Tony Nominee J. Harrison Ghee Once Felt They ‘Had to Hide Everything Queer About Me’ to Be Successful (Exclusive)

J. Harrison Ghee made theater history (alongside fellow Broadway performer Alex Newell) by being the first nonbinary or gender-nonconforming actor to be nominated for a Tony Award. 

"It's special," Ghee exclusively told The Messenger at the Tony Awards nominees' meet and greet. "And the timing of it is not lost on me."

While much has changed in the theater industry and the world at large since the Tony Awards began in 1947, transgender rights are at risk of being revoked in different areas across the country. Earlier this week, the Human Rights Campaign declared a "state of emergency" for LGBTQ+ people in the United States, citing an "unprecedented and dangerous spike in anti-LGBTQ+ legislative assaults sweeping state houses this year."  

"It's so pivotal right now in the world [with] legislation trying to be against trans and non-binary and queer beings. This is so important, and it's not something I take lightly," Ghee said about being recognized by this year's Tonys. (Ghee and Newell as well as & Juliet actor Justin David Sullivan were reportedly asked to choose the category in which they felt most comfortable since genderless categories were not an option this year. Sullivan withdrew from consideration; Newell was nominated for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.)

Ghee added, "So it's an honor, and I carry this with pride — truly."

The performer is being recognized in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for their performance as Jerry/Daphne in Some Like It Hot, but it took a lot of work to make it to this point in their career — and they said they couldn't have done it without being true to their authentic self. 

"Starting out, I felt I had to be the leading man, and I had to hide everything queer about me in order to be successful," Ghee explained. 

"I was doing drag where that was definitely a side gig, and I didn't sing in drag because I didn't want people to mix it up and pigeonhole me. And, literally, little did I know that drag would lead me to my Broadway debut [as drag queen Lola in Kinky Boots] and now extend beyond." 

Ghee said that it's "really all the queerness, and those things that make me special, that have brought me to this point and this place in my life," adding: "It shows me how much power I possess in the fullness of who I am as a person."

Getting the nomination has been an honor for Ghee, one that they reacted to live on the Today show. On May 2, when the nominations were announced, Ghee and the cast of Some Like It Hot were invited to perform on the daily morning program — and Ghee's reaction to the big news was captured live on air. 

"It was so crazy," Ghee recalled. "They were doing a segment, and we were just hanging out, waiting, and I checked my phone, and a friend texted me and was like, 'You did it.' … And we had to hold it in because they were on the air."

That next night on Broadway, Ghee said, "It was electric, and we all just sat that much more grounded in the work we had been doing — and continue to do. It was just really special."

The Tony Awards, hosted by Ariana DeBose, will air live June 11 from the United Palace in New York City on CBS and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+.