Darren Criss has won the 2025 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for Maybe Happy Ending.
Multi-hyphenate actor and musician, Darren Criss burst on to the scene as one of the most memorable TV characters of all time, Blaine Anderson in Fox’s hit show “Glee.” His portrayal of Andrew Cunanan in Ryan Murphy’s critically acclaimed limited series, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story,” earned him a Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and Critics’ Choice Award. In addition to his work on television, Criss is a veteran of the stage whose Broadway credits include American Buffalo opposite Sam Rockwell and Laurence Fishburne (2022), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2015), How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying (2012), and most recently the off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors (2024). He released a solo EP in 2021 titled Masquerade (BMG), and in the same year, released a full-length holiday album titled- aptly- A Very Darren Crissmas (Decca), for which he recently toured in North America.
Maybe Happy Ending has finally gotten its own happy ending. The new romantic musical comedy arrived on Broadway at last, starring Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Darren Criss and Helen J Shen in her Broadway debut. Maybe Happy Ending is the offbeat and captivating story of two outcasts near the end of their warranty who discover that even robots can be swept off their feet. The Richard Rodgers Award-winning musical is helmed by Tony winner Michael Arden, features an innovative scenic design by Dane Laffrey, and book, music, and lyrics by the internationally acclaimed duo Will Aronson and Hue Park.
What’s it all about? Inside a one-room apartment in the heart of Seoul, Oliver lives a happily quiet life listening to jazz records and caring for his favorite plant. But what else is there to do when you’re a Helperbot 3, a robot that has long been retired and considered obsolete? When his fellow Helperbot neighbor Claire asks to borrow his charger, what starts as an awkward encounter leads to a unique friendship, a surprising adventure, and maybe even…love? Long before Broadway, the one-act musical had its world premiere in Seoul, South Korea at Lifeway Hall in DCF Daemyung Cultural Factory in 2016. Since then it has gone on to play in Japan, China, and Atlanta. It won the Korean Musical Award – Musical of the Year in 2019. The show was written in both Korean and English and was originally titled What I Learned From People. Both versions were performed in New York City in a workshop in 2016 as a part of the Wooran Cultural Foundation’s first overseas development project. What are the small things that make any life worth living? Find out in Maybe Happy Ending.
