Cole Escola captured the 2025 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play for his performance as Mary Todd Lincoln in the acclaimed production "Oh, Mary!"
In a remarkable achievement, Escola, who also penned the play, triumphed over notable nominees including George Clooney and Daniel Dae Kim, marking a historic moment as the first openly non-binary winner in this category. The full list of winners is available online.
"It's really overwhelming that it's come this far. Now I'm here with my little Tonys pins," Escola remarked to a local news outlet shortly after the nominations were revealed.
Escola elaborated on the creative process behind "Oh, Mary!" stating, "I had the idea of what if Abraham Lincoln's assassination wasn't such a bad thing for Mary Todd, and then I sort of worked my way backwards from that." He humorously noted that he envisioned her aspirations as a cabaret star, saying, "Why not? You can do anything in theater."
The impact of the play extended beyond the stage; the Mary Todd Lincoln House museum even sent t-shirts to the cast and reported increased website traffic due to the show's popularity.
"Hopefully, at least some of the audience is learning something after they see our show," Escola added.
Conrad Ricamora, who portrays Abraham Lincoln, received a nomination for Featured Actor in a Play. Reflecting on the show's journey, he expressed surprise at its longevity and success. "I thought it was going to be great downtown for a couple of weeks and then we were going to go on to trying to find another job," he said. "The thing that I feel like it's teaching me is that people are wanting something that is surprising."
Ricamora continued, "The fact that people are coming in droves and that we're sold out for show after show and breaking box office records for a small five-person play, that's unexpected."
Sharing the stage with Escola has been inspiring for Ricamora. "It's not hard to feel brave when you have somebody like Cole who's so true to themself and true to their comedy," he noted.
Sam Pinkleton received the Best Director award for "Oh, Mary!" and expressed gratitude towards Escola for imparting valuable wisdom: "Do what you love, not what you think people want to see."
