Midland native Michael Arden wins Tony Award

The Midland community is congratulating one of its own — Michael Arden — for earning the coveted Tony Award on June 11.

Arden, a Midland native who attended Trinity School, won the Tony Award for best direction of a musical with his Broadway revival of ‘Parade,’ “the 1998 musical about the lynching of Leo Frank by an antisemitic mob,” according to the New York Times. This was his third Tony Award nomination, having previously been nominated for revivals of “Once on This Island” and “Spring Awakening,” the Times noted.

Newswest9 interviewed some of Arden’s friends from Midland who knew early on he would be a special talent. Carl and Jane Moore, who acted alongside Arden when he was getting his start at the Midland Community Theatre in the 1990s, told the news organization they were ecstatic that his talents have progressed to the point of winning a Tony Award.

Arden also gained headlines for calling out a homophobic slur during his acceptance speech (see bottom video).