2023 Tony Awards to be held at the United Palace hosted by De Bose

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:01am

Start spreading the news! BroadwayWorld has just learned that CBS presents "The 76th Annual Tony Awards," will broadcast live from the United Palace in New York City on Sunday, June 11, 2023, on the CBS Television Network, and streaming live and on demand on Paramount+*. More information on the special, honoring the 2022-2023 Broadway Season, will be available in the coming months. The Tony Awards eligibility cut-off date for the 2022-2023 season is Thursday, April 27, 2023 for all Broadway productions which meet all eligibility requirements. Nominations for the 2023 Tony Awards will be announced on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. For the first time, the Tony Awards will be presented at the historic United Palace. The history of the United Palace begins in 1930 when it opened as one of five Loew's "Wonder Theatres," premiere vaudeville and movie houses located in four boroughs and New Jersey. With nearly 3,400 seats the United Palace is Manhattan's 4th largest theatre, and hosts concerts, movie premieres, film shoots, and other events. The United Palace serves the Washington Heights community by showcasing the performing and visual art of local artists - many of them school children - and housing the non-profit Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/76th-Annual-Tony-Awards-Will-Move-Uptown-to-the-United-Palace-in-June-2023-20221213?mibextid=Zxz2cZ

Updated On: 4/12/23 at 10:01 AM

[BCfitasafiddle]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:04am

It's a beautiful venue, but I'm sad it won't be at Radio City! 

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:06am

The venue has about 500 more seats than the Beacon, and Radio City is nearly twice as large. 

Should be a nice locale though. 

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:31am

Beautiful venue, but it's a bit far, isn't it? Especially if they have to do at least two roundtrip moves that day of the all casts between Times Square and Washington Heights? 

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:53am

No way Lin-Manuel passes up hosting this year now that the Tonys are in his neighborhood. 

Updated On: 12/13/22 at 10:53 AM

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 10:56am

Can’t wait to hear what kind of negative things these producers will say about the venue & location behind closed doors!!

Of note, except for the pandemic year, this is the first time since 2000 that the Tonys have played a venue not controlled by MSG. Which feels notable for that relationship & would love to know how it impacts future years.

And yes logistics will be challenging unless they have the casts perform from their theatres. When the Tonys were at the Beacon, they booked out a ton of rooms at the hotel next door for nominated actors performing on the telecast who needed to get back into the theatre quickly. There are no reputable hotels in that area. Unless they also want to take over the Armory Track (where some of us got our first Covid vaccines) for the press room and additional changing room space??

[Wick3]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 11:07am

I recall there being so many empty seats at this year’s Tony Awards. Makes sense for them to go to a smaller venue than Radio City.

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 11:16am

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "And yes logistics will be challenging unless they have the casts perform from their theatres. When the Tonys were at the Beacon, they booked out a ton of rooms at the hotel next door for nominated actors performing on the telecast who needed to get back into the theatre quickly. There are no reputable hotels in that area. Unless they also want to take over the Armory Track (where some of us got our first Covid vaccines) for the press room and additional changing room space??"

Sorry, what's the significance of booking out hotels? Just for extra changing room?  Also, unless the clips are pre-taped, wouldn't it be worse for the performances to happen in their theaters?  Like I'm assuming they would still want to be there for the ceremony (especially if they're slated to win) so all that would accomplish is just having them run back and forth.

I agree that having a smaller venue than Radio City isn't a bad idea, but also with last year's Tonys I think a lot of the empty seats were due to the continued concern around Covid (not that it's gone away completely) and some mixed messaging about mandatory masking.

[SouthernCakes]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 11:21am

Gorgeous venue! Curious about the backstage space, etc. To my knowledge the venue does a lot of movie showings and maybe the occasional concert, but nothing on par with this. So curious about the logistics of all this. But nice press for the venue! 

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 11:26am

Was just looking at the theatre on Google Maps, and it seems that there is much more to the theatre than the auditorium itself. There seems to be rehearsal spaces, and large rooms elsewhere that can funtion as press areas, holding rooms, etc. 

United Palace on Google Maps

[B212323]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 11:57am

Its going to be a nightmare for the talent bookers to get celebs there - at least RCMH was close to luxe hotels

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 12:00pm

Radio City has a ton of lobby/extra space too and they still send all the casts back to their theatres to get dressed (though the press room is IN Radio City).

If this was an attempt to get Lin to host, his involvement should have been announced today. It would make for much stronger press than this, which cannot be spun as anything but a step down from prior years, despite the beauty of the physical space.

I agree that there will be logistical challenges whether or not the numbers are shot live from the theatres or performed in-person. And pre-taping them can make the momentum feel lifeless, even with an audience of friends. Tricky situation.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 12:17pm

Where did they have the press room when the tony were at the Winter Garden? Or the numerous years at the beacon?

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 12:23pm

Hmmm..I wonder how much tickets will be for gp

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 12:33pm

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but the Tony Awards aren't about theatre in general--they're about Broadway. So why are they moving the ceremony 100 streets away from the Broadway district? If Radio City is too large, go back to the old days when they would be in a Broadway house, still right in the heart of the theatres that they're celebrating.

To be clear, I'm not in any way saying this to lessen the importance of any non-Broadway theatre. Obviously Broadway is a very small part of all the theatres in the world. But my point is, the Tony Awards specifically are only about recognizing Broadway artists and Broadway shows (apart from a couple special awards, of course). So why move the ceremony far away from where they always work and where all these shows you're celebrating are performing?

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 12:42pm

At the Beacon, press room was in a gymnasium nearby. I don’t know what happened at the Winter Garden.

The issue has nothing to do with Radio City being too big. RC is the ideal size. The seats are generally always filled, and shows have so many investors that you need a big space with ample orchestra seats. (People getting up during the show is why some seats appeared to be empty at times last year.) This is still a small-ish venue that will cause seating headaches for all involved. Bigger than Beacon, but doesn’t solve all problems, especially with number of nominees being variable for many categories.

Co-producers having the opportunity to buy tickets to the Tonys (thousands of dollars for a pair) is a major incentive for raising money for a Broadway show, a task for which there are few incentives if your show doesn’t recoup. And those seats all have to be in the orch so they can flood the stage if they win. Covid significantly limiting attendance is pretty much the only way it could ever happen in a Broadway house nowadays, unless producer eligibility changes. (And those are also ticket sales that benefit League/Wing programs & production cost.)

Updated On: 12/13/22 at 12:42 PM

[JBroadway]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 1:08pm

Broadway61004 said: "Maybe I'm in the minority here, but the Tony Awards aren't about theatre in general--they're about Broadway. So why are they moving the ceremony 100 streets away from the Broadway district? If Radio City is too large, go back to the old days when they would be in a Broadway house, still right in the heart of the theatres that they're celebrating.

To be clear, I'm not in any way saying this to lessen the importance of any non-Broadway theatre. Obviously Broadway is a very small part of all the theatres in the world. But my point is, the Tony Awards specifically are only about recognizing Broadway artists and Broadway shows (apart from a couple special awards, of course). So why move the ceremony far away from where they always work and where all these shows you're celebrating are performing?"

 

Logistical concerns aside, what's stopping this from being just as meaningful a celebration of Broadway? Why does the location HAVE to carry that symbolic weight? 

If 1000+ more people get to attend the awards this way (compared to even the largest Broadway theatre), it seems like that should take priority over the symbolism of the location. Making the event more exclusive merely in the name of symbolism doesn't actually feel like the best way to celebrate Broadway. 

I'd also argue that symbolism isn't all that strong to begin with; neither Radio City nor the Beacon actually hosts Broadway shows. And their proximity is arbitrary, especially since even Radio City kind of stands apart from the theatre district, despite being quite close. 

[Jakeevan942]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 1:26pm

I'm sure the Miranda family leveraged this deal. Normally, the rental at Radio City would be 12 days, I'd assume that this will be longer for the logistics in a new facility. The revenue from this will probably run the venue for several months after this rental.

However, it's also worth noting that, after a quick perusal of the venue specs, that the United Palace is a non-union venue. Local One Labor is, I'm sure, the biggest line item after the room rental at Radio City, and I'm sure the League, the Wing, and CBS like the idea of lower costs. I'm waiting for the Guild of Broadway Unions to throw a fuss over this one. A quick look back puts the last time that Tonys were held at a non-Local One venue in the mid-1960s.

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 1:37pm

JBroadway said: "Logistical concerns aside, what's stopping this from being just as meaningful a celebration of Broadway? Why does the location HAVE to carry that symbolic weight?

If 1000+ more people get to attend the awards this way (compared to even the largest Broadway theatre), it seems like that should take priority over the symbolism of the location. Making the event more exclusive merely in the name of symbolism doesn't actually feel like the best way to celebrate Broadway.

I'd also argue that symbolism isn't all that strong to begin with; neither Radio City nor the Beacon actually hosts Broadway shows. And their proximity is arbitrary, especially since even Radio City kind of stands apart from the theatre district, despite being quite close."

I don't at all mean to say it won't be meaningful still--of course it will. And of course the Beacon was well outside of the Broadway district as well (Radio City technically is as well, but at least it's just next door to the area that makes up Broadway instead of being so much further north). I guess to me it just always feels more meaningful to recognize work in the actual place where it's happening. If someone is being recognized for their performance at work, I've always been on board with trying to present them that recognition at the office rather than some off-site location they have to trek to. Maybe others feel differently and obviously if the Broadway community feels differently then this is 100% fine. But my personal opinion at least is that it would feel much more meaningful to celebrate their work in the places where they actually do the work. Plus the absolute logistical nightmare this is going to create, but that's another story.

[KKeller6]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 2:42pm

I don't know anything about this venue.  But, if this is correct, and the Tony Awards are being held at a non- union venue,  it's some disgrace.  I'm supposing a deal is possible for local 1 to supply a crew ( and the wardrobe union) for this event at union rates. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 3:16pm

and on the day of the Puerto Rican Day parade?

[Cape Twirl of Doom]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 6:05pm

HogansHero said: "and on the day of the Puerto Rican Day parade?"

Isn’t that always the case? I know at least twice I’ve had trouble getting between Radio City & the Plaza because of the parade.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 12/13/22 at 8:13pm

Cape Twirl of Doom said: "Isn’t that always the case?"

Often, at least, but I was just thinking of the added logistical complication of going all the way uptown twice with a show to perform in between etc etc. 

[Islander_fan]

Posted: 12/14/22 at 5:48am

The United Palace Theatre originally opened up as The Lowes United Palace Theatre. An old school movie place that not only showed a film but had a live show element to it as well. Was browsing the theatres website and there is a section where they talked about how they brought movies (with the nostalgic live entertainment element that fits in with the movie) thanks to Lin Manuel’s foundation. So, even it ends up that he isn’t hosting or credited with The Tonys being there, I bet dollars to donuts that he at least has some behind the scenes involvement with getting them to host The Tonys. 

[SouthernCakes]

Posted: 12/14/22 at 7:32am

Not to mention that area is heavily Puerto Rican. So it will def be a busy day in Washington Heights! 
 

If it was built as a movie house I wonder if the backstage can handle a production like this!  But I assume they’ve thought about all that.