\n<\/p>\n
UPDATE: 6\/11\/23 \u2014<\/strong>\u00a0Alex Newell is officially the first nonbinary performer to win a Tony Award. \u201cI should not be up here as a queer, nonbinary, fat, black, little baby from Massachusetts,\u201d the performer said during their acceptance speech. \u201cAnd to anyone that thinks that they can\u2019t do it, I\u2019m going to look you dead in your face and tell you that you can do anything you put your mind to.\u201d<\/p>\n Original story:<\/strong> <\/em>No shucks given! Alex Newell<\/strong><\/a> is making history with their 2023 Tony Award<\/a> nomination.<\/p>\n The 30-year-old Broadway star portrays Lulu in the new musical comedy Shucked<\/em>, which opened in New York City in April following its 2022 run in Salt Lake City. When nominations for the 76th annual Tony Awards<\/a> were announced on Tuesday, May 2, Newell became the first gender nonconforming performer<\/a> to earn a nod in the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical category.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a hot topic, isn\u2019t it?\u201d they teased during an interview with Variety<\/em><\/a> published one week before the announcement, reflecting on how they chose which category<\/a> to be recognized in. \u201cI went based off the English language. The standard has always been a male is an actor and a female as an actress. And I don\u2019t like that. Because when I say I\u2019m an actor, I mean that is my profession, the craft that I studied, the craft that I\u2019m doing. Everyone who does acting is an actor. That is genderless.\u201d<\/p>\n Newell noted that they \u201cappreciate\u201d the separation between actor and actress<\/a> in order to give more performers \u201can actual fighting chance\u201d at taking home a trophy. \u201cIf we can create that, we can create more lanes for other people who don\u2019t want to stick to those two categories,\u201d they added. \u201cI think me choosing actor, I hope, will be a spark to use that word as it was meant to the art of acting.\u201d<\/p>\n While the singer called other nonbinary stars \u201cadmirable\u201d for withdrawing from awards consideration<\/a> as a form of protest \u2014 as Yellowjackets<\/em>\u2018 Liv Hewson<\/strong><\/a> recently did \u2014 they also urged the industry to make a change. \u201cIt should be a wake-up call. Change is inevitable and it will happen, but we need to move a little faster,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n Shucked isn\u2019t Newell\u2019s first Broadway venture<\/a> \u2014 but they\u2019ve never been up for a Tony before. \u201cMy entire first time on Broadway was, \u2018You were snubbed,’\u201d they told Playbill<\/a> in March, referring to the 2017 revival of Once on This Island<\/em>, which received nods in all major categories<\/a> except best actor. \u201cI went everywhere, and that\u2019s what I was [hearing]. Not, \u2018Hello, Alex how are you.\u2019 It was always, \u2018Oh, how awful.\u2019 The rationality that was given to me was, \u2018Well, we didn\u2019t know what category to put you in. You\u2019re just so different.\u2019 Was that supposed to make me feel better or worse?\u201d<\/p>\n Following Tuesday\u2019s nominations announcement, Newell celebrated their major milestone. \u201cI went to the Met Gala at 8PM and 13 hours later I was Tony Nominated!!!! I\u2019m unwell!\u201d they gushed via Instagram<\/a>. \u201cGetting to wear @csiriano was iconic!!! With @alexander_armand on hair and @kellybellevue on makeup I couldn\u2019t have asked for a better team!!! @jennyandersonphoto you know how to capture the mothershucking moment!!!!\u201d<\/p>\n As Shucked<\/em>\u2018s Lulu \u2014 a headstrong whisky distiller \u2014 Newell brings the house down<\/a> each night with their show-stopping performance of \u201cIndependently Owned,\u201d often earning a standing ovation halfway through the first act.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t notice it sometimes. \u2026 A couple nights ago, there was someone in the dead center, right behind the conductor who was queening out and screaming \u2018Yes, Alex, you better work! You better sing!’\u201d they recalled to Variety<\/em>. \u201cIt was louder than me, and I had a microphone. It was hard because it was a very funny moment.\u201d<\/p>\n Sign up for Us Weekly’s free, daily newsletter<\/a> and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Scroll down to learn more about Newell ahead of the 2023 Tonys<\/a> in June:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n