Say if an actor or actress performed opening night for more than one show in the Tonys season, could they get nominated for Best featured or leading actor twice for both shows simultaneously?
Five individuals in Tony history have been nominated in two different performance categories in the same year.
Amanda Plummer was the first in 1982, when she was nominated as Best Actress in a Play for A Taste of Honey and Best Featured Actress in a Play for Agnes of God. She won for Agnes of God.
Dana Ivey made history in 1984 as an acting nominee for both a play and a musical. She was nominated as Best Featured Actress in a Play for Heartbreak House and Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Sunday in the Park with George.
Kate Burton was nominated for two plays in 2002: Hedda Gabler (leading role) and The Elephant Man (featured).
Jan Maxwell was nominated twice in 2010, for the plays The Royal Family (lead) and Lend Me a Tenor (featured).
Mark Rylance snagged two nominations in 2014, for Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (featured) and Richard III (lead). He won for Twelfth Night.
"When the audience comes in, it changes the temperature of what you've written." -Stephen Sondheim
Interesting that this has happened a considerable number of times, but never in the same category. I know there have been plenty of actors who have been eligible twice in one category in one season, like Christian Borle just this year, but I guess none of those actors have ever been able to snag 2 slots.
I remember a few years ago Kenneth Posner took up 3 out of 4 slots in the Lighting Design category, and then lost to Hugh Vanstone for Matilda. That was interesting. Has anyone else every been nominated 3 times in the same category in the same season?
EDIT - Answering my own question: Scott Rudin produced three of last year's nominees in the play revival category, so was technically nominated for all 3. He's seriously becoming the king of Broadway. Say what you will about him as a person, his IBDB page is just a laundry list of interesting, high quality shows. Though I bet plenty of producers have taken up 3 or more slots in one category. I wonder if any other artists have done it.