Costume designer and activist Qween Jean made Broadway history in June 2026 when she became the first openly transgender woman to win a Tony Award.
Jean received the award for Best Costume Design of a Musical for her work on Cats: The Jellicle Ball at the 79th Annual Tony Awards on June 7, 2026, in New York City. The historic achievement was more than a personal career milestone. It also created a new moment of visibility for transgender artists working in theater.
A Historic Night at the Tony Awards
The Tony Awards recognize Jean's achievement as a milestone, noting that she became the first openly trans woman to win a Tony.
Her winning production, Cats: The Jellicle Ball, is a reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber's famous musical Cats. This version draws heavily from ballroom culture, bringing its fashion, movement and energy to the Broadway stage.
The production received nine Tony nominations and won three awards, including Jean's prize for costume design.
Fashion Inspired by Ballroom Culture
Costumes play an especially important role in Cats: The Jellicle Ball.
Instead of simply recreating the familiar appearance of previous Cats productions, the Broadway revival places its characters inside a world influenced by ballroom culture.
Jean's designs helped give that concept its visual identity.
Her work on the production also earned recognition from the Drama Desk Awards, where she won Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical.
Two Tony Nominations in One Year
Jean's 2026 Broadway season was particularly impressive because Cats: The Jellicle Ball was not her only Tony-nominated work.
She was also nominated for Best Costume Design of a Play for Liberation.
That meant Jean entered the Tony Awards with nominations in both the musical and play costume-design categories before ultimately winning for Cats: The Jellicle Ball.
Using Her Moment to Speak About Community
Jean has built a career that connects art with community advocacy.
During her acceptance speech, she spoke about queer and transgender people taking up space and emphasized what can happen when communities come together.
Her advocacy extends outside the theater as well. Jean founded Black Trans Liberation, an organization that has supported transgender and gender-nonconforming people in New York City through community programs.
Representation Behind the Curtain
Jean's achievement is important because transgender representation in entertainment is not limited to the performers audiences see on stage or screen.
Designers, writers, directors, choreographers and other artists working behind the scenes can have just as much influence on the stories audiences experience.
Jean's Tony recognizes excellence in exactly that kind of creative work.
Her name is now part of Broadway history, not simply because she was the first, but because her creative work earned one of American theater's most recognized honors.
For transgender artists dreaming about careers in theater, her achievement offers another example of what is possible.
Qween Jean entered the 2026 Tony Awards as an acclaimed costume designer.
She left as a Tony Award winner and a history-maker.