Welcome back to my 'And the Tony Almost Went to...' series, where I take a deep dive into a show that was the (likely) runner-up in the Best Musical race of any previous Tony Awards year. This year's ceremony may have already passed by, but let's take a look back at last year's race for Best Musical. So today, we'll be talking about 2025.
Buena Vista Social Club is a jukebox/biomusical that takes place in Havana from the 1950s to the 1990s. The story follows the lives of four prominent musicians, the effect communism and the rise of Fidel Castro had on them at the time, and their eventual collaboration in 1997 on the landmark album.
The show, initially developed by director Saheem Ali, premiered at Off-Broadway's Atlantic Theatre Company on November 17th, 2023. Juan de Marcos Ganzález, a real-life member of the Buena Vista Social Club band who happens to be a character in the musical, was a creative consultant as was Tony-winning songwriter David Yazbek. Due to high ticket sales, the production extended its run twice, eventually playing its final performance on January 28th, 2024.
Buena Vista Social Club opened on March 19th, 2025 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on Broadway. The original cast included Natalie Venetia Belcon as Omara Portuondo, Isa Antonetti as Young Omara, Mel Semé as Ibrahim Ferrer, Wesley Wray as Young Ibrahim, Jainardo Batista Sterling as Rubén González, Leonardo Reyna as Young Rubén, Julio Monge as Compay Segundo, Da'Von Moody as Young Compay, Renesito Avich as Eliades Ochoa, Justin Cunningham as Juan de Marcos Ganzález, and Ashley De La Rosa as Young Haydee Portuondo.
The production received 10 Tony Award nominations for Best Musical, Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Natalie Venetia Belcon)*, Best Direction of a Musical (Saheem Ali), Best Book of a Musical (Marco Ramirez), Best Choreography (Patricia Delgado & Justin Peck)*, Best Orchestrations (Marco Paguia)*, Best Costume Design of a Musical (Dede Ayite), Best Lighting Design of a Musical (Tyler Micoleau), Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Arnulfo Maldonado), and Best Sound Design of a Musical (Jonathan Deans)*. Not to mention that a Special Tony was given to the show's live musicians.
*denotes an award it won.
In fact, Buena Vista Social Club was one of three shows to have led in nominations that year. The other two were Death Becomes Her (which only took home costume design) and the eventual Best Musical champ...
The show, initially developed by director Saheem Ali, premiered at Off-Broadway's Atlantic Theatre Company on November 17th, 2023. Juan de Marcos Ganzález, a real-life member of the Buena Vista Social Club band who happens to be a character in the musical, was a creative consultant as was Tony-winning songwriter David Yazbek. Due to high ticket sales, the production extended its run twice, eventually playing its final performance on January 28th, 2024.
Buena Vista Social Club opened on March 19th, 2025 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre on Broadway. The original cast included Natalie Venetia Belcon as Omara Portuondo, Isa Antonetti as Young Omara, Mel Semé as Ibrahim Ferrer, Wesley Wray as Young Ibrahim, Jainardo Batista Sterling as Rubén González, Leonardo Reyna as Young Rubén, Julio Monge as Compay Segundo, Da'Von Moody as Young Compay, Renesito Avich as Eliades Ochoa, Justin Cunningham as Juan de Marcos Ganzález, and Ashley De La Rosa as Young Haydee Portuondo.
The production received 10 Tony Award nominations for Best Musical, Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Natalie Venetia Belcon)*, Best Direction of a Musical (Saheem Ali), Best Book of a Musical (Marco Ramirez), Best Choreography (Patricia Delgado & Justin Peck)*, Best Orchestrations (Marco Paguia)*, Best Costume Design of a Musical (Dede Ayite), Best Lighting Design of a Musical (Tyler Micoleau), Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Arnulfo Maldonado), and Best Sound Design of a Musical (Jonathan Deans)*. Not to mention that a Special Tony was given to the show's live musicians.
*denotes an award it won.
In fact, Buena Vista Social Club was one of three shows to have led in nominations that year. The other two were Death Becomes Her (which only took home costume design) and the eventual Best Musical champ...
Why Didn't Buena Vista Social Club Win?: Despite many hailing it as one of the very best jukebox/biomusicals, the show was still put at a bit of a disadvantage because of that. In this day and age where a majority of the new musicals that come to Broadway are based on brand named titles, voters clearly wanted to champion something original much more. The New York Times suggested in their Tony voter survey that because Maybe Happy Ending had a completely original story and score, that played a factor in why many were throwing their support behind it.
I remember when that show opened in the fall of 2024, a number of people (myself included) questioned how long that was going to last, even with Darren Criss in one of the starring roles. The musical is set in the future and follows two lonely robots in Seoul who go on a road trip and find each other. Doesn't sound like an easy sell to general audiences. Yet thanks to strong reviews and excellent word-of-mouth, the show managed to win over fans in the months leading up to the Tonys.
In the end, Maybe Happy Ending took home 6 awards for Best Musical, Best Lead Actor in a Musical (Darren Criss), Best Direction of a Musical (Michael Arden), Best Book of a Musical (Will Aronson & Hue Park), Best Original Score (Will Aronson & Hue Park), and Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Dane Laffrey & George Reeve). As of this writing, both BVSC and MHE are still running on Broadway and are set to launch national tours this fall.
For those wondering, Death Becomes Her will be the subject for 'How Close Were They?' when I eventually cover this race for that series. I don't know when exactly, but it'll definitely be coming.
I remember when that show opened in the fall of 2024, a number of people (myself included) questioned how long that was going to last, even with Darren Criss in one of the starring roles. The musical is set in the future and follows two lonely robots in Seoul who go on a road trip and find each other. Doesn't sound like an easy sell to general audiences. Yet thanks to strong reviews and excellent word-of-mouth, the show managed to win over fans in the months leading up to the Tonys.
In the end, Maybe Happy Ending took home 6 awards for Best Musical, Best Lead Actor in a Musical (Darren Criss), Best Direction of a Musical (Michael Arden), Best Book of a Musical (Will Aronson & Hue Park), Best Original Score (Will Aronson & Hue Park), and Best Scenic Design of a Musical (Dane Laffrey & George Reeve). As of this writing, both BVSC and MHE are still running on Broadway and are set to launch national tours this fall.
For those wondering, Death Becomes Her will be the subject for 'How Close Were They?' when I eventually cover this race for that series. I don't know when exactly, but it'll definitely be coming.