Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play

Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play
Awarded for	Quality supporting roles in a Broadway play
Country	United States
Presented by	Tony Award Productions (American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League)
First awarded	1947
Currently held by	Annaleigh Ashford (2015)
Official website	tonyawards.com

The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality supporting roles in a Broadway play. The awards are named after Antoinette Perry, an American actress who died in 1946. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, to "honor the best performances and stage productions of the previous year."

Six actresses (Christine Baranski, Judith Ivey, Judith Light, Swoosie Kurtz, Audra McDonald, and Frances Sternhagen) hold the record for most awards in this category, each with a total of two. Portrayals of Ruth Younger in A Raisin in the Sun have won twice, for Audra McDonald and Sophie Okonedo. Supporting actresses in two of three plays in Neil Simon's Eugene trilogy (Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound) were nominated for the Tony, and featured actresses in six parts of August Wilson's The Pittsburgh Cycle have also been nominated for the award.

The category was originally called the Tony Award for Actress, Supporting or Featured (Dramatic). Patricia Neal won the first award at the inception of the ceremony for her portrayal of Regina Hubbard in Lillian Hellman's Another Part of the Forest. Before 1956, nominees' names were not made public: the change was made by the awards committee to "have a greater impact on theatregoers". The award was renamed in 1976, when Shirley Knight became the first winner under the new title for her role as Carla in Robert Patrick's Kennedy's Children. Its most recent recipient is Annaleigh Ashford, for the role of Essie Carmichael, in You Can't Take It With You.

Recipients

Year	Actress	Role	Work	Nominees	Ref.
1947	Patricia Neal	Regina Hubbard	Another Part of the Forest	—
1948	—	—	—	—	—
1949	Shirley Booth	Grace Woods	Goodbye, My Fancy	—
1950	—	—	—	—	—
1951	Maureen Stapleton	Serafina Delle Rose	The Rose Tattoo	—
1952	Marian Winters	Natalia Landauer	I Am a Camera	—
1953	Beatrice Straight	Elizabeth Proctor	The Crucible	—
1954	Jo Van Fleet	Jessie Mae Watts	The Trip to Bountiful	—
1955	Patricia Jessel	Romaine Vole	Witness for the Prosecution	—
1956	Una Merkel	Edna Earle Ponder	The Ponder Heart	Diane Cilento in Tiger at the Gates as Helen of Troy Anne Jackson in Middle of the Night as The Daughter Elaine Stritch in Bus Stop as Grace Hoylard
1957	Peggy Cass	Agnes Gooch	Auntie Mame	Anna Massey in The Reluctant Debutante as Jane Broadbent Beryl Measor in Separate Tables as Pat Cooper Mildred Natwick in The Waltz of the Toreadors as Mme. St. Pé Phyllis Neilson-Terry in Separate Tables as Mrs. Railton-Bell Diana Van der Vlis in The Happiest Millionaire as Cordelia Biddle
1958	Anne Bancroft	Gittel Mosca	Two for the Seesaw	Brenda De Banzie in The Entertainer as Phoebe Rice Joan Blondell in The Rope Dancers as Mrs. Farrow Mary Fickett in Sunrise at Campobello as Eleanor Roosevelt Eileen Heckart in The Dark at the Top of the Stairs as Lottie Lacey
1959	Julie Newmar	Katrin Sveg	The Marriage-Go-Round	Maureen Delany in God and Kate Murphy as Carrie Donovan Dolores Hart in The Pleasure of His Company as Jessica Poole Nan Martin in J.B. as Sarah Bertice Reading in Requiem for a Nun as Nancy Mannigoe
1960	Anne Revere	Anna Berniers	Toys in the Attic	Leora Dana in The Best Man as Alice Russell Jane Fonda in There Was a Little Girl as Toni Newton Sarah Marshall in Goodbye, Charlie as Rusty Mayerling Juliet Mills in Five Finger Exercise as Pamela Harrington
1961	Colleen Dewhurst	Mary Follet	All the Way Home	Eileen Heckart in Invitation to a March as DeeDee Grogan Tresa Hughes in The Devil's Advocate as Nina Sanduzzi Rosemary Murphy in Period of Adjustment as Dorothea Bates
1962	Elizabeth Ashley	Mollie Michaelson	Take Her, She's Mine	Zohra Lampert in Look: We've Come Through as Jennifer Lewison Janet Margolin in Daughter of Silence as Anna Albertini Pat Stanley in Sunday in New York as Eileen Taylor
1963	Sandy Dennis	Sandra Markowitz	A Thousand Clowns	Melinda Dillon in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as Honey Alice Ghostley in The Beauty Part as Various Characters Zohra Lampert in Mother Courage and Her Children as Kattrin
1964	Barbara Loden	Maggie	After the Fall	Rosemary Murphy in Any Wednesday as Dorothea Cleves Kate Reid in Dylan as Caitlin Thomas Diana Sands in Blues for Mister Charlie as Juanita
1965	Alice Ghostley	Mavis Parodus Bryson	The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window	Rae Allen in Traveller Without Luggage as Juliette Alexandra Berlin in All in Good Time as Violet Fitton Carolan Daniels in Slow Dance on the Killing Ground as Rosie
1966	Zoe Caldwell	Polly	Slapstick Tragedy	Glenda Jackson in Marat/Sade as Charlotte Corday Mairin D. O'Sullivan in Philadelphia, Here I Come! as Madge Mulhern Brenda Vaccaro in Cactus Flower as Toni Simmons
1967	Marian Seldes	Julia	A Delicate Balance	Camila Ashland in Black Comedy as Miss. Furnival Brenda Forbes in The Loves of Cass McGuire as Trilbe Costello Maria Tucci in The Rose Tattoo as Rose Dell Rose
1968	Zena Walker	Sheila	A Day in the Death of Joe Egg	Pert Kelton in Spofford as Mrs. Punck Ruth White in The Birthday Party as Meg Eleanor Wilson in The Weekend as Mrs. Andrews
1969	Jane Alexander	Eleanor Bachman	The Great White Hope	Diane Keaton in Play It Again, Sam as Linda Christie Lauren Jones in Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie? as Linda Anna Manahan in Lovers as Hanna Wilson
1970	Blythe Danner	Jill Tanner	Butterflies Are Free	Alice Drummond in The Chinese and Dr. Fish as Mrs. Lee Eileen Heckart in Butterflies Are Free as Mrs. Baker Linda Lavin in Last of the Red Hot Lovers as Elaine Navazio
1971	Rae Allen	Fleur Stein	And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little	Lili Darvas in Les Blancs as Madame Neilsen Joan Van Ark in The School for Wives as Agnes Mona Washbourne in Home as Marian
1972	Elizabeth Wilson	Harriet	Sticks and Bones	Cara Duff-MacCormick in Moonchildren as Shelly Mercedes McCambridge in The Love Suicide at Schofield Barracks as Mavis Parodus Bryson Frances Sternhagen in The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window Lucy Lake
1973	Leora Dana	Elizabeth Edwards	The Last of Mrs. Lincoln	Maya Angelou in Look Away as Elizabeth Keckley Katherine Helmond in The Great God Brown as Margaret Penelope Windust in Elizabeth I as Elizabeth I
1974	Frances Sternhagen	Various Characters	The Good Doctor	Regina Baff in Veronica's Room as Susan Fionnula Flanagan in Ulysses in Nighttown as Various Characters Charlotte Moore in Chemin de Fer as Sophie Roxie Roker in The River Niger as Mattie Williams	—
1975	Rita Moreno	Googie Gomez	The Ritz	Linda Miller in Black Picture Show as Jane Geraldine Page in Absurd Person Singular as Marion Carole Shelley in Absurd Person Singular as Jane Elizabeth Spriggs in London Assurance as Lady Gay Spanker Frances Sternhagen in Equus as Dora Strang
1976	Shirley Knight	Carla	Kennedy's Children	Mary Beth Hurt in Trelawny of the 'Wells' as Rose Trewlawny Lois Nettleton in They Knew What They Wanted as Amy Meryl Streep in 27 Wagons Full of Cotton / A Memory of Two Mondays as Flora Meighan
1977	Trazana Beverley	Lady in Red	For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf	Patricia Elliott in The Shadow Box as Beverly Rose Gregorio in The Shadow Box as Agnes Mary McCarty in Anna Christie as Marthy Owen
1978	Ann Wedgeworth	Faye Medwick	Chapter Two	Starletta DuPois in The Mighty Gents as Rita Swoosie Kurtz in Tartuffe as Mariane Marian Seldes in Deathtrap as Myra Bruhl
1979	Joan Hickson	Delia	Bedroom Farce	Laurie Kennedy in Man and Superman as Violet Robinson Susan Littler in Bedroom Farce as Kate Mary-Joan Negro in Wings as Amy
1980	Dinah Manoff	Libby Tucker	I Ought to be in Pictures	Maureen Anderman in The Lady from Dubuque as Carol Pamela Burrell in Strider as Various Characters Lois de Banzie in Morning's at Seven as Myrtle Brown
1981	Swoosie Kurtz	Gwen Landis	Fifth of July	Maureen Stapleton in The Little Foxes as Birdie Hubbard Jessica Tandy in Rose as Rose's mother Zoë Wanamaker in Piaf as Tione
1982	Amanda Plummer	Agnes	Agnes of God	Judith Anderson in Medea as The Nurse Mia Dillon in Crimes of the Heart as Babe MaGrath Botrelle Mary Beth Hurt in Crimes of the Heart as Meg MaGrath
1983	Judith Ivey	Josie	Steaming	Elizabeth Franz in Brighton Beach Memoirs as Kate Jerome Roxanne Hart in Passion as Kate Margaret Tyzack in All's Well That Ends Well as Countess of Rossillion
1984	Christine Baranski	Charlotte	The Real Thing	Jo Henderson in Play Memory as Ruth MacMillan Dana Ivey in Heartbreak House as Lady Utterword Deborah Rush in Noises Off as Brooke Ashton
1985	Judith Ivey	Bonnie	Hurlyburly	Joanna Gleason in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg as Pam Theresa Merritt in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom as Ma Rainey Sigourney Weaver in Hurlyburly as Darlene
1986	Swoosie Kurtz	Bananas Shaughnessy	The House of Blue Leaves	Stockard Channing in The House of Blue Leaves as Bunny Flingus Bethel Leslie in Long Day's Journey into Night as Mary Tyrone Zoë Wanamaker in Loot as Fay
1987	Mary Alice	Rose Maxson	Fences	Annette Bening in Coastal Disturbances as Holly Dancer Phyllis Newman in Broadway Bound as Blanche Morton Carole Shelley in Stepping Out as Maxine
1988	L. Scott Caldwell	Bertha Holly	Joe Turner's Come and Gone	Kimberleigh Aarn in Joe Turner's Come and Gone as Mattie Cambell Kate Nelligan in Serious Money as Various Characters Kimberly Scott in Joe Turner's Come and Gone as Molly Cunningham
1989	Christine Baranski	Chris Gorman	Rumors	Joanne Camp in The Heidi Chronicles as Various Characters Tovah Feldshuh in Lend Me a Tenor as Maria Merelli Penelope Ann Miller in Our Town as Emily Webb
1990	Margaret Tyzack	Lotte Schoen	Lettice and Lovage	Polly Holliday in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof as Big Mama Polllitt S. Epatha Merkerson in The Piano Lesson as Berniece Lois Smith in The Grapes of Wrath as Ma Joad
1991	Irene Worth	Grandma Kurnitz	Lost in Yonkers	Amelia Campbell in Our Country's Good as Various Characters Kathryn Erbe in The Speed of Darkness as Mary J. Smith-Cameron in Our Country's Good as Various Characters
1992	Brid Brennan	Agnes	Dancing at Lughnasa	Rosaleen Linehan in Dancing at Lughnasa as Kate Mundy Cynthia Martells in Two Trains Running as Risa Dearbhla Molloy in Dancing at Lughnasa as Maggie Mundy
1993	Debra Monk	Geneva Riordan	Redwood Curtain	Kathleen Chalfant in Angels in America: Millennium Approaches as Various Characters Marcia Gay Harden in Angels in America: Millennium Approaches as Various Characters Anne Meara in Anna Christie as Marthy Owen
1994	Jane Adams	Sheila Birling	An Inspector Calls	Debra Monk in Picnic as Rosemary Sydney Jeanne Paulson in The Kentucky Cycle as Various Characters Anne Pitoniak in Picnic as Helen Potts
1995	Frances Sternhagen	Lavinia Penniman	The Heiress	Suzanne Bertish in The Molière Comedies as Lisette Cynthia Nixon in Indiscretions as Madeleine Ozeray Mercedes Ruehl in The Shadow Box as Beverly
1996	Audra McDonald	Sharon Graham	Master Class	Viola Davis in Seven Guitars as Vera Michele Shay in Seven Guitars as Louise Lois Smith in Buried Child as Hallie
1997	Lynne Thigpen	Dr. Judith B. Kaufman	An American Daughter	Helen Carey in London Assurance as Lady Gay Spanker Dana Ivey in The Last Night of Ballyhoo as Boo Levy Celia Weston in The Last Night of Ballyhooas Reba Freitag
1998	Anna Manahan	Mags Folan	The Beauty Queen of Leenane	Enid Graham in Honour as Sophie Linda Lavin in The Diary of Anne Frank as Petronella van Daan Julyana Soelistyo in Golden Child as Eng Ahn
1999	Elizabeth Franz	Linda Loman	Death of a Salesman	Claire Bloom in Electra as Clytemnestra Samantha Bond in Amy's View as Amy Thomas Dawn Bradfield in The Lonesome West as Girleen Kelleher
2000	Blair Brown	Margrethe Bohr	Copenhagen	Frances Conroy in The Ride Down Mt. Morgan as Theo Amy Ryan in Uncle Vanya as Sonya Serebryakova Helen Stenborg in Waiting in the Wings as Sarita Myrtle Sarah Woodward in The Real Thing as Charlotte
2001	Viola Davis	Tonya	King Hedley II	Johanna Day in Proof as Claire Penny Fuller in The Dinner Party as Gabrielle Buonocelli Marthe Keller in Judgment at Nuremberg as Mme. Bertholt Michele Lee in The Tale of the Allergist's Wife as Lee Green
2002	Katie Finneran	Brooke Ashton	Noises Off	Kate Burton in The Elephant Man as Madge Kendal Elizabeth Franz in Morning's at Seven as Aaronetta Gibbs Estelle Parsons in Morning's at Seven as Cora Swanson Frances Sternhagen in Morning's at Seven as Ida Bolton
2003	Michele Pawk	Louise	Hollywood Arms	Christine Ebersole in Dinner at Eight as Millicent Jordan Linda Emond in Life x 3 as Inez Kathryn Meisle in Tartuffe as Elmire Marian Seldes in Dinner at Eight as Carlotta Vance
2004	Audra McDonald	Ruth Younger	A Raisin in the Sun	Essie Davis in Jumpers as Dotty Sanaa Lathan in A Raisin in the Sun as Beneatha Younger Margo Martindale in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof as Big Momma Pollitt Daphne Rubin-Vega in Anna in the Tropics as Conchita
2005	Adriane Lenox	Mrs. Muller	Doubt: A Parable	Mireille Enos in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as Honey Heather Goldenhersh in Doubt: A Parable as Sister James Dana Ivey in The Rivals as Mrs. Malaprop Amy Ryan in A Streetcar Named Desire as Stella Kowalski
2006	Frances de la Tour	Mrs. Lintott	The History Boys	Tyne Daly in Rabbit Hole as Nat Jayne Houdyshell in Well as Ann Kron Alison Pill in The Lieutenant of Inishmore as Mairead Zoë Wanamaker in Awake and Sing! as Bessie Berger
2007	Jennifer Ehle	Multiple	The Coast of Utopia	Xanthe Elbrick in Coram Boy as Various Characters Dana Ivey in Butley as Edna Shaft Jan Maxwell in Coram Boy as Various Characters Martha Plimpton in The Coast of Utopia as Various Characters	—
2008	Rondi Reed	Mattie Fae Aiken	August: Osage County	Sinéad Cusack in Rock 'n' Roll as Eleanor Mary McCormack in Boeing-Boeing as Gretchen Laurie Metcalf in November as Clarice Bernstein Martha Plimpton in Top Girls as Angie
2009	Angela Lansbury	Madame Arcati	Blithe Spirit	Hallie Foote in Dividing the Estate as Mary Jo Gordon Jessica Hynes in The Norman Conquests as Annie Marin Ireland in reasons to be pretty as Steph Amanda Root in The Norman Conquests as Sarah
2010	Scarlett Johansson	Catherine	A View from the Bridge	Maria Dizzia in In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play) as Mrs. Daldry Rosemary Harris in The Royal Family as Fanny Cavendish Jessica Hecht in A View from the Bridge as Beatrice Carbone Jan Maxwell in Lend Me a Tenor as Maria Merelli
2011	Ellen Barkin	Dr. Emma Brookner	The Normal Heart	Edie Falco in The House of Blue Leaves as Bananas Shaughnessy Judith Light in Lombardi as Marie Lombardi Joanna Lumley in La Bête as The Princess Elizabeth Rodriguez in The Motherfucker with the Hat as Veronica
2012	Judith Light	Silda Grauman	Other Desert Cities	Linda Emond in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman as Linda Loman Spencer Kayden in Don't Dress for Dinner as Suzette Celia Keenan-Bolger in Peter and the Starcatcher as Molly Aster Condola Rashād in Stick Fly as Cheryl
2013	Judith Light	Faye	The Assembled Parties	Carrie Coon in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as Honey Shalita Grant in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike as Cassandra Judith Ivey in The Heiress as Lavinia Penniman Condola Rashad in The Trip to Bountiful as Thelma
2014	Sophie Okonedo	Ruth Younger	A Raisin in the Sun	Sarah Greene in The Cripple of Inishmaan as Helen McCormack Celia Keenan-Bolger in The Glass Menagerie as Laura Wingfield Anika Noni Rose in A Raisin in the Sun as Beneatha Younger Mare Winningham in Casa Valentina as Rita
2015	Annaleigh Ashford	Essie Carmichael	You Can't Take It with You	Patricia Clarkson in The Elephant Man as Madge Kendal Lydia Leonard in Wolf Hall Parts 1 & 2 as Anne Boleyn Sarah Stiles in Hand To God as Jessica Julie White in Airline Highway as Tanya

Win total

2 Wins

• Frances Sternhagen
• Swoosie Kurtz
• Judith Ivey
• Christine Baranski
• Audra McDonald
• Judith Light (consecutive)

Nomination total

5 Nominations

• Frances Sternhagen

4 Nominations

• Dana Ivey

3 Nominations

• Eileen Heckart
• Marian Seldes
• Swoosie Kurtz
• Zoë Wanamaker
• Elizabeth Franz
• Judith Ivey
• Judith Light

2 Nominations

• Zohra Lampert
• Rosemary Murphy
• Alice Ghostley
• Rae Allen
• Leora Dana
• Jan Maxwell
• Condola Rashad
• Carole Shelley
• Linda Emond
• Celia Keenan-Bolger
• Linda Lavin
• Amy Ryan
• Viola Davis
• Maureen Stapleton
• Christine Baranski
• Anna Manahan
• Debra Monk
• Lois Smith
• Margaret Tyzack
• Audra McDonald
• Mary Beth Hurt
• Martha Plimpton

Character win total

2 wins

• Ruth Younger from A Raisin in the Sun

Character nomination total

3 Nominations

• Honey from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

2 Nominations

• Marthy Owen from Anna Christie
• Bananas Shaughnessy from The House of Blue Leaves
• Charlotte from The Real Thing
• Brooke Ashton from Noises off
• Linda Loman from Death of a Salesman
• Maria Merelli from Lend Me a Tenor
• Big Mama Pollitt from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
• Mavis Parodus Bryson from The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window
• Beverly from The Shadow Box
• Lady Gay Spanker from London Assurance
• Lavinia Penniman from The Heiress
• Beneatha Younger from A Raisin in the Sun
• Ruth Younger from A Raisin in the Sun
• Madge Kendal from The Elephant Man

See also

• Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
• Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical

Notes

^{^[I]} Each year is linked to the article about the Tony Awards held that year.
^{^[II]} The "Ref." cites the role the winning actor portrayed in the work; the award winners and nominees are referenced by the general reference.
^{^[III]} The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play was not presented in 1948 or 1950.
^{^[IV]} Slapstick Tragedy, written by Tennessee Williams, is a double-bill featuring two one act plays: The Mutilated and The Gnädiges Fräulein; Caldwell played "Polly" in The Gnädiges Fräulein.
^{^[V]} Sternhagen plays multiple roles in The Good Doctor; as described by its author, the play is composed of "sketches, Vaudeville scenes, if you will, written with my non-consenting collaborator, Anton Chekhov".
^{^[VI]} The Coast of Utopia is broken into three parts. Ehle played Liubov in "Voyage" (part one), Natalie Herzen in "Shipwreck" (part two), and Malwida von Meysenbug in "Salvage" (part three).

References

General

• Note: User must select the "Actress (Featured Role–Play)" category as the award under the search feature.

Specific

External links

• Official website of the Tony Awards