‘Kimberly Akimbo’ Star Bonnie Milligan Gets Ready for Her First Tony Awards
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“Today I feel like a Barbie, which is really nice,” says Bonnie Milligan, standing in the middle of Badgley Mischka showroom in downtown New York. The Tony-nominated actress was swathed in a purple-and-magenta sequined gown as the brand’s designers made adjustments to her custom look and held up various options for diamond earrings and bracelets to complete the look. “I mean, this is all you ever dream of for so long.”
The actress was preparing for Sunday’s awards ceremony, where she’s up for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in “Kimberly Akimbo,” one of the season’s most nominated (and wacky) shows. Milligan stars in the show as Aunt Debra, a conwoman who ropes her niece (the titular Kimberly) and friends into a check fraud scheme.
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“The mullet and the sweatpants and yoga pants are all I wear in the show,” says Milligan, adding that she’s excited for an opportunity to step into a more glamorous getup on Sunday evening.
Milligan notes that she’s worn Badgley Mischka for all of her major theater career milestones, starting with the opening night of her Broadway debut in 2018. She’s continued to look to the brand for all of her red carpet moments since, including the Lucille Lortel awards, where she won an award for outstanding featured performer, and the opening of “Kimberly Akimbo.” Milligan’s industry success is reflected in her sartorial journey: while she sourced her first Broadway opening look on Rent the Runway, her first Tony nomination called for a custom look.
“I have found [them] to be the most size-inclusive luxury brand,” Milligan says. “I always feel stunning; I feel custom in the gowns I rent, let alone getting a custom one.”
The actress met the designers, who spend most of their time in Palm Beach, at that first fitting just several days before the awards. “We were thrilled,” says Mark Badgley of getting the ask from her team. “She knows our clothes. She’s got a Ph.D. in Badgley Mischka, so she knows we love and we embrace curves. She knows what looks good on her. So it made the process very smooth.”
“We started talking about it and seeing which dresses of ours she has liked in the past, and then what we have from our new collection. And of course you want it to be custom, because it’s the Tony’s,” says James Mischka. They ended up adapting a cocktail dress from their fall runway collection into a full-length gown.
With her Tonys look set, Milligan just had a full week of performances between her and Sunday’s ceremony — the final day of Tonys voting was Friday.
“I’ve been doing my best to stay present and just really appreciative of everything that’s happening, and knowing how very special it is,” says Milligan, who will attend the awards with her mother and brother.
The show is nominated in eight categories, including best musical; her costars Victoria Clark and Justin Cooley are also up for best actress and featured actor.
Milligan was at home at her Upper West Side apartment with several of her college friends when her nomination was announced last month.
“They brought bagels and coffee and we watched on TV — and then I immediately, of course, started sobbing and had a couple of quick calls with my mom and my brother, and then it was [a lot of] press,” she says. “Then next thing I knew it was 4 and I was like, oh my god, OK — I should eat something and then go to the theater, because I have a show tonight.”
Launch Gallery: Bonnie Milligan's Fitting for the Tony Awards at Badgley and Mischka
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