Just saw a promo on CBS. It said that LL Cool J and TI are performing. Has that been announced? If so, I missed it. I thought they were just presenting. I assume they're performing from Holler If You Hear Me.
LL Cool J was mentioned as a presenter, didn't know they were performing. Also, Idina Menzel will indeed be performing Always Starting Over from If/Then!
Given how many shows will be performing, the practical mind can understand why the producers are in a bind with the amount of time they have for the broadcast. And if the shows paying for airtime are all accommodated (and I see little reason why they shouldn't be if they want to - more performances, the merrier as far as I'm concerned) it's a conundrum. In many cases, the Tony Performance will be an iconic representation of a given show for all those who don't get to see a production. It's worth it to many producers to put on a number. And the Wing surely is happy to rent out time on the show. There might come a time when the Tonys resemble the Grammys: mostly musical numbers with awards interspersed. While that very well could be a cause for concern as far as the honor of receiving an award on national television is concerned, it's at least a very good sign regarding the health of the Broadway musical. Either way, we aren't at that point yet.
If I may go out on a limb, and possibly poke a beehive, seeing as this isn't the first time Best Score has been relegated to a commercial break if I recall correctly, I suspect there might be a shade of anti-BRIDGES paranoia considering it's likely the only award BRIDGES will take tonight.
Words don't deserve that kind of malarkey. They're innocent, neutral, precise, standing for this, describing that, meaning the other, so if you look after them you can build bridges across incomprehension and chaos. But when they get their corners knocked off, they're no good anymore…I don't think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.
And I agree about Bridges and the Best Score Award. Last year it was in the broadcast I feel because of Lauper's nomination. Similar to the 2009 awards when Elton John and Dolly Parton ("mainstream" celebrities I guess you could say) were nominated. But then Kitt and Yorkey got the win!
Here comes a new rant: Why is the official Tony web site still using the out-of-date term "actress"? I realize that the public still does it, but the Tony awards should be given to male and female "actors," not to "actors" (i.e., the real thing) and "actresses" (the female version).
I've refused to use the term "chairman" for years, substituting "chair" or "chairperson." I really thought that Broadway was leading the charge against "actress," but without the Tony Awards on board, this bit of sexism won't disappear.
For those who shrug and say "Who cares?" if the default is male there won't be true equality. The basketball teams at my alma mater are the Terps and the Lady Terps. Does anyone want to argue that a "stewardess" has the same connotation as a "steward?" If an executor and executrix are the same, why use two words? And, God forbid, if you refer to me as a "Jewess," I'll have some choice words for you. (Of course, if you refer to me as "a Jew," I might also have some choice words, depending on the context.)
End of rant. Good luck to all the nominees, including those in the categories of best actor and the female kind.
Audrey, the Phantom Phanatic, who nonetheless would rather be Jean Valjean, who knew how to make lemonade out of lemons.
Red Carpet Presented by Audemars Piguet See the stars arrive at Radio City Music Hall! Live webcast begins at 6:00 p.m. ET Video and interviews courtesy NY1 News.
"I'm seeing the LuPone in Key West later this week. I'm hoping for great vocals and some sort of insane breakdown..." - BenjaminNicholas2
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
If you object to actress, why stop there. Shouldn't there just be best actor, and male and females can compete against each other? That would be the true equality you are searching for,