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Hindustan Times
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Tony Awards cap a record-breaking post-pandemic Broadway season
* Cynthia Erivo to host Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall * Season draws 14.7 million attendees and had 43 openings * Historic nominations for diverse actors include Daniel Dae Kim * But $400 premium tickets out of reach for some theater lovers NEW YORK, - Broadway caps a record-breaking season when the New York theater community bestows its annual Tony Awards during a gala ceremony on Sunday night with an array of nominees that leans into originality, diversity and artistic invention. Buoyed by a post-pandemic rebound, the 2024-25 season grossed a record $1.89 billion in revenue and drew 14.7 million attendees, the Broadway League said. Best musical nominees like 'Dead Outlaw,' 'Maybe Happy Ending' and 'Operation Mincemeat' tell unique and untested stories. On the play side, 'Oh, Mary!' and 'Purpose' offer vastly different takes on belief, identity and power. The "Wicked" film star, Tony winner Cynthia Erivo, will host the 8 p.m. ET show from Radio City Music Hall. Alongside the creative highs are economic realities plaguing producers and audiences alike. Premium seats for some productions run upwards from $400, prompting concern that Broadway is increasingly out of reach for casual and younger theater lovers. Even with lotteries and rush ticket programs, demand-driven pricing has become the norm. 'Every show is its own little startup,' said Rashad Chambers, a Tony Award-winning producer whose recent credits include 'Music Man,' 'TopDog/Underdog,' and this season's Tony-nominated 'Purpose.' 'We have to create shows in a way that's affordable. Not just from the ticket-buying standpoint. The budgets are really ballooning out of control, and in my opinion, it's not always warranted,' Chambers told Reuters. RISING PRODUCTION COSTS A FACTOR Jason Laks, president of The Broadway League, said in a statement that rising costs have affected every facet of production, making it harder and harder to bring live theater to the stage. The Broadway League presents the awards along with the American Theatre Wing. This season showcased a wide range of voices and perspectives, with many shows being led by Asian American, Black, Middle Eastern and Hispanic actors and resulting in some historic nominations. Daniel Dae Kim, who starred in the revival of 'Yellow Face' this season, is the first Asian American to be nominated in the category of best leading actor in a play. 'To know that I'm the first is a little curious,' Dae Kim told Reuters, 'but above all it makes me happy and I'm really honored.' Dae Kim said representation on Broadway has been an evolution, not just for the Asian American community but many communities of color, pointing to such shows as 'Purpose,' which centers on a Black family struggling with identity and ambition. 'I look forward to the time where there's so much representation that it's no longer talked about because it's just understood and assumed,' he said. Chambers, the producer, said audiences, too, seemed to be more diverse. 'I feel like I'm seeing more people of color,' he said. 'I'm seeing diverse age ranges. I've seen men and women. We have a lot of plays that are appealing to men this season. And I think that that's really powerful. And so yes, I do think it's getting better.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Étoile Cancelled After One Season at Amazon, Despite Two-Season Order
Étoile is taking its final bow, a little earlier than expected. Amazon's Prime Video has cancelled the Amy Sherman-Palladino ballet comedy after just one season, our sister site Deadline reports, despite Amazon giving the series a two-season order initially. The decision to cancel 'came down largely to performance vs. cost,' Deadline says. More from TVLine The Cleaning Lady, Alert: Missing Persons Unit Both Cancelled at Fox Daniel Dae Kim's Butterfly Spy Thriller Sets Amazon Release Date Casting News: Nicole Kidman Lands Yet Another Series, Power Reunion at Netflix and More Hailing from Gilmore Girls and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel creator Sherman-Palladino, Étoile starred Luke Kirby (who played Lenny Bruce on Mrs. Maisel) as Jack McMillan, the artistic director of a prestigious New York ballet company. To drum up interest (and give flagging ticket sales a boost), Jack agrees to swap dancers with an equally renowned ballet company in Paris. (FYI: Étoile, pronounced āˈtwäl, is defined as a principal dancer in a ballet company.) Along with Kirby, the cast included Charlotte Gainsbourg (Call My Agent!), Gideon Glick (The Other Two), Simon Callow (Outlander), Lou de Laâge (The Innocents) and David Alvarez (West Side Story). Additionally, Gilmore Girls veterans Yanic Truesdale (aka Michel) and Kelly Bishop (aka Emily Gilmore) appeared in recurring roles. Debuting in April with all eight episodes dropping at once, Étoile earned mostly positive reviews but failed to make a dent in the Nielsen streaming charts. Were you hoping to take another spin with ? Let us know your thoughts on the cancellation news in a comment below. When Is Your Favorite TV Show Back? An A-to-Z List of 300+ Scripted Series View List Best of TVLine 'Missing' Shows, Found! Get the Latest on Ahsoka, Monarch, P-Valley, Sugar, Anansi Boys and 25+ Others Yellowjackets Mysteries: An Up-to-Date List of the Series' Biggest Questions (and Answers?) The Emmys' Most Memorable Moments: Laughter, Tears, Historical Wins, 'The Big One' and More
CBS News
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
These 2025 Tony Award nominees highlight many firsts for Broadway's biggest night
The 2025 Tony Awards, Broadway's biggest night, will cap a season with the highest-grossing box office total in history. In addition, many of the performers nominated this year highlight a number of firsts in acting categories. Here's a look at a few performers blazing new trails at the Tonys. Tony Award nominees making history Daniel Dae Kim is the first Asian nominee in the Tony category of Best Leading Actor in a Play for his work in "Yellow Face." "I love the fact that we are being recognized as Asian Americans on Broadway, and I think it's really important for where we are in our society, especially today, and yet I yearn for the day when it's so commonplace and misunderstood that anyone of any race or religion or gender identification can be nominated for these things," Kim said. "I've always wanted to play Henry V, and you know we can always dream. And those dreams are becoming reality now." Daniel Dae Kim attends the 78th Annual Tony Awards Meet the Nominees press event at the Sofitel New York on Thursday, May 8, 2025, in New York. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP Kara Young is also making history with her sparky presence in "Purpose," which propelled her to a four-peat. She's the first Black actress nominated four straight times for Featured Actress in a Play. "What an honor to be part of an incredible community of people," Young said. "Finding shared humanity and pushing aside that idea that there's a target audience for any of these." "English" has two actresses, Tala Ashe and Marjan Neshat, earning nominations and marking a first for their category. Kara Young poses in the press room with the award for best performance by an actress in a featured role in a play for "Purlie Victorious" during the 77th Tony Awards on Sunday, June 16, 2024, in New York. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP "I play Elham in 'English' and I'm nominated for Tony for Featured Actress. I and Marjan Neshat are the first Middle Eastern actors to ever be nominated in this category," Ashe said. "If you're an Iranian, you get something from it. If you've ever tried to learn a second language, you certainly do as an immigrant." Cole Escola, creator of "Oh, Mary," is the first non-binary nominee for Best Play, Leading Actor in a Play. "It's really overwhelming that it's come this far, and now I'm here with my little Tonys pins, Tony nomination pins," Escola said. Cole Escola attends the 78th Annual Tony Awards Meet the Nominees press event at the Sofitel New York on Thursday, May 8, 2025, in New York. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP Then, there's the one and only Audra McDonald, the Tonys' most-celebrated recordholder. A star for all time, McDonald has won six Tony awards and is again nominated for "Gypsy," her record 11th nomination. "Broadway and Beyond: At the Tonys" special coverage CBS News New York is highlighting nominees and big moments on Broadway this season ahead of the Tonys. Join us for "Broadway and Beyond: At the Tonys" on Thursday, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. Then, watch the winners and unforgettable performances live at the Tony Awards, hosted by "Wicked" star Cynthia Erivo, at New York City's Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.
South China Morning Post
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Daniel Dae Kim makes Tony Awards history, pushes Asian representation on Broadway
The first monologue Daniel Dae Kim ever performed was by David Henry Hwang. Advertisement He had to do one for his college summer programme at the National Theatre Institute in the US state of Connecticut. Kim chose a scene from FOB, Hwang's 1980 play about the assimilation struggles of a Chinese-American. So it is fitting that 35 years later Hwang – the first Asian-American to win the Tony Award for best play – would be the one to bring Kim into the Tony spotlight. Known for TV series such as Lost and Hawaii Five-0, Kim, 56, is the first Asian nominee in the category of best leading actor in a play in the Tonys' 78-year history for his work in a Broadway revival of Hwang's Yellow Face. It'd be a huge surprise if I won, but I will say that even getting the nomination is a win Daniel Dae Kim 'I can imagine a lot of things, but I did not imagine this scenario with David,' Kim said.
CTV News
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Daniel Dae Kim making history at the Tony Awards and pushing for Asian representation on Broadway
Nominee Daniel Dae Kim attends the 78th Annual Tony Awards Meet the Nominees press event at the Sofitel New York on May 8, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP) The first monologue Daniel Dae Kim ever performed was by David Henry Hwang. He had to do one for his college summer program at the National Theater Institute in Connecticut. Kim chose a scene from 'FOB,' Hwang's play about the assimilation struggles of a Chinese American. So, it's fitting that 35 years later Hwang — the first Asian American to win the Tony Award for best play — would be the one to bring Kim into the Tony spotlight. Known for TV series such as 'Lost' and 'Hawaii Five-0,' Kim, 56, is the first Asian nominee in the category of best leading actor in a play in the Tonys' 78-year history for his work in a Broadway revival of Hwang's 'Yellow Face.' 'I can imagine a lot of things, but I did not imagine this scenario with David,' Kim said. 'That I would be in a play with him, that we would both be nominated for Tony Awards and we would be able to call each other friends.' In the semi-autobiographical show, which ran last fall at the Roundabout Theatre Company, Kim played a satirical version of Hwang. The show also scored nods for best play revival and best performance by a featured actor in a play for first-time nominee Francis Jue, an original 2007 cast member. You could not have scripted a better ending for a play that was written in response to the musical 'Miss Saigon' casting white actors as Asian characters. Kim's performance was filmed in November and PBS will broadcast 'Yellow Face' on Friday. The Tonys, airing on June 8, also will put a spotlight on the play. Asian representation and the Tonys This groundbreaking nomination seems like the perfect karmic reward for Kim, who has spent years advocating for greater Asian representation. At the pandemic's height, the Korean American actor was a constant media presence speaking out against anti-Asian hate. He also jump-started a campaign for veteran actor James Hong, then 91, to get a Hollywood star. He woke up to the news of his nomination after people were able to get around his phone's 'do not disturb' mode. His competition includes George Clooney and Cole Escola. 'It'd be a huge surprise if I won, but I will say that even getting the nomination is a win especially when you put it in the context of our community and what this means for Asian Americans,' said Kim, whose previous Broadway credits include 'The King and I.' He admits it's surprising and 'a little sad' that no other Asian actor has been in this category. There's still never been an Asian nominee for best lead actress in a play. 'Of course, the barrier we really want to break is to actually have someone win, and hopefully that happens sooner rather than later, whether it's me or not.' Kim is one of seven Asian acting nominees this year. Only three acting trophy winners have been Asian. One was Lea Salonga for 'Miss Saigon' and another was Ruthie Ann Miles for 'The King and I.' Coincidentally, the first was BD Wong for best featured actor in Hwang's Tony-winning play, 'M. Butterfly.' Hwang takes special pride in helping actors break glass ceilings. 'I get to feel like, 'Oh, maybe I'm actually able to make a difference' and change the culture in the way that my little-kid-self would have loved but would not have thought possible,' said Hwang, who now has his fourth career Tony nomination. He was last nominated 22 years ago. Bringing Asian Americans into the theater For a long time, Hwang felt the only way to get a play with Asian characters made was to set it outside America because 'Broadway audiences are not interested in Asian Americans.' Historically, productions with Asian ensembles have been musicals set in 'the exotic lands of Asia,' such as 'The King and I,' said Esther Kim Lee, a theater studies professor at Duke University and author of 'The Theatre of David Henry Hwang.' 'Flower Drum Song,' set in San Francisco, was an exception but the songs and book were by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Hwang actually revised the book in 2002. 'It's 2025. We finally see an actual Asian American play with an Asian American lead,' Lee said. 'You can have 'The King and I' and have great actors and they may get Tony Awards, but it's really not about Asian Americans. That this has happened with 'Yellow Face' is just incredible.' The show's two-month run brought the Roundabout a 50% increase in first-time audience members — 'a powerful statement,' Kim said. 'One of the nicest compliments I would hear after the show when I would go to the stage door is, 'This is the first Broadway show I've ever seen,'' Kim said. 'That meant a lot to me because bringing Asian Americans into the theater is important and bringing younger people into the theater is important just for the health of theater in general.' 'Yellow Face' has new relevance Besides discussing whitewash casting, 'Yellow Face' examines the pain of the main character's immigrant father. The role is based on Hwang's father's experience being wrongly accused of laundering money for China. With the current anti-immigrant and anti-DEI climate, the show's airing on PBS feels especially vital to Hwang. 'Whenever there's a conflict between America and any Asian country, Asian Americans are the first to get targeted,' Hwang said. PBS is also where in 2020 the five-episode history docuseries 'Asian Americans' aired for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Kim was a narrator and remains 'unequivocally proud' of the project. Five years after the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes, Kim sees 'Yellow Face' simply making it to Broadway as a victory. 'I don't want to get preachy, but I will say that the goal with spotlighting and elevating people of color is not to threaten the establishment,' Kim said. 'The goal was really to say everyone can contribute to our society. Everyone can be a positive force for change.' Terry Tang, The Associated Press
