Tony Awards Orchestra question

I've always wondered this too...although I've noticed that the conductors change with each show's performance.

True, Margo, but they do it for the Broadway On Broadway concerts. That's initially what prompted me to wonder about the Tony's.

Far as I know, usually not. Correct me, if I'm wrong, but generally speaking, there's one musical director for the evening who conducts each of the performances as well as all of the rest of the music for the ceremony. The casts rehearse whatever their four minute or so performance is prior to the ceremony -- whether it's medley of numbers from the show or just one number. There's a dress rehearsal earlier in the day and musical director and orchestra rehearse with each cast to get tempos, keys etc.. set for the show. It's really not particularly difficult -- in my experience, professional musicians can pick up new music and play it more or less flawlessly in performance without much rehearsal (especially considering they have the music to sight read, sitting right in front of them on their stands).

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I know that some shows definitely pre-record the orchestra, but I thought that at least a few each year perform with the live orchestra. Though, again, I could be wrong.

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Whoa...

Some of the smaller shows have the entire orchestra play live, like "YAGMCB" had "My New Philosophy" expanded from the 5-piece orchestration to 36. In addition, "HAIRSPRAY" had the orchestra playing (with the addition of a harp, because the RCMH orchestra had one). Also, in "YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD" and "LITTLE ME (99)", I distinctly heard strings. URINETOWN expanded the clarinet-trombone-piano-drum combo to a bigger extent, especially at the "Urinetown" vamp (but I heard it get larger from the Threepenny-style orchestration to FULL, EXPANSIVE style). In "AVENUE Q," "SPELLING BEE," "FALSETTOS," and "ONCE ON THIS ISLAND," you'd hear trumpets where you usually wouldn't.

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"if there was a pit they would know who won awards based on the "walk on" music they had to play."

As I understand it, the orchestra is given a small segment of music for each show nominated. When the award is announced, the conductor tells the orchestra which sheet of music to play.

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Where is the orchestra located during the Tony Awards?

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"Where is the orchestra located during the Tony Awards? "

Well, typically it's in the orchestra pit.

And yes, shows with Sunday matinees perform.

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I can see how logisticly some would have to be canned, but I would hope it isn't everything.

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CapnHook,

Just about every show performs a matinee on Tony Sunday.

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Dont know about all of the other shows, but TCP had a matinee show on tony day...it was mostly u/s but they had one....

and I thought for last year's show, the orchestra was put into a separate room and mic'd in... there were some complaints about not having these talented musicians be able to fully participate and be present in the festivities...but I could be wrong.

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All orchestra music is pre-recorded except the walk-on/walk-off music for presenters and winners.

Ensemble vocals are pre-recorded but principal vocals are live.