Kecia Lewis was awarded the 2024 Tony for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for Hell's Kitchen at the 77th Annual Tony Awards, held at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater June 16. Lewis is the first Black actress to win in this category since Renée Elise Goldsberry won for Hamilton in 2016.
"Forty years ago yesterday, I walked into the Imperial theatre to begin my Broadway career at 18 years old," Lewis shared while accepting her award. "I have had so many amazing experiences and some heartbreaking ones too. I took a short break from show business and raised a son as a single parent while trying to build a career. This moment is the one I dreamed of for most of those 40 years. So I say to everyone who can hear my voice, don't give up."
Other nominees in the category included Shoshana Bean for Hell's Kitchen, Amber Iman for Lempicka, Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer for Monty Python's Spamalot, Nikki M. James for Suffs, Lindsay Mendez for Merrily We Roll Along, and Bebe Neuwirth, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.
WATCH: Kecia Lewis Sings the Powerful 'Perfect Way to Die' From Hell's Kitchen
This is Lewis' first Tony win and first nomination. She made her Broadway debut in the original production of Dreamgirls in 1981.
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