“It looks closer to ‘will be’ than ‘maybe.'”
On the 4th (local time), the American Broadway performance media “Time Out” reported this about the possibility of the Korean musical “Maybe Happy Ending” (hereafter “Maybe~”) winning the Tony Award for Best Musical.
As the 78th Tony Awards ceremony, held at Radio City Music Hall in New York, USA on the 8th (local time), approaches, there is a local expectation that “Maybe~” is ahead of other contenders in the musical category for Best Musical. This work has been nominated for awards in 10 categories, including Best Musical, Best Direction, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Actor.
There is little disagreement that “Maybe~” will be the second Korean musical to win a Tony Award. Last year, the Korean musical “The Great Gatsby” became the first to win a Tony Award for Costume Design. “The Great Gatsby,” based on the novel of the same name, was produced with SH Chunsoo as the lead producer, and Korean-American designer Linda Cho won the Costume Design award.
The focus is on what type of trophy “Maybe~” will take home, with particular interest in whether it will win Best Musical. The contenders for the musical Best Musical include “Maybe~,” “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Dead Outlaw,” “Die to Live,” and “Operation Mincemeat.”
Many predictions place “Maybe~” as the frontrunner for Best Musical. As of the 8th, betting sites “Scores and Stats” and “OBLG” predicted its chances of winning Best Musical at 89.2% and 75%, respectively. Musical critic Jackson McHenry noted, “‘Maybe~’ has all the elements that Tony voters can relate to, including a Cinderella-like Broadway success story and the emotions captured in its love story.”
This production has already made waves on Broadway, winning major awards. At the 69th Drama Desk Awards held on the 2nd (local time), it swept six categories, including Best Musical, Best Director, Best Music, Best Lyrics, Best Book, and Best Scenic Design. It also won awards at the Drama League Awards (Outstanding Production, Outstanding Direction) and the Outer Critics Circle Awards (Outstanding Musical, Best Book, Outstanding Direction, Outstanding Music).
Of course, such results do not necessarily lead to a Tony Award for Best Musical. In 2023, the musical “Some Like It Hot” won three awards at the Drama Desk Awards, including Best Musical, but the Tony for Best Musical that year went to “Kimberly Akimbo.” A musical sweeping the four notable awards, including the Tony, hasn’t happened since “The Book of Mormon” in 2011, “Once” in 2012, and “A Gentleman’s Guide” in 2014.
Voting for the Tony Awards is done anonymously by about 840 industry insiders. Yoo-cheol Kim, head of Library Company, who participated in developing the project at the Wooran Cultural Foundation, mentioned, “Amid the difficulty of seeing original musicals in the U.S. due to rising production costs, ‘Maybe~’ is highly regarded for being an original work.” Among the five nominees, “Maybe~” is the only original musical.
However, other contenders are also deemed excellent enough to potentially win Best Musical. Locally, “Buena Vista Social Club,” which tells the story of the Cuban jazz band of the same name, and “Die to Live,” based on the film about a musical actress searching for eternal youth, are considered strong candidates for Best Musical.
New York Times critic Jesse Green, in a preview article for the Tony Awards on the 16th of last month, said, “If it were up to me, I’d give the award to ‘Maybe~’,” though he also listed “Die to Live” as a strong candidate for Best Musical.
The ceremony will be held on the 9th from 9 AM Korean time, with actress Cynthia Erivo from the film “Wicked” hosting the event.