From Lea Salonga to Darren Criss, Filipino artists have left an indelible mark on Broadway; we revisit the milestones that changed Tony Awards history.
Filipino talent has always left an impression on the world’s biggest stages, and that impact is most evident in Broadway, where the country’s reputation for producing remarkable singers, artists, and performers shines. With the 79th Annual Tony Awards fast approaching this June 7, 2026, we take a look at the creatives who’ve elevated Filipino representation in theater. From Lea Salonga’s history-making victory to Darren Criss’ recent triumph, these artists, performers, and creatives have broken barriers, challenged conventions, and cemented a lasting legacy at one of the industry’s highest honors.
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Lea Salonga
This list needs to begin with the pioneering talent who took the Philippines, and Asia as a whole, to the international stage with aplomb: Lea Salonga. She was the first Asian actress to win a Tony Award in a leading category through Best Actress in a Musical for Miss Saigon at the 45th Tony Awards in 1991. Broadway is rife with Filipino talent, but it was Salonga who sparked an entire wave of opportunities, opening doors for future performers through a voice that was (as still is) incomparable.
Jhett Tolentino
Broadway producer Jhett Tolentino made history when he became the first Filipino producer to win both a Tony and Grammy award. He won his first Tony in 2013 as co-producer for Best Play (Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike), which was followed by two more Tony wins the year after: Best Musical for A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (2014) and Best Revival of a Play for A Raisin in the Sun (2014). He then went on to win Best Musical Theater Album at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for The Color Purple in 2017.
Clint Ramos
Theater audiences in Manila might know Clint Ramos as the overall artistic and creative director and co-founder of Theatre Group Asia (TGA), which has already staged a slew of excellent productions since its inception, bringing Filipino talent to the forefront.
But before that, Ramos already made a name for himself in the industry as the first Filipino Tony Award winner in a design category, winning Best Costume Design of a Play for Eclipsed at the 70th Annual Tony Awards in 2016 (he was also the first Filipino and Asian to win a Tony in costume design, as well as the first person of color to win Best Costume Design in a Play). On top of his big win, he has since been nominated several times in the prestigious awards, the most recent one being his costume design work in 2025’s acclaimed musical, Maybe Happy Ending.
Darren Criss
The first three talents on this list were all born and educated in the Philippines, but Filipino-American Darren Criss still proudly holds the flag of our homeland through his monumental Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical win for Maybe Happy Ending at the 78th Tony Awards in 2025. He now stands as the first Asian American actor to win the category, and has been vocal about his heritage as a half-Filipino performer, his mother Cerina hailing from Cebu.
Nicole Scherzinger
Nicole Scherzinger, like Darren Criss, was part of the landmark wave of performers with Filipino heritage recognized at the 2025 Tony Awards. She won Best Actress in a Musical for Sunset Blvd., becoming only the second performer of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to receive a leading musical acting Tony since Lea Salonga’s historic win for Miss Saigon in 1991. Scherzinger was born to a Hawaiian-Ukrainian mother and Filipino father, and is also best known as the lead singer of the famous girl group The Pussycat Dolls.
