The Elephant in the...Closet?
With assistance from Stephen Colbert and Whoopi Goldberg, Kevin Spacey spoofed nominees Dear Evan Hansen, Groundhog Day and Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 by singing about his inexperience as a host. During the Groundhog Day section, Goldberg stepped out of a closet in his bedroom. "Whoopi, how long have you been in that closet?" he asked, to which she replied, "Well, Kevin, it depends on who you ask." Crystal (appearing on a video screen) later told him, "If all else fails, put on a dress." The host dressed up as Norma Desmond (Glenn Close's character in the Sunset Boulevard revival) and joked about the long-running speculation regarding his sexual orientation. "I'm coming out," the actor sang. "No, wait! No! No! No! No!"
In the Thick of It
With a mic in her hand and tiny red hat on her head, Rachel Bloom served as the backstage host, hobnobbing with Broadway's biggest stars. "This honestly beats my wedding day!" she joked. In addition to fan-girling over Patti LuPone, she even mocked some of the acceptance speeches. After one o the winners thanked his alma matter, for example, the Crazy Ex-Girlfriend actress said, "I'd like to add that I was waitlisted at Carnegie Mellon, but I'm not bitter about it!"
A Little Razzle Dazzle
The Color Purple's Cynthia Erivo and Hamilton's Leslie Odom Jr., last year's winners for Best Actress and Best Actor in a Musical, sang "New York, New York" as The Rockettes danced with them. They "saved the otherwise lackluster Tonys with the power of their voices," Vulture said.
Shameless Self-Promotion
Spacey was surprised when Sara Bareilles gave out pies mid-show. "Every award show passes out snacks," she explained. Spacey protested, saying, "Tony nominees do not pass out pie. It's just not done." Bareilles was unfazed, saying, "They do when they're promoting their musical, Waitress, at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre!" Spacey argued that "the whole award show food thing" has "been done to death"—just as Christian Borle's understudy from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory began to hand out Wonka Bars. Chazz Palminteri then walked onstage with cannolis to promote A Bronx Tale: The Musical. He and Spacey, who co-starred in 1995's The Usual Suspects, then pitched a musical version of the crime drama. "I'm onto you, Verbal!" Palminteri said. "That's a great idea! The Usual Suspects: The Musical!" Spacey then mocked their more conservative co-stars, saying, "Stephen Baldwin sings in a whole different key now."
A Fitting Farewell
Mark Hamill honored his friend and co-star Carrie Fisher, who died in December, while introducing the Tony Awards' emotional "In Memoriam" segment. "This past year, we lost many beloved members of our theatrical family: legends of the stage, artists from behind the scenes, princes of show business—and a princess," the Star Wars: The Last Jedi star said, briefly patting his heart. "They inspired a generation of theater lovers projecting strength, resilience and integrity. We'll cherish their passion and their expertise that made Broadway what it is today and their indomitable spirit that continues to influence what it strives to become tomorrow."
A Star Is Born
After his emotional performance of "Waving Through a Window," the Dear Evan Hansen star won the award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. Fighting back tears, the 23-year-old first-time winner thanked the theater community for changing the course of his life. "When I was 6 years old, I was a prince in Cinderella, and I have spent every day of my life since then just madly in love with musical theater," he said, adding that the stage is where he found "everything I ever loved and where I belong." Platt ended his speech by sharing some words of wisdom. "To all young people watching at home, don't waste any time trying to be like anybody else, because the things that make you strange are the things that make you powerful," he said.
The Band Played On
The Divine Miss M made her Broadway debut in 1966 and won a special Tony Award in the '70s, but she won for the first time in an acting category for her work in Hello, Dolly!. While accepting the award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical, Midler said, "I'm so privileged. I'm so honored. I hope I don't cry. Thank you to the Tony voters, many of whom I've actually dated…I'm so grateful for the outpouring of love and affection—I can't remember the last time I had so much smoke blown up my ass, but there's no more room." Some of Midler's words were censored for the broadcast, and when the orchestra began playing her off the stage, she demanded they "shut that crap off." Her speech lasted about four minutes in total.
Playing Politics
Spacey impersonated a real president, Bill Clinton, earlier in the evening. But before Dear Evan Hansen won the award for Best Musical, he portrayed a fictional president: Frank Underwood from House of Cards. Flanked by Michael Kelly and Robin Wright (also in character), he joined presenter Lin-Manuel Miranda onstage and handed the envelope to the Hamilton creator. Spacey (still in character as Frank) then addressed the camera in one of his signature asides, joking that he wanted to hurry up and return home "before Bette Midler thanks anyone else."