John Lithgow and Lesley Manville lead Tony Award winners

A significant story is unfolding on the international scene. John Lithgow and Lesley Manville lead Tony Award winners16 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleSteven McIntoshEntertainment reporterGetty ImagesJohn Lithgow and Lesley Manville won awards for their roles in Giant and Oedipus respectivelyJohn Lithgow, Lesley Manville and Laurie Metcalf were among the big winners at Sunday's Tony Awards, which celebrate the best US theatre of the past year. A new production of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman dominated the night overall, notching up six wins in total. Aged 80, Lithgow became the oldest male actor ever to win a Tony, for his portrayal of author Roald Dahl in Giant.

The actor's latest Tony trophy comes more than five decades after his first, when he won for his role in a 1972 Broadway production of Changing Rooms. "Two Tony bookends with 53 years between them," Lithgow noted in his acceptance speech. "In those years, I have worked with hundreds of just fantastic theatre artists.

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I've had dozens and dozens of ecstatic moments on the stage, but I have to tell you right now, this moment has got to be one of the best. "British actress Manville won the first Tony of her career for her performance as Jocasta in the Greek tragedy Oedipus. Accepting the award, Manville said: "I'm a bit overwhelmed, it was my first time on Broadway so this is such a big deal.

"She also paid tribute to her fellow nominees - Rose Byrne, Carrie Coon, Susannah Flood and Kelli O'Hara - and joked: "Would someone like to write a play for five women? We are quite bankable. "The wins for Lithgow and Manville were an echo of last year's Olivier Awards, as both their productions played in the UK before transferring to Broadway.

Death of a Salesman's wins included best revival of a play as well as the lead actress prize for Metcalf, a Bafta and Oscar-nominated actress known for Roseanne and Lady Bird. Getty ImagesLaurie Metcalf paid tribute to the fellow actors she met in the theatre department in collegeMetcalf said: "When I was in college, I met six fellow students in the theatre department. We worked really hard to amuse each other, and I still consider them family - and I still draw on lessons that I learned from them.

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"And they were Gary Sinise, Moira Harris, Al Wilder, Jeff Perry, Terry Kinney, and John Malkovich. "The show's success at the ceremony was notable for also scoring the first Tony Award for controversial producer Scott Rudin since he stepped back from Broadway in 2021 following allegations of bullying and abusive behaviour towards employees. At the time, Rudin acknowledged his "history of troubling interactions with colleagues" and said he was "profoundly sorry for the pain my behaviour caused to individuals, directly and indirectly".

Rudin was not present at Sunday's ceremony, and the production's trophy for best play revival was accepted by actor Nathan Lane, who paid tribute to "the genius of Arthur Miller, who created this monumental masterpiece".

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