| Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Distinguished Performance |
| Location | New York City |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Drama League |
| First award | 1935 |
| Currently held by | Nicole Scherzinger,Sunset Boulevard (2025) |
| Website | dramaleague |
TheDrama League Award forDistinguished Performance, originally known as theDelia Austrian Medal, is a theater award presented annually since 1935 byThe Drama League for the "most distinguished" performance of the theater season.[1] The award is named for theater reviewerDelia Austrian.[2][3] An artist may only win the award once in their lifetime.[4]
| Year | Recipient | Work | Ref[1] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Paul Muni | Key Largo | [5] |
| 1941 | Paul Lukas | Watch on the Rhine | [5][2] |
| 1942 | Judith Evelyn | Angel Street | [5] |
| 1943 | Alfred Lunt Lynn Fontanne | The Pirate | [5][9] |
| 1944 | Elisabeth Bergner[a] | The Two Mrs. Carrolls | [3] |
| 1945 | Mady Christians | I Remember Mama | [5] |
| 1946 | Louis Calhern | The Magnificent Yankee | [5] |
| 1947 | Ingrid Bergman | Joan of Lorraine | [5] |
| 1948 | Judith Anderson | Medea | [5] |
| 1949 | Robert Morley | Edward, My Son | [5] |
| Year | Recipient | Work | Ref[1] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Danny Burstein | Moulin Rouge! | [43] |
| 2021 | No Award Given due to theCOVID-19 pandemic | ||
| 2022 | Sutton Foster | The Music Man | [44] |
| 2023 | Annaleigh Ashford | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street | [4] |
| 2024 | Sarah Paulson | Appropriate | [45] |
| 2025 | Nicole Scherzinger | Sunset Boulevard | [46] |