Tony Awards finally firm up plans for their postponed 2020 show and will air ‘sometime around Broadway’s eventual reopening’
The 2020 Tony Awards will finally happen after being postponed indefinitely.
While an exact date is yet to be firmed up, plans for The 74th Annual Tony Awards are moving forward and the ceremony will likely take place around the same time Broadway reopens after a months-long pandemic shutdown, Deadline reported on Friday.
New York’s iconic Radio City Musical Hall had been prepared to host the annual event in June of last year but things were delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Tony goes to: While an exact date hasn’t been set, plans for the Tony Awards are moving forward and the ceremony will take place around the same time Broadway reopens after a months-long pandemic shutdown, Deadline reported Friday
‘A ceremony will be held on an as-yet-undetermined date in coordination with Broadway’s eventual reopening,’ organizers told Deadline.
Officially, Broadway is allowed to reopen this June, the outlet reported but added that insiders are looking towards the fall for production to really ramp back up.
Nominees were announced in October with only 18 productions eligible due to the short 2019-20 which was cut early when the pandemic shuttered productions.
All 41 Broadway theaters abruptly closed on March 12th, additionally cancelling 16 that were still scheduled to open – including Diana, Mrs. Doubtfire and Company.
‘A ceremony will be held on an as-yet-undetermined date in coordination with Broadway’s eventual reopening,’ organizers told Deadline.
The revival of Neil Simon’s comedy Plaza Suite, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and husband Matthew Broderick, has also been pushed until spring 2021.
Voting for the 2020 will begin March 1 for the best and brightest of Broadway and continue through until the 15th.
The original ceremony had been slated for June 7 but when that was canceled because of COVID-19, a virtual celebration to honor Broadway was then scheduled for that date in lieu of the Tonys.
That virtual celebration ended up not happening then and was postponed during the Black Lives Matter protests.
Scuppered: New York’s iconic Radio City Musical Hall had been prepared to host the annual event in June of last year but things were delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic
In August, The New York Post reported that the 2020 Tonys would be a virtual happening for safety reasons but that was before the second wave of the pandemic hit the U.S.
The Tony Awards are the latest major award show trying to find its footing again in the wake of the pandemic.
Recently, the 2021 Grammy Awards, which had been originally scheduled for this weekend on Sunday, January 31st, were postponed to March 14th due to the raging coronavirus crisis.
Top notch: Voting for the 2020 will begin March 1 for the best and brightest of Broadway and continue through until the 15th
The decision to cancel the show was made by both the Academy and the telecast’s network partner CBS.
The delay caused a major headache for the Screen Actors Guild Awards which had already chosen the same March 14 date for their own COVID rain-date ceremony.
SAG/AFTRA stated publicly their disappointment about not being considered when the Recording Academy was choosing a new date, particularly since they had announced theirs months in advance.
Ultimately, the SAG awards decided to move their date again in order to ensure there wasn’t any celebrity overlap.
Delays: Recently, the 2021 Grammy Awards, which had been originally scheduled for this weekend on Sunday, January 31st, were postponed to March 14th due to the raging coronavirus crisis