All the world’s a stage!

Horse racing fans may have had their hopes of the thrill of an epic battle for the sport’s Triple Crown dashed when front-runner I’ll have Another was scratched from the Belmont race last weekend. But if you watched this year’s fabulous Tony Awards show you know that unlike last season, when it was predictable that “the Book of Mormon” and “War Horse” would be first across the finish line as, respectively, Best Musical and Best Play, this year was ‘a horse of another color’!

The excitement when “Once,” became a contender, which seemed a long shot when the bittersweet story of two young Dubliner musicians falling in love moved up to Broadway, was a joy to behold. An audience heavily packed with prominent members of the theater community — from producers to productions teams to A-list theater icons — joined in the collective roar when “Once” emerged the winner for the season’s Best Musical. And, the show also copped seven other Tony Awards along the way, including the sweet surprise of Steve Kazee’s win for Best Actor in a Musical, breaking his audience’s heart each night as an emotionally torn guitarist facing wrenching choices.

While the award for the season’s Best Play went to Bruce Norris’”Clybourne Park,” a brilliantly scathing satire on the changing patterns of race relations in modern times — which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama last year — another of the this seasons upstarts, the magically inventive “Peter and the Starcatcher,” a prequel to “Peter Pan,” took home five Tonys — the most for any straight play this season.

If the season’s only deserved “shoe-in” was Audra McDonald, copping her fifth Tony ( at age 41!) for her gorgeous, chills-evoking performance as the benighted Bess in “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess,” that production’s win over Stephen Sondheim’s “Follies,” a gritty, enchanting hark-back to vaudeville days, for Best Revival of a Musical was a surprise to some. To this critic only a tie would have been true justice, but what a delight to see producer Jeffrey Richards sprinting down the aisle—knowing he had put his heart and backing into his belief that this new musical version of “Porgy and Bess” is a glorious, unique tribute to the genius of George and Ira Gershwin.

No surprise was Christopher Gatelli’s Tony for his dazzling choreography, whose pyrotechnical acrobatics took one’s breath away in the new musical charmer, “Newsies.” Along with “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” which took home Best Featured Actor and Actress” but was a multi-contender, all the above (with “Follies” departed too soon) are ‘must-see’ productions certain to lift you spirits in these most uncertain times. The Theatermania online site not only has a complete list of winners, but offers fascinating interviews with many of them, offering rare insight into “life upon the wicked stage.”

This is, unfortunately, the final week to catch Broadway’s newest nova, the currently incomparable young talent Nina Arianda, whose Tony-copping turn for Best Actress in a Play starred her as an audacious actress auditioning for the role of a sultry, willful dominatrix in “Venus in Fur.” Her performance will surely be followed by oodles of kudos in seasons to come. This is also the time to note that James Cordon — whose daffy, delicious outsize turn in “One Man, Two Guvnors” won him the Tony for Best Actor in a Play — will be departing late this summer to attend his own wedding! So queue up now to catch Cordon’s truly unforgettable dazzle of a laugh-fest.

More good news

Now is also the time to check out the various ways to secure tickets to the Public Theater’s 50th Anniversary Season’s “Shakespeare in the Park” Series at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The two productions chosen for this summer — which both involve enchanted natural settings — are Shakespeare’s magical “As You Like It” (June 5-30) here set in the American South in the mid-1800’s, with a standout cast including Lily Rabe and Stephen Spinella; And the welcome return, if all too brief of, Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine’s truly enchanting “Into the Woods” with Donna Murphy starring as the Witch in this most memorable of all possible fairy tales. Here’s hoping it will spark a revival of the Award – winning 1987 musical romp! (July 23-Aug.23) Full information at 212-967-7555 or Shakespeareinthepark.org.

HERE COME THE FESTIVALS!: The Annual Lincoln Center Festival’s theater offerings will swell the heart of any theater aficionado. They include the Sydney Theater Company’s “Uncle Vanya” (July 19-28) starring Cate Blanchett as Yelena, and Alan Cumming in a solo adaptation of “Macbeth” (July 5-14) a multimedia piece set here in a psych ward, with this National Theater of Scotland production directed by none other than “Once’s” Tony-winning John Tiffany! (Tickets now at 212-721-6500 or Lincolncenterfestival.org) Finally, make a beeline to book for the New York Music Theater Festival (July 9-29), which introduced us to “Next to Normal” a few years back and will be serving up what looks to be a cornucopia of intriguing, cutting-edge new musical works. Visit nymf.org or call 866-811-8111 for info.

Post- TONY ALERT: Producer Jordan Roth, on the heels of its Tony Award for Best Play, has just re-extended the run of “Clybourne Park,” with tickets now on sale thru Sept 2.Get them now at (212) 239-6200 or telecharge.com.

Congregations to all the Tony winners, nominees and the thrilling Award’s ceremony itself, sure to bring new audiences flocking to Broadway!