Conservatory alumni performed in many of the year's top Tony-nominated Broadway shows, including Hamilton (Jasmine Cephas Jones '09) and Waitress (Kimiko Glenn '11 Boston Conservatory), and produced others, such as Tuck Everlasting (Stephen Cerf '10 Boston Conservatory). Composer/lyricist Stephen P. Bray '78, was nominated for Best Revival of a Musical for his work in The Color Purple. A full list of this year's Berklee and Boston Conservatory alumni Tony nominees is below.
Best Musical
Waitress: Ben Simpson '11 (Boston Conservatory) and Joe Longthorne '12 (Boston Conservatory), producers
Best Revival of a Musical
Spring Awakening: Constantine Maroulis '02 (Boston Conservatory), producer
The Color Purple: Stephen P. Bray '78, composer/lyricist
Best Orchestrations
Hamilton: Alex Lacamoire ’95
Bright Star: August Eriksmoen ’95
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Disaster!: Jennifer Simard ’92 (Boston Conservatory)