'Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike' wins Tony

[June 10, 2013]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Christopher Durang's comical "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike" has won the best play Tony Award.

The play, which takes characters and themes from Anton Chekhov and sets them in present-day Pennsylvania, stars Sigourney Weaver, Kristine Nielsen and David Hyde Pierce. It centers on three middle-aged siblings uneasily negotiating with age and hysterically mixes in references to Lindsay Lohan, Maggie Smith and ancient Greek drama.

Durang, whose other works include the play "Beyond Therapy," was a Tony nominee for "A History of the American Film" and his "Miss Witherspoon" was a Pulitzer Prize nominee in 2006.

"Vanya and Sonia" beat out Tony contenders "The Assembled Parties," "Lucky Guy" and "The Testament of Mary."

[Associated Press; By MARK KENNEDY]

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.