Lin-Manuel Miranda is an award-winning American writer, composer, playwright, and actor. He created and starred in two hit musicals, In the Heights and Hamilton (2015), an epic adaptation of Ron Chernow’s biography of the American founding father. Miranda also co-wrote the music and lyrics for Disney’s Moana (2016). The film’s main theme, “How Far I’ll Go”, was nominated for the 2017 Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Personally, Miranda has received a Pulitzer Prize for Drama (Hamilton), three Tony Awards (Best Original Score for both ITH and Hamilton, Best Book of a Musical for Hamilton), two Grammys (Best Musical Theatre Album ITH, Hamilton), and an Emmy (Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for “Bigger”). He was the recipient of the 2015 MacArthur Fellowship “Genius Grant”. He has a star on the Puerto Rican Walk of Fame and will receive a Hollywood star in 2018.

Awards for musicals
Both of Miranda’s musicals have been lauded with awards. In The Heights won Tony Awards for Best Musical, Original Score, Choreography, and Orchestrations in 2008. Hamilton won the same four awards, in addition to Best Book of a Musical, Actor (Leslie Odom Jr.), Featured Actor (Daveed Diggs), Featured Actress (Renée Elise Goldsberry), Costume Design, Lighting Design, and Direction. Hamilton broke the record for most Tony nominations (16), but fell short of the most Tony wins by one – The Producers won 12 awards in 2001.

Miranda’s emotional 2016 Tony acceptance speech for Best Original Score (Hamilton) was dedicated to his wife, Vanessa Nadal, and the victims of the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting, just a day before the ceremony took place.

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