The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical 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 leading roles in a musical play, whether a new production or a revival. 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." The award was originally called the Tony Award for Actresses—Musical. It was first presented to Grace Hartman at the 2nd Tony Awards for her portrayal of various characters in Angel in the Wings. Before 1956, nominees' names were not made public; the change was made by the awards committee to "have a greater impact on theatregoers". In 1965, Liza Minnelli, age 19, became the youngest actress to win the award. She is followed by Lea Salonga, age 20, in 1991. In 2017, Bette Midler, age 71, became the oldest actress to win the award. She is followed by Victoria Clark, age 63, in 2023.

Winners and nominees

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1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Statistics

Most wins

• ; 4 wins • Angela Lansbury • ; 3 wins • Mary Martin • Gwen Verdon • ; 2 wins • Lauren Bacall • Victoria Clark • Christine Ebersole • Sutton Foster • Patti LuPone • Liza Minnelli • Donna Murphy • Bernadette Peters • Chita Rivera

Most nominations

• ; 8 nominations • Chita Rivera • ; 7 nominations • Sutton Foster • Kelli O'Hara • ; 6 nominations • Bernadette Peters • ; 5 nominations • Patti LuPone • Donna Murphy • Gwen Verdon • ; 4 nominations • Carol Channing • Angela Lansbury • Mary Martin • ; 3 nominations • Julie Andrews • Jessie Mueller • Christine Ebersole • Dee Hoty • Dorothy Loudon • Audra McDonald • Ethel Merman • Liza Minnelli • Faith Prince • ; 2 nominations • Lauren Bacall • Stephanie J. Block • Georgia Brown • Carolee Carmello • Kristin Chenoweth • Victoria Clark • Carmen Cusack • Sandy Duncan • Nanette Fabray • Dolores Gray • Barbara Harris • Judy Kuhn • LaChanze • Beth Leavel • Beatrice Lillie • Rebecca Luker • Marin Mazzie • Patina Miller • Idina Menzel • Eva Noblezada • Laura Osnes • Tonya Pinkins • Maryann Plunkett • Alice Ripley • Sherie Rene Scott • Alexis Smith • Elaine Stritch • Inga Swenson • Nancy Walker

Character win total

Character nomination total

• ; 5 nominations • Rose from Gypsy • ; 4 nominations • Mrs. Lovett from Sweeney Todd • Peter Pan from Peter Pan and Jerome Robbins' Broadway • ; 3 nominations • Anna Leonowens from The King and I • Charity Hope Valentine from Sweet Charity • Phyllis Rogers Stone from Follies • ; 2 nominations • Amalia Balash from She Loves Me • The Baker's Wife from Into the Woods • Bess from Porgy and Bess • Caroline Thibodeaux from Caroline, or Change • Celie Harris Johnson from The Color Purple • Desiree Armfeldt from A Little Night Music • Dolly Gallagher Levi from Hello, Dolly! • Dot / Marie from Sunday in the Park with George • Eliza Doolittle from My Fair Lady • Ella Peterson from Bells Are Ringing • Ensign Nellie Forbush from South Pacific • Fiona MacLaren from Brigadoon • Kim from Miss Saigon • Lilli Vanessi / Katharine from Kiss Me, Kate • Lily Garland / Mildred Plotka from On the Twentieth Century • Lizzie Curry from 110 in the Shade • Lucille Frank from Parade • Marian Paroo from The Music Man • Mother from Ragtime • Reno Sweeney from Anything Goes • Ruth Sherwood from Wonderful Town • Sally Bowles from Cabaret • Sarah Brown from Guys and Dolls • Velma Kelly from Chicago

Characters nominated for both the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical

• Joan of Arc from Goodtime Charley, Saint Joan, Joan of Lorraine and The Lark • Countess Aurelia from The Madwoman of Chaillot and Dear World • Sally Bowles from I Am a Camera and Cabaret • Leona Samish from The Time of the Cuckoo and Do I Hear a Waltz? • Dolly Gallagher Levi from The Matchmaker and Hello Dolly! • Lena Younger from A Raisin in the Sun and Raisin • Mame Dennis from Auntie Mame and Mame • Eliza Gant from Look Homeward, Angel and Angel • Claire Zachanassian The Visit (play) and The Visit (musical) • Sister Margaret Alexander from The Amen Corner and Amen Corner (musical) • Eliza Doolittle from Pygmalion and My Fair Lady • Lizzie Curry from The Rainmaker and 110 in the Shade. • Lily Garland / Mildred Plotka from Twentieth Century and On the Twentieth Century • Madame Arcati from Blithe Spirit and High Spirits • Anna Christopherson from Anna Christie and New Girl in Town

Productions with multiple nominations

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Multiple awards and nominations