Bette Midler completed the triple crown with her nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for the Tony Awards. She has previously received nods for the Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards.
Midler’s nomination for the role of Dolly Levy in the revival of Hello, Dolly! is her first at the Tony’s even though she won a special award in 1974 “for adding lustre to the Broadway season” for her run of concerts during December of 1973.
Midler actually debuted on Broadway in 1966 as an understudy for the role of Tzeitl in the original production of Fiddler on the Roof, taking over the role in February of 1967. After she began her recording career, she hit the Great White Way in three different concert shows in 1973, 1975 (Clams on the Half Shell Revue) and 1979-80 (Bette! Divine Madness). In 2011, she was one of the producers of Priscilla Queen of the Desert and returned to the stage in 2013 in the one-woman show I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat With Sue Mengers.
For this year’s Tonys, Midler is up against Denée Benton for Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Christine Ebersole and Patti LuPone for War Paint and Eva Noblezada for Miss Saigon.
