Maybe Happy Ending sweeps Tony Awards with six wins

"Maybe Happy Ending" swept the Tony Awards on Sunday, taking home six trophies including Best Musical and marking the first time for a Korean-originated production to claim the prestigious honor.

The musical, which follows two abandoned helper robots, was the most awarded show at the 78th Tony Awards, edging out "Buena Vista Social Club," which received four awards, in the race for Best Musical.

Maybe Happy Ending earned awards for Best Musical; Best Book of a Musical; Best Direction of a Musical; Best Original Score (Music and/Or Lyrics); Best Scenic Design of a Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical.

It competed with four other nominees for the Best Musical honor. Among them, Buena Vista Social Club and Death Becomes Her were considered strong contenders as well, each earning nominations in 10 categories, matching Maybe Happy Ending in the number of nods.

This year’s honors recognized musicals and plays staged on Broadway from April of last year through the current season.

Maybe Happy Ending tells the story of two outdated helper robots, Oliver and Claire, searching for connection in a disconnected world set in late 21st-century Seoul.

The show is the brainchild of Korean playwright Park Chun-hue, also known by his English name Hue Park, and US composer Will Aronson, who met as students at New York University.

It first premiered in a 300-seat Daehakro theater in Seoul in 2016 and enjoyed five successful seasons through 2023.

After presenting a showcase in New York in 2016, Maybe Happy Ending entered full-scale production after partnering with prominent Broadway producer Jeffrey Richard

The musical officially opened in November at the 1,000-seat Belasco Theatre. Since its Broadway debut, the show has grossed $25.99 million with an average occupancy rate of 93.8%.

While Korean talent has previously been recognized at the Tonys -- last year when "The Great Gatsby" won for costume design -- Maybe Happy Ending became the first Korean-written musical to receive a Tony Award.

It has garnered several major accolades in recent months, including the Drama Desk Awards, Drama League Awards and Outer Critics Circle Awards.

Alongside the Academy Awards for film and the Emmy Awards for television, the Tonys are considered one of the most prestigious honors in the arts and entertainment industry.

(Updated throughout)

Write to Se-Min Huh at semin@hankyung.com
 

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.