‘Memphis,’ an exuberant celebration of the 1950s R&B explosion and racial strife, wins Tony

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‘Memphis’ wins best musical Tony Award

NEW YORK — “Memphis,” an interracial romance set against the backdrop of the 1950s rhythm ‘n’ blues explosion, has won the 2010 Tony Award for best musical.

The show of soulful sounds and a parade of engaging characters beat out “Fela!” — the innovative Afro-beat biography of Nigerian superstar Fela Anikulapo-Kuti; Green Day’s rock musical “American Idiot”; and “Million Dollar Quartet,” a fictional re-creation of a jam session of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis in a Memphis recording studio.

The Tonys were telecast Sunday by CBS, live from Radio City Music Hall.