Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical
| Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Outstanding Book of a Musical |
| Location | New York City |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Drama Desk |
| First award | 1969 |
| Currently held by | Itamar Moses for Dead Outlaw (2024) |
| Website | dramadesk.org (defunct) |
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in theatre across collective Broadway, off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. It was first presented at the 1969 ceremony, under the shorter name Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book, changing to its current name as of the 1988 ceremony.
For two years, in addition to the award for Outstanding Book, an award was presented to the writers of the Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Book. In 1972, that award went to Melvin Van Peebles for Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death, while the 1973 award went to Ron House and Diz White for El Grande de Coco-Cola.
Winners and nominees
[edit]1960s
[edit]| Year | Writer | Production |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | ||
| Peter Stone | 1776 |
1970s
[edit]| Year | Writer | Production |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | ||
| George Furth | Company | |
| 1971 | ||
| Burt Shevelove | No, No, Nanette | |
| 1972 | ||
| John Guare and Mel Shapiro | Two Gentlemen of Verona | |
| 1973 | ||
| Hugh Wheeler | A Little Night Music | |
| 1974 | ||
| Hugh Wheeler | Candide | |
| 1975 | — | |
| 1976 | ||
| James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante | A Chorus Line | |
| Alfred Uhry | The Robber Bridegroom | |
| John Weidman | Pacific Overtures | |
| 1977 | ||
| Thomas Meehan | Annie | |
| 1978 | — | |
| 1979 | ||
| Hugh Wheeler | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street | |
1980s
[edit]| Year | Writer | Production |
|---|---|---|
| 1980–1983 | — | |
| 1984 | ||
| James Lapine | Sunday in the Park with George | |
| Harvey Fierstein | La Cage aux Folles | |
| Garry Trudeau | Doonesbury | |
| 1985 | ||
| Jerry Colker | Three Guys Naked from the Waist Down | |
| 1986 | ||
| Rupert Holmes | The Mystery of Edwin Drood | |
| Marta Kauffman, Seth Friedman and David Crane | Personals | |
| Warren Leight | Mayor | |
| 1987 | ||
| L. Arthur Rose, Douglas Furber, Stephen Fry and Mike Ockrent | Me and My Girl | |
| Barry Harman | Olympus on My Mind | |
| 1988 | ||
| James Lapine | Into the Woods | |
| 1989 | — | |
1990s
[edit]| Year | Writer | Production |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | ||
| Larry Gelbart | City of Angels | |
| 1991 | ||
| Marsha Norman | The Secret Garden | |
| John Weidman | Assassins | |
| 1992 | ||
| George C. Wolfe | Jelly's Last Jam | |
| 1993 | — | |
| 1994 | ||
| James Lapine | Passion | |
| Michael John LaChiusa | Hello Again | |
| 1995 | — | |
| 1996 | ||
| Jonathan Larson | Rent | |
| Graciela Daniele and Jim Lewis | Chronicle of a Death Foretold | |
| Laurence Klavan | Bed and Sofa | |
| Tina Landau | Floyd Collins | |
| John Weidman | Big: the musical | |
| 1997 | — | |
| 1998 | ||
| Terrence McNally | Ragtime | |
| 1999 | ||
| Alfred Uhry | Parade | |
| William Finn and James Lapine | A New Brain | |
2000s
[edit]2010s
[edit]2020s
[edit]Multiple wins
[edit]
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Multiple nominations
[edit]
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See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Evans, Greg (2021-05-05). "Broadway To Reopen Sept. 14, Says Gov. Andrew Cuomo; Broadway League "Cautiously Optimistic"". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 2023-06-02. Retrieved 2023-12-03.
- ^ "Stereophonic Leads 2024 Drama Desk Awards with 7 Wins Including Outstanding Play - Playbill.com". 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
- ^ Culwell-Block, Logan (April 30, 2025). "Boop! Leads 2025 Drama Desk Award Nominations With 11 Nods Including Outstanding Musical; Read the Full List Here". Retrieved May 4, 2025.