Broadway, you might have heard, is back, and, miracle of miracles, it seems to have figured out how to present a truly excellent television awards show.
Splitting the traditional three hours into four and somehow coming up with the right math, Tony organizers, Paramount+ and CBS presented a two-hour livestreamed 74th Annual Tony Awards and, immediately following, the two-hour broadcast concert specialThe approach worked remarkably well.
Perhaps best of all, both portions of the evening were emceed by hosts who avoided entirely the tired combination of snark, smarm and insider smirk that has been de rigueur on the Oscars and Emmys for more than a decade now. Audra McDonald hosted the awards portion with elegance and charm, while Leslie Odom Jr. handled the CBS special with a likability and panache that was perfectly suited to Broadway’s homecoming.
So why only a near-perfect score for the evening? The non-musical plays got unforgivably short shrift on the CBS portion of the night, an oversight all the more egregious on an evening when Jeremy O. Harris’ remarkablewent zero wins for 12 nominations, leaving America guessing what all the fuss was about when it opened on Broadway in 2019.
The few musical numbers presented during the livestream portion were all the more impactful for their scarcity, including Ali Stroker’s “What I Did For Love” fromcast members performing that show’s “You Can’t Stop The Beat” and, best of all, Jennifer Holliday tearing down Radio City Music Hall with “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from 1981’sThe concert special on CBS and Paramount+ began with host Odom performing an original opening number that could have signaled a rather old-school...
One in memoriam omission: hair and wig designer, Paul Huntley. One of the only in his design category to have ever received a Tony Award. He passed away this past summer.
That it's a dumb thing to do!