WATCH NOW! Zooming in on the Tony Nominees: Casey Nicholaw

The Tony Awards are like Christmas in June for theatre lovers, and that makes this year's nominees the reason for the season. 2017-18 was a year or variety, as audiences cheered on Mean Girls, tall women, and fair ladies alike. Our travel destinations ranged from Bet Hatikva to Bikini Bottom; Arendelle to the Antilles. We've contemplated redemption with Billy, pondered pipe dreams with Hickey, and reexamined the past with Harry- all from the the comfort of a seat on the aisle.

This year's Tony nominees transported us with the magic of theatre, and we're saluting their work by taking a closer look at their extraordinary accomplishments. Today we're studying up on Casey Nicholaw!

Quick Facts About Casey:

His Nomination: Best Direction of a Musical

Up Against: Michael Arden (Once On This Island), David Cromer (The Band's Visit), Tina Landau (SpongeBob Squarepants), Bartlett Sher (My Fair Lady)

Did You Know?: Casey was a performer before he transitioned into directing and choreographing. He made his Broadway debut in 1992's Crazy For You.

Photos by Walter McBride

Casey on his first Broadway show: "My first Broadway show that I saw was Barnum, with Jim Dale. And I was just hooked, I mean, I saved all my money to fly from California and spend a week in New York City and I was just...it thrilled me to no end."

watch as Casey tells us all about want this nomination means to him, how he's preparing for the Tonys, and so much more!