The Book of Mormon, a spoof musical about two travelling Mormon missionaries, won the Tony Award for best musical yesterday, while British import to Broadway War Horse won best play.
With nine prizes, The Book of Mormon, which follows two naive Mormons sent to Uganda, was the biggest winner.
Written by the creators of TV show South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, it also took awards for best book, original score and best direction. Parker thanked "co-writer" Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon religion, quipping: "You did it Joseph, you got the Tony."
War Horse, a story about the bond between a boy and his horse amid the carnage of the first World War, opened at the National Theatre before moving to the West End and the United States.
The hit play, adapted from a 1982 Michael Morpurgo novel and featuring life-sized puppets and actors on stage, has inspired a film which is being directed by Steven Spielberg.
Actress Frances McDormand won best actress in a leading role in a play for her role as a tough Boston single mother in
Good People,
while Mark Rylance won for best actor in a leading role in a play for
Jerusalem
at the awards marking Broadway's highest honors.
Best musical revival went to Anything Goes, while best play revival went to The Normal Heart, which also gave Ellen Barkin and John Benjamin Hickey the awards for best actress and best actor in a featured role in a play.
Best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical was awarded to Norbert Leo Butz for Catch Me If You Can, while best performance by an actress in a leading role in a musical went to Sutton Foster for Anything Goes.
Agencies