Drama Desk Awards facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Drama Desk Awards
Presented by	The Drama Desk
Country	United States
First awarded	1955; 70 years ago (1955)

The Drama Desk Awards are super important awards for theater in New York City. They celebrate amazing work on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway stages. People often call them "the Golden Globes of Theatre" because they are so well-known.

These awards started in 1955. They are given out every year by the Drama Desk organization. This group is made up of theater critics, writers, and publishers in New York City. They all work to celebrate the best in performing arts.

2025 Drama Desk Award Winners

Award Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical Winners Jasmine Amy Rogers (Boop! The Musical) Audra McDonald (Gypsy)   Award Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play Winners Sarah Snook (Dorian Gray) Laura Donnelly (The Hills of California) Award Outstanding Musical Outstanding Play Winners Maybe Happy Ending Purpose

History of the Drama Desk Awards

The Drama Desk organization started in 1949. It was created by theater critics and journalists. Their goal was to highlight important topics in theater. They also wanted to help New York theater grow.

In 1955, the group began giving out awards. These were first called the Vernon Rice Awards. They were named after a critic who supported off-Broadway shows. The awards changed their name to the Drama Desk Awards in 1963–1964. By 1968–69, they also included Broadway shows.

The Drama Desk became a non-profit group in 1974. In 1975, they started announcing nominees along with the winners. Today, over 130 New York theater experts vote on the awards. They all volunteer their time.

What Makes These Awards Special?

The Drama Desk Awards are unique because they treat all types of New York theater equally. This means shows from Broadway, off-Broadway, and off-off-Broadway are all judged together. This helps celebrate both famous and new talents.

In 2023, the awards made a big change. They started using gender-neutral categories for performers. This means actors are not separated into "actor" and "actress" anymore. Each performance category now has twice as many nominees and two winners. This helps recognize even more amazing talent.

The Drama Desk plans to grow even more by 2027. They want to honor theater from all over the United States. This would make them the only major theater award to celebrate professional theater nationwide.

Famous Winners and Shows

Many famous artists got early attention from the Drama Desk Awards. Some of these include Morgan Freeman, Patti LuPone, Bernadette Peters, Nathan Lane, Audra McDonald, and Anthony Hopkins. They were recognized before they became huge stars.

Well-known shows also gained early fame at the Drama Desk Awards. These include Hamilton, A Chorus Line, Driving Miss Daisy, and Sunday in the Park with George.

Many other amazing people have won Drama Desk Awards. This includes Elton John, Al Pacino, Julie Andrews, Helen Mirren, Dustin Hoffman, Whoopi Goldberg, Bette Midler, Ian McKellen, James Earl Jones, Liza Minnelli, Hugh Jackman, Mel Brooks, Tina Fey, Angela Lansbury, Viola Davis, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Glenn Close, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Andrew Garfield, Neil Patrick Harris, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Stephen Sondheim, Billy Crystal, Bob Fosse, Mike Nichols, Christine Baranski, Jessica Chastain, Sean Hayes, Chita Rivera, Edie Falco, Laura Linney, Kristin Chenoweth, Cynthia Nixon, Allison Janney, Cynthia Erivo, Elaine Stritch, Frank Langella, Phylicia Rashad, Jessica Tandy, Stockard Channing, Billy Porter, Harvey Fierstein, Sutton Foster, Stephanie J. Block, Jane Krakowski, Mike Birbiglia, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Jason Alexander, Lena Horne, Lauren Bacall, Estelle Parsons, Ethel Merman, Glynis Johns, and Helen Hayes.

Award Categories

The Drama Desk Awards have many different categories. They celebrate all parts of a theater production.

Performance Awards

These awards honor the actors and performers in plays and musicals.

Show and Technical Awards

These awards recognize the show itself and the amazing work behind the scenes.

Special Awards

• Drama Desk Special Award
• Outstanding Ensemble

Awards Ceremony History

The Drama Desk Awards ceremony is a big event each year. Here's a look at some recent ceremonies:

See also

Other theatre awards in New York:

• Tony Awards
• Lucille Lortel Awards
• Obie Award
• New York Drama Critics' Circle
• Drama League Award
• Theatre World Award