Nathan Lane to Receive Signature's 13th Stephen Sondheim Award

Arlington, Virginia's Signature Theatre will honor three-time Tony winner Nathan Lane with its 13th Stephen Sondheim Award April 29 at a black-tie gala at the Embassy of Italy.

The annual award, created in 2009 to recognize the importance of the late composer-lyricist's work, celebrates those who have made important contributions to the American musical theatre. Previous recipients include Pulitzer Prize winner Sondheim, followed by Angela Lansbury (2010), Bernadette Peters (2011), Patti LuPone (2012), Harold Prince (2013), Jonathan Tunick (2014), James Lapine (2015), John Weidman (2016), Cameron Mackintosh (2017), John Kander (2018), Audra McDonald (2019), Carol Burnett (2022), and Chita Rivera (2023).

Stage and screen star Lane won his first Tony for his performance in the 1996 revival of Sondheim's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. After winning a second Tony in 2001 for The Producers, Lane revised the book and starred in the 2004 Broadway debut of Sondheim’s The Frogs. His latest Tony was for his work as Roy M. Cohn in the 2018 revival of Angels in America. Among his numerous stage and screen credits are The Birdcage, Only Murders in the Building, and his voice work as Timon in Disney’s The Lion King.

Video: Nathan Lane on How He Almost Changed His Name to Norman Lane

"Nathan Lane is an icon of the stage and screen, and we are thrilled to celebrate his incredible contributions to the American musical theatre at Signature’s Stephen Sondheim Award Gala in April,” said Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner in a statement. “Mr. Lane won the 1996 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical with his critically acclaimed performance as Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. His collaborative relationship with Stephen Sondheim continued over the years, most notably as a writing partner on the Broadway production of The Frogs. Mr. Lane now joins a distinguished group of honorees who have received this award over the past decade. We look forward to celebrating his historic career this spring with a festive and joyous evening at the Italian Embassy.”

“A beloved fixture of the American musical, Nathan Lane is an ideal recipient of the 2024 Stephen Sondheim Award,” added Managing Director Maggie Boland. “Our annual Sondheim Award Gala brings the community together to raise necessary funds to support Signature’s mission while celebrating extraordinary artists who have had a tremendous impact on the musical theatre canon. We are immensely grateful to the many generous individuals and companies who participate in this event, especially this year's chairs H. Mac and Michele-Anne Riley, and we look forward to another wonderfully successful evening this spring.”

The upcoming evening will benefit Signature Theatre’s artistic, education, and community programs.

Visit SigTheatre.org/SondheimGala.