The 72nd Annual Tony Awards took place this past Sunday and it was... interesting.

The greatest thing about this year's awards was that Sara Barellis and Josh Groban were the hosts! They had amazing outfit changes after every commercial break, created and performed amazing original songs about Broadway, and the struggles that actors/actresses who work on the great white way face... they were really tremendous. No one will be better than Neil Patrick Harris in my opinion, but they were a very close second!

One musical swept the awards this year: The Band's Visit.

According to the musical's website, The Band's Visit is as follows, "In an Israeli desert town where every day feels the same, something different is suddenly in the air. Dina, the local café owner, had long resigned her desires for romance to daydreaming about exotic films and music from her youth. When a band of Egyptian musicians shows up lost at her café, she and her fellow locals take them in for the night. Under the spell of the night sky, their lives intertwine in unexpected ways, and this once sleepy town begins to wake up."

The show won ten out of the eleven awards it was nominated for. Crazy! However, the people that I have spoken to about this musical claimed it was slow and not as exciting as other musicals in the running.

It is interesting to hear what every-day theatre goers think of these shows compared to professional critics and voters on the board for the American Theatre Wing.

The SpongeBob Squarepants Musical, a musical expected to do very well, actually fell flat at the awards.

Some say this is due to adults not taking to the content and the lack of seriousness to the plot. I haven't seen the production; however, I've only heard fantastic things! Everyone I talked to who has seen this show thought the score and set were incredible. And since the show has been in the works for almost 6 years, fans believed it deserved more recognition than it received on Sunday.

Mean Girls, adapted from the brilliant film, written by Tina Fey and directed by Casey Nicholaw also fell short of it's expected wins on Sunday. Many believed Tina Fey was going to win the Tony for best book, but The Band's Visit stole the show once again. Many die-hard theatre fans are, quite frankly, freaking sick and tired of movies-made-musicals.

They don't always last, they end up being the same exact plot as the movie, and there's just not a lot of depth to them. Unlike the others however, Mean Girls has proved itself very popular with the theatre community. Tina Fey changed some things from the movie for the musical making it stand out from other cheesy musicals based off of chick-flick scripts. Again, those I know who have seen this musical think very highly of it so it's unfortunate to see it lose to one dominant musical.

Fans also felt this similar disappointment and lack of recognition the year Hamilton debuted. Waitress, one of my favorite musicals ever was unfortunately gipped due to the fact that Hamilton happened to debut the same season as them. Had the Sara Bareillis musical premiered a different year, they would've easily won some notable awards.

Sometimes our favorites win, Andrew Garfield for Angels in America, Once On This Island for best revival. And sometimes deserving shows lose. All in all, it was a wonderful night for the community. Art was celebrated, the drama department from Marjory Stoneman Douglas got to perform, and there was nothing but joy and pride in the air. Until next season...