2026 Theatre World Award Honorees Revealed

The 2026 Honorees for the Theatre World Award for an Outstanding Debut Performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway Production have been revealed. Also announced, Rachael Stirling (Giant) will receive the 17th Annual Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theater and the winner of the 13th Annual John Willis Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre will be announced shortly.

The historic 80th Annual Theatre World Awards Ceremony will be held Tuesday afternoon, June 2, 2026 at 2 p.m. at The Longacre Theatre (220 West 48th Street), home of Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York).

Hosted annually by well-known theater journalist, Peter Filichia, the 80th Annual Theatre World Awards Ceremony will be produced by Theatre World Awards, Inc. Board of Directors/Dale Badway with Executive Producer Karen Johnston.

2026 Theatre World Award Honorees:

For Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway Debut Performance during the 2025-2026 theatrical season

Ben Ahlers, Death of a Salesman
LJ Benet, The Lost Boys
Madeline Brewer, Becky Shaw
Adrien Brody, The Fear of 13
Ayo Edebiri, Proof
Alden Ehrenreich, Becky Shaw
Luke Evans, The Rocky Horror Show
Will Harrison, Punch
River Lipe-Smith, Caroline
Lesley Manville, Oedipus
Robert “Silk” Mason, Cats: The Jellicle Ball
Sam Tutty, Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)

17th Annual Dorothy Loudon Award For Excellence in The Theater

Rachael Stirling, Giant

The Theatre World Award honorees are chosen by the Theatre World Awards Committee which is comprised of Linda Armstrong (Amsterdam News), David Cote (The Observer), Joe Dziemianowicz (New York Daily News, Emeritus), Peter Filichia (The Newark Star-Ledger, Emeritus), David Finkle (New York Stage Review), Elysa Gardner (USA Today, Emeritus), Cary Wong (Freelance), and Frank Scheck (The Hollywood Reporter).

The Theatre World Awards, Inc. Board of Directors is headed by Dale Badway (President) with Tom Lynch (Vice-President), Michael Kostel (Vice-President), Stephen Wilde (Secretary), Rozanne Scarpelli (Treasurer), James Sheridan, Karen Johnston, Jeffrey Grove and Arthur Makar.

First presented in 1945, the Theatre World Awards, founded by John Willis, the Editor-in-Chief of both Theatre World and its companion volume, Screen World, are the oldest awards given for Outstanding Broadway and Off-Broadway Debut Performances. The Theatre World Awards are presented annually at the end of the theatre season to six actors and six actresses for their significant, reviewable, debut performances in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production. The ceremony is a private, invitation-only event followed by a party to celebrate the new honorees and welcome them to the Theatre World “family.”

12 previous winners serve as the presenters, and often relive moments from past ceremonies and share wonderful stories rarely heard at other theatrical awards. Many people feel that this is the most fun and enjoyable awards show of the Broadway season!

Previous winners who have won the Theatre World Award at the beginning of their careers include Meryl Streep, Rosemary Harris, Marlon Brando, Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Anne Bancroft, James Earl Jones, Liza Minnelli, Alan Alda, Zoe Caldwell, Christopher Walken, Alec Baldwin, Bernadette Peters, Audra McDonald, Al Pacino, Grace Kelly, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Cynthia Erivo, Danielle Brooks, Lupita Nyong’o, John Krasinski, and so many more.

The Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theater honors an Outstanding Performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway production. Dorothy Loudon, who had the unique talent of being able to make audiences laugh and cry, made her Broadway debut in Nowhere to Go But Up for which she received a Theatre World Award for her performance. She received a Tony Award for her incomparable performance as ‘Miss Hannigan’ in Annie and went on to triumphs originating roles in Noises Off, West Side Waltz, and Michael Bennett’s Ballroom.

Previous recipients of the Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theater include Shailene Woodley (2025), A.J. Shively (2024),Julie Benko (2023),Michael Oberholtzer (2022), Audra McDonald (2021), Hampton Fluker (2019), Ben Edelman (2018), Katrina Lenk (2017), Nicholas Barasch (2016), Leanne Cope (2015), Celia Keenan-Bolger (2014), Jonny Orsini (2013), Susan Pourfar (2012), Seth Numrich (2011), Bobby Steggert (2010), and Susan Louise O’Connor (2009). Due to the pandemic, there was no honoree in 2020.

The Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theater is chosen by the Trustees of The Dorothy Loudon Foundation,Lionel Larner, Executive Director, together with recommendations from the Theatre World Awards Committee.

The John Willis Award is given for lifetime achievement in the theatre to honor the man who created and maintained the Theatre World tradition for 66 years, encouraging new talent in an often-challenging business. The John Willis Award is presented annually by the Theatre World Awards, Inc. Board of Directors to an individual whose lifetime achievements and personal generosity to the Theatre Community merit special recognition and acknowledgement.

Previous recipients of the John Willis Award include Leslie Uggams (2025), Len Cariou (2024), Brian Stokes Mitchell (2023), Harvey Fierstein (2022), André De Shields and Patti LuPone (2021), Nathan Lane (2019), Victor Garber (2018), Glenn Close (2017), Bernadette Peters (2016), Chita Rivera (2015), Christopher Plummer (2014), and Alan Alda (2013). Due to the pandemic, there was no honoree in 2020.

In 2024, a TWA Special Award was bestowed upon Peter Filichia. In 2023, Special Award Honorees were bestowed for Outstanding Swing: Marilyn Caserta (Six) and Outstanding Contribution to The Theatre World: Dale Badway (Actor, Producer, and President of the Theatre World Awards Board of Directors).