2020 tony awards. It can still happen.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 1:38pm

I understand the issue of not all the voters and nominators being able to see the shows, which opened in time live. I just find it frustrating that Emmy Awards and other awards programming continuing to move forward despite the pandemic. I just think it would be in the best interest of the Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing to move forward on this and Im just having difficulty understanding why they arent. Especially considering its becoming more and more likely there wont even be a ceremony next year too...

[imeldasturn]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 1:49pm

And here's how Bernie can still win:

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 1:56pm

imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

Not sure how this has anything to do with my original post.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 1:58pm

No.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:05pm

The Emmy Awards are for filmed television work. The performances that were considered for nominations were viewable at any time. Everything nominated had already aired on television.

Several musicals/plays were in previews or had yet to open when the shutdown took place. Tony voters had yet to attend many shows so nominating work that voters haven’t seen is ludicrous hence why the 2020 Tony Awards were cancelled.

[Kimbo]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:08pm

imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

Exactly. (I'm sorry to say) The reasons why there won't be a Tony awards, at least in 2020, have been rehashed so many times it's almost exhausting.

1) There's no place to hold them in person (and more than TV or movies, an awards show celebrating theater really should be held, you know, LIVE.)    2) Even if they found a way of doing them virtually, CBS has indicated they have no interest in broadcasting such a ceremony - and seeing as how they have a contract with the Broadway League, they presumably have some say in whether it could even be HELD, let alone broadcast elsewhere, without them.  3) Many, if not most, in the theater community simply don't feel the time is right for celebration at all - whether because of the pandemic, the protests, or the mass unemployment that will be particularly affecting this industry for the next year, year and a half or so.  (The only people I encounter even discussing frustration with the lack of an awards show are theater fans on boards like this who seem to want something to watch;  but personally I don't know of anyone in the business, including those involved with shows from this season, who's impatient to get on with a party that wouldn't feel like a party.)  4) As proof of the above, even the two "theater celebrations" formerly scheduled to be held on what would ordinarily be the week of the Tonys - one produced by Broadway.com, the other by the new Broadway On Demand - were permanently canceled, for various reasons (chief of all the George Floyd protests and the Black Lives Matter movement that's affecting the entire country, including the theater community), but to put it generally, due to lack of enthusiasm because the time wasn't right.

The main reason though is one you answered yourself:  a majority of voters and nominators were not able to see all the qualifying shows.  This is not an issue for movies or TV, where voters can see all the contenders at their leisure, via screeners and streamers.  But that is why, no matter how frustrating you find it, "Emmy Awards and other awards programming are continuing to move forward despite the pandemic."   Whenever Broadway is back, the rules will certainly have to change somewhat to accommodate, consider and include shows from this past season that not everyone saw, that closed, that don't re-open, or that re-open with different casts, etc.  But whether that's 10 months or 20 months from now, and however confusing and complicated that will be, it will not be half as complicated as holding an awards show now for shows that many never saw, to celebrate a Broadway that currently isn't running, with a television partner that won't broadcast it, for producers that can't benefit from it, for a theater season that barely felt like half a season, at a time when almost no one feels like it.

Updated On: 8/4/20 at 02:08 PM

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:10pm

Some things just aren’t needed and this is one of them

[blaxx]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:18pm

Call_me_jorge said: "I understand the issue of not all the voters and nominators being able to see the shows, which opened in time live. I just find it frustrating that Emmy Awards and other awards programming continuing to move forward despite the pandemic. I just think it would be in the best interest of the Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing to move forward on this and Im just having difficulty understanding why they arent. Especially considering its becoming more and more likely there wont even be a ceremony next year too..."

Imagine how the ceremony would look like:

"And the winner is: the only show that managed to open a year ago before the pandemic!  Wooow!"

[Heather4]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:18pm

Call_me_jorge said: "I understand the issue of not all the voters and nominators being able to see the shows, which opened in time live. I just find it frustrating that Emmy Awards and other awards programming continuing to move forward despite the pandemic. I just think it would be in the best interest of the Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing to move forward on this and Im just having difficulty understanding why they arent. Especially considering its becoming more and more likely there wont even be a ceremony next year too..."

The Emmy's are very different from the Tony's.  The Emmy Awards state that for a show to receive a nomination they must air between June 1, 2019-May 31, 2020. This is a substantial window for the world of television versus a smaller window with the Tony's.  The complete details for the Emmy's voting process can be found on their website here: https://www.emmys.com/news/emmys-calendar/emmy-awards-industry-calendar.

The Tony's are different because there must be at least 8 live performances made available to Tony voters (see Deadline's article here as my reference: https://deadline.com/2020/03/broadway-tony-awards-schedule-covid-19-postpoment-1202886677) as well as needing to have an official opening date prior to the deadline.  Many of the shows that would most likely be considered big front runners like Six, The Minutes, Hangmen, etc would not be eligible because of the shutdown.

In short, it's easier for the television and film world to hold ceremonies because it is nearly all pre-filmed content (with the exception of live specials) and does not need to be seen in real time.  Will there be another Tony awards? Yes. Is it possible the next Tony's won't happen until 2022?  Absolutely.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 2:46pm

imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! Best response ever. 

Yeah no, most of the shows never opened and or never were seen by members. So, this is quite a dumb post. 

[whatdoesntkillme]

Posted: 8/4/20 at 5:12pm

The Tony Awards are truly nothing more than a big, fat advertisement for Broadway tourism. That's why the last words of the broadcast are often "go see a Broadway show!" It's also an incredibly costly production. Aside from the very real and non-negotiable issue of nominators and voters not having seen this season's productions, there is no point in investing all the money it takes into an awards show when there's nothing to advertise right now. It's pointless and a waste of money. You truly cannot compare it to the Emmys, since the TV industry has not halted in the same way that the theater industry has.

[binau]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 11:51am

You have to feel for the OP now lol.

[Tag]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 11:54am

Many eating crow this morning 

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 12:04pm

Sutton Ross said: "imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!Best response ever.

Yeah no, most of the shows never opened and or never were seen by members. So, this is quite a dumb post."

A lot of your condescending posts about things like this and the Diana musical on Netflix don't age well, do they?

[Highland Guy]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 12:09pm

Mr. Wormwood said: "Sutton Ross said: "imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!Best response ever.

Yeah no, most of the shows never opened and or never were seen by members. So, this is quite a dumb post."

A lot of your condescending posts about things like this and the Diana musical on Netflix don't age well, do they?"

 

Congratulations, Call Me Jorge!   GOOD JOB.

 

[Huss417]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 12:19pm

Sutton Ross said: "imeldasturn said: "And here's how Bernie can still win:"

HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!Best response ever.

Yeah no, most of the shows never opened and or never were seen by members. So, this is quite a dumb post."

Do you think you should offer the OP an apology for calling it a "dumb post"?

Updated On: 8/21/20 at 12:19 PM

[hork]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 12:22pm

Jorge seems like a nice, sweet guy and I don't understand why the mean girls on here are so, well, mean to him. But it's nice to see him vindicated.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 8/21/20 at 12:56pm

Do you think you should offer the OP an apology for calling it a "dumb post"?

Absolutely! After a truly hellish morning, this was lovely, unexpected news to read. I'm really sorry Jorge, like most of the posters on this thread, I doubted this was going to happen. I went low and called it dumb. It was clearly not dumb, you are the damn man of the hour, and I can't wait to hear your opinion about the show!