The Ferryman earns 9 Tony nominations, spotlighting Irish talent on Broadway

The Ferryman, a 2017 play by English playwright Jez Butterworth, received nine Tony nominations yesterday, including nods for Dublin-born TV, film and theatrical legend Fionnula Flanagan and Belfast native Laura Donnelly.

We are thrilled to receive 9 @TheTonyAwards nominations including Best Play! Congratulations and slàinte to all of #TheFerryman nominees! pic.twitter.com/jIIoQOyBct

— The Ferryman on Broadway (@TheFerrymanBway) April 30, 2019

The play, set in County Armagh during the Troubles, centres around a former IRA man and his family. Since its debut at the Royal Court Theatre in 2017, where it became the theatre’s fastest-selling play ever, the production moved to the Gielgud Theatre before being transferred to Broadway last October. It will run on Broadway through 7 July.

The show had already garnered critical success in London, earning three Olivier Awards for Best New Play, Best Director (for former Skyfall director Sam Mendes) and Best Actress (for Laura Donnelly).

Donnelly and her co-star Paddy Considine are nominated for Tony Awards for Best Actress and Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Play, respectively, for their roles as Caitlin and Quinn Carney, siblings-in-law propelled into disarray by the disappearance of Caitlin’s husband.

Fionnula Flanagan, perhaps best known for her roles as Máire in 1965’s An Triail and Gerty McDowell in 1967’s Ulysses, is no stranger to the Broadway stage – she debuted in Brian Friel’s 1968 play Lovers and was nominated in 1974 for a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Play as Molly Bloom in Ulysses in Nighttown. She is nominated for the same honor this year.

The Ferryman also boasts nominations for Best Play, Best Direction of a Play, and a nomination in each of the four categories of Best Scenic Design, Costume Design, Lighting Design and Sound Design of a Play.

This year’s Tony noms are led by musicals Hadestown and Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations, which secured fourteen and twelve nominations, respectively.

The Tony awards will be held on 9 June.