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The Tony Awards Administrative Committee has called an emergency meeting for Monday to discuss the WGA writers’ strike and its possible impact on this year’s Tony Awards, Deadline has confirmed from sources familiar with the matter.
Details of the meeting are scant and the organizations behind the Tonys – The American Theater Wing, The Broadway League and executive producers White Cherry Entertainment – have not commented on the matter. Tony voters are expected to begin voting on Tuesday.
But the strike’s potential impact on this year’s Tonys, scheduled to air and stream Sunday, June 11 on CBS and Paramount+ from the United Palace in the Washington Heights borough of New York, could be huge, so much so that sources say the Tony Management Committee is seeking a WGA waiver that will allow union writers to proceed with work on the show.
Actors’ Equity, which represents Broadway actors and stage managers, joined the WGA picket line in New York City, Deadline reported Wednesday. Equity President Kate Shindle told Deadline on Wednesday, “It’s too early to predict if this will impact the Tony Awards, which are extremely important to our community as we continue to rebuild.” I hope everyone who concerned for Broadway’s biggest night of the year, pledges our support to the WGA, and joins us in demanding that the AMPTP be as considerate of its employees as it is of its officers and shareholders.”
If the strike continues and there is no waiver, a picket line outside the Tony ceremony is all but certain.
Other contingency plans Tony is expected to discuss in the committee on Monday include a reduction in the non-televised ceremony and postponing the awards ceremony until after the strike is over.