Talented Chicagoan nabs a Tony nomination

For Chicago native Jesse Mueller, she may want to remember May 1, 2012 as a very clear day despite it being one that may have been dizzying and quite cloudy. After all, she found out on this May Day that she was nominated for a Tony Award, the top prize in her chosen profession. For those who know her in Chicago, she was quick to recognize her native city. "I immediately called my parents and told them the news, and it’s just been an outpouring of love from all my friends from Chicago," she said on Broadway.com. Mueller was nominated in her Broadway debut for the revival of "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever." In this Broadway debut, she starred opposite Harry Connick Jr. Her category - Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical Elizabeth A. Davis, "Once"

Jayne Houdyshell, "Follies"

Judy Kaye, "Nice Work If You Can Get It"

Jesse Mueller, "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever"

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, "Ghost" More from Mueller on how she heard the news: "...I was hanging out with all those people, and then woke up to a call from my agent and she said, 'Wake up, you’ve been nominated for a Tony!' I wasn’t expecting it at all. I’m so grateful, but I was not expecting it. My boyfriend Andy and I kinda looked at each other and we were like, 'OK, I guess this is happening!' I’m grateful and overwhelmed and shocked; it’s crazy." In Chicago, the actress is no stranger in town and has performed on stages from the Goodman Theatre to The Shakespeare Theatre, and many places in between. The acclaimed star also was awarded the 2011 Equity Joseph Jefferson Award for Actress in a Principal Role in a Musical for "She Loves Me" at the Writers' Theatre in Chicago. Meanwhile, she was nominated for the 2011 Equity Joseph Jefferson Award for Actress in a Principal Role in a Musical for "Guys and Dolls" at the Marriott Theatre. On her show in which she was nominated: "I feel amazingly lucky to have been a part of the show and to be recognized in this way, and alongside these women - it’s really incredible," she said.