Writers Guild won’t picket 2023 Tony Awards, but denies interim agreement for show

Gordon Cox Theater Editor The writers of “Kimberly Akimbo” tell a story about the musical’s creation that feels as if it could be a scene in the show itself. Like the Tony-nominated production, now up for eight awards including best musical, it’s a tale that lands right in the overlap of humor and heartache. In the summer of 2017, just before composer Jeanine Tesori and bookwriter-lyricist David Lindsay-Abaire were scheduled to spend two weeks developing the first act of “Kimberly Akimbo” at the Sundance Theatre Lab, Tesori had a cerebral hemorrhage. She was in the ICU for 11 days, the Tony-winning composer (“Fun Home”) recalled. She missed the entire first week of the show’s time at Sundance.

The Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California, will be the recipient of the 2023 Regional Theatre Tony Award, the Tony administration committee announced today.

Senegalese and French director Ramata-Toulaye Sy is only the second Black woman to make it into Competition in Cannes. Her debut feature, Banel & Adama, which had its debut Saturday, follows in the footsteps of Mati Diop’s 2019 Atlantics.

Harrison Ford showed off the honorary award he received at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival while attending a photocall for his new movie Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on Friday (May 19) in Cannes, France.

Striking members of the Writers Guild of America have said they will not picket next month’s Tony Awards telecast, clearing a thorny issue facing show organizers and opening the door for some sort of Broadway razzle-dazzle on TV.

76th Annual Tony Awards will go on without having to cross a picket line.The Writers Guild of America announced on Monday that they will not picket this year's show, which is set for June 11, amid the ongoing writers' strike.«Tony Awards Productions (a joint venture of the Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing) has communicated with us that they are altering this year’s show to conform with specific requests from the WGA,» a statement from the guild explained, according to «Therefore the WGA will not be picketing the show.»«As they have stood by us, we stand with our fellow workers on Broadway who are impacted by our strike,» the statement added.The show will proceed, although in an unspecified altered form, as planned.Kate Shindle, president of Actor Equity, took to Twitter to share her thanks with the WGA for their agreement, «Thank you, @WGAWest and @WGAEast. @ActorsEquity members: time to double down on showing up at their pickets.»«Oh, and because it can’t be said enough: this is still #AMPTP’s fault, and the writers should never have been put in this position,» she added. «We can appreciate the grace AND point at the culprits, right?»Oh, and because it can’t be said enough: this is still #AMPTP’s fault, and the writers should never have been put in this position.

on Friday to denied a waiver to CBS and Paramount+ that would allow the ceremony to be broadcast and streamed. And indeed, WGA specifically blamed CBS, Paramount “and their allies,” for making the changes necessary.“As has been previously reported, the Writers Guilds of America East and West (WGA) will not negotiate an interim agreement or a waiver for the Tony Awards.

effectively canceled the broadcast, which was set to air on CBS Sunday, June 11.The Monday meeting was meant to pick an alternate route, but came up with jack squat, sources told The Post.“Big surprise: No plan or conclusion,” said one annoyed source familiar with the talks.Instead, the Tonys will appeal to the WGA to again attempt (in vain, trust me) to squeeze a waiver out of the striking union and go forward with a normal telecast.“They’re trying to exhaust that one,” the source added. “A Hail Mary.”An incredulous insider pointed out, “There has not been a single waiver issued!”The Post has reached out to the Tony Awards for comment.While a script for the Tonys is said to have been written, other entertainment industry unions — the Directors Guild, Screen Actors Guild, Actors Equity and more — are standing in solidarity with the WGA.

The Tony Awards is the latest casualty of the ongoing Hollywood writers strike.

2023 Tony Awards to air as scheduled on June 11 amid the ongoing writers strike. The Hollywood Reporter reported Friday that the telecast of theater’s biggest night will not air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ as originally planned.

Sad news for the Broadway community – the 2023 Tony Awards will not be able to take place as planned on June 11.

Ed Sheeran just made his debut at the 58th annual ACM Awards and he delivered a powerful performance with some help from Luke Combs.The «Shape of You» singer hit the stage Thursday night at the Ford Center's The Star in Frisco, Texas, and performed «Life Goes On» while strumming his guitar and rocking an appropriately country denim ensemble.Sheeran turned the number — off his just-released album — into a duet with Combs, who joined the English singer on stage in a surprise appearance that gave the song a fantastic country music flair.After the unexpected pairing, host Garth Brooks took the stage to ask the artists about their collaboration and how they made it come together.«We met like 2018, I'd heard Luke's music through a friend… and we've just been friends for years now,» Sheeran said, smiling, «and it's been great.»Sheeran's performance comes exactly one week after a verdict sided with him in a copyright trial over his «Thinking Out Loud» track. A New York City jury ultimately found that the 32-year-old singer did not copy Marvin Gaye's 1973 hit, «Let's Get It On,' for his 2014 hit track. After the verdict was reached, Sheeran, who was forced to miss his grandmother's funeral in Ireland to attend the trial, publicly released a statement about his win and the case as a whole.»I am obviously very happy with the outcome of the case, and it looks like I'm not going to have to retire from my day job after all — but, at the same time, I am unbelievably frustrated that baseless claims like this are allowed to go to court at all," Sheeran's statement read.

2023 Tony Awards telecast will go on as planned a month from now are slipping away fast, multiple sources told The Post.The complexities of the writers’ strike, which is still in its early days, have made it virtually impossible for the show, Broadway’s biggest promotional push of the year, to air on Sunday, June 11 on CBS.“The Tonys are hanging on by fingernails,” said a source familiar with the turmoil. “It’s a mess.” The American Theatre Wing and Broadway League, two trade organizations that put on the ceremony, are voting Friday to decide how to move forward.The Wing, I’m told, would prefer to postpone the broadcast — which is still set to take place at the United Palace in Washington Heights — until the strike is over. That option would look something like when the 2020 Tony Awards finally went on in Sept.

Stranger Things‘ fourth season was split into two parts and the first part fell into the eligibility window for the 2022 Emmy Awards while the second part is in the eligibility window for the 2023 show.

As you have no doubt already heard, the WGA is on strike right now. Just over a week into it, this strike has already caused quite a few disruptions, with productions being halted and development coming to a standstill.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Joel Grey and John Kander will receive special honors at this year’s Tony Awards, for lifetime achievements in theater. Kander, a composer and one half of the songwriting duo known as Kander and Ebb, wrote the scores for 15 musicals, including “Cabaret,” “Chicago,” both of which were turned into feature films. Grey is best known for originating the Master of Ceremonies in the musical “Cabaret” on Broadway and also portrayed the Wizard of Oz in the contemporary hit “Wicked.” “We are immensely thrilled to honor two legends in their own rights. John Kander has composed the soundtrack to all of our lives — meeting us in every decade — creating unforgettable scores for ‘Cabaret,’ ‘Chicago,’ ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman,’ and his current Broadway hit ‘New York, New York,’” said Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League.

British actress Jodie Comer has earned her first Tony Award nomination for Broadway debut Prima Facie.The Killing Eve star, 30, is nominated for best performance by an actress in a leading role in a play for her role as Tessa in the one-person production by playwright Suzie Miller.The production, about a British defence lawyer who ends up in the witness box, secured four Tony Award nominations in total, including for best scenic design, best lighting design and best sound in a play. After receiving critical acclaim for her West End debut at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London, which included winning best actress at the 2023 Olivier Awards, Comer took the play to the John Golden Theatre on Broadway in April which will run until July.

Curtains up! The 76th annual Tony Awards are just around the corner and stars including Jessica Chastain, Jodie Comer and Josh Groban will be recognized for their work on Broadway during the ceremony.

Lena Waithe is now a first-time Tony nominee as one of the producers of  The production scored a total of six nods, tying it with  as the most-nominated new play, for the 76th annual Tony Awards. Following the announcement, which was revealed live by Lea Michele and Myles Frost on Tuesday, Waithe shared her excitement about the play's recognition. " is a monumental play and I was honored when Lee Daniels asked me to join the team," she said in an exclusive statement to ET. «I saw a reading of it years ago and I knew it deserved to be on Broadway.

Hours into WGA’s first strike in more than 15 years, writers took to the streets in New York to picket the Peacock newfront presentation.