'Make The Weird Art:' What Deirdre O'Connell's Historic Best Actress in a Play Win for 'Dana H.' Could Mean for the Future of Broadway

Deirdre O'Connell took home the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a play for her work on the show Dana H, and that is a big deal.

O'Connell gave an exemplary performance as the title character in Lucas Hnath's play Dana H. The immense talent of the actor is far from unknown, and Hnath's success with other works, such as A Doll's House Part 2, are icons in their own right.

However, this play is different.

The show tells the true story of Hnath's mother Dana Higginbotham, who was abducted for five months and was sexually abused, forced to commit crimes, and faced various other unthinkable atrocities.

The story is depicted through her own words - literally. A recording of Higginbotham's voice tells the tale. On the stage, actress O'Connell memorized every word, every pause, every moment of the recording and lip synced the entire play.

This speaks volumes to the actor's incredible skill. Even more to that point, the show gave a short, six-week limited engagement run on Broadway.

While such shows are frequently phenomenal, the limited engagement often leaves them overlooked by the Tony Awards. It took only six memorable weeks for O'Connell to blow everyone away.

(Photo : (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions))

What's more, this show is unlike anything else seen on Broadway. It is original, fresh, heartfelt. In a world where everyone seems to be trying to bring movies to the stage or capitalize on big-budget productions that they know will draw a crowd, it's truly incredible that Dana H. made its way to the Tony Awards.

O'Connell addressed this in her acceptance speech:

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I am the face of a very large beast that made Dana H. and there are too many geniuses to thank. Lucas, Les, Misha, Dana, for letting us invade your privacy so completely and every member of the crew. The stage managers, the agents, the producers who took care of me...

"But I want to say one thing; I would love for this little prize to be a token for every person who is wondering, 'should I be trying to make something that could work on Broadway or that could win me a Tony Award? Or should I be making the weird art that is haunting me? That frightens me, that I don't know how to make, that I don't know if anyone in the whole world will understand?'

"Please let me standing here be a little sign to you from the universe to make the weird art."

This inspiring statement was heard and felt by artists across the world. Within the confines of a structure where theatre needs to fight for funding just to stay afloat, it can be petrifying to artists who have a unique voice, idea, or outlook to decide to follow their hearts rather than there heads. Dana H. is poof that passion and honesty sell.

Could this win mark a turning point for the return of more original and experimental work on Broadway?

Congratulations Deirdre O'Connell on your important and well-deserved win.