Hannah Cruz on Her Surprise Tony Nomination for a 23-Minute Performance

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Hannah Cruz is nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical.

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There are no small parts... and Hannah Cruz knows all about it. She appears in her second Broadway show this season, playing 'Svetlana' in the first-ever revival of Chess – a role that doesn't arrive on the Imperial Theatre stage until Act 2.

"You know, this part is in Act 2, it's 23 minutes on stage... so I didn't expect anything! But what I do take very seriously always, maybe too seriously, is the work and putting in as much as I can into the time that I got on stage because it's my favorite time in my life is when I'm on stage. And so to be recognized for that is like beyond my wildest dreams, truly."

Watch in this video as Hannah chats more about why this nomination surprised her, what an honor it is to be nominated, and so much more. Plus, check out who she is up against and catch up on all the latest Tony Awards coverage!

The 79th Annual Tony Awards will air on Sunday, June 7, 2026.

MJ the Musical

Fresh off his 2026 Tony nomination, Nicholas Christopher is still marveling at how unexpectedly this chapter of his career came together. Watch in this video as he shares more about advice he's gotten from his Chess costars, what he loves most about his character, and more.

Lea Michele was surprised by her children onstage at Chess for Mother's Day! During the production's curtain call on Sunday, her kids ran out to hand her flowers. Watch the video now.

Watch Tony Award nominees Hannah Cruz and Nicholas Cristopher perform an excerpt of The Deal (Part 1) from the Broadway revival of Chess.

Audiences at Chess celebrated the production's five Tony Award nominations at Tuesday night's performance. Watch videos of the audience celebrating its Tony-nominated actors, Nicholas Christopher, Bryce Pinkham, and Hannah Cruz.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Video-Hannah-Cruz-Turned-23-Minutes-Into-a-Tony-Nomination-20260515)._