Cynthia Erivo to Host the Tony Awards
Notorious queer Black actress of both stage and screen, Cynthia Erivo has been revealed to be the host of the upcoming 78th Tony Awards, and in the midst of the current conversation surrounding queerness in America, this is a huge deal.
The American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League, the organizations behind the esteemed theatrical awards ceremony, announced this past week that Erivo would be hosting the ceremony this year, and the Internet virtually exploded. Erivo’s statement on the Tony Awards website, Erivo called the role a “glorious honor” and said that she is “looking forward to ushering the theatre community at large through a night that celebrates the wonderful performances we have witnessed throughout the year.” Erivo will be taking the mic from Ariana DeBose, who has hosted the past three ceremonies.
Before her rise to mainstream fame after starring as Elphaba in Wicked (2024), the highest-grossing film adaptation of a Broadway musical ever, theater kids—and specifically, theater gays—everywhere have known, loved, and worshipped the powerhouse that is Cynthia Erivo. She starred in Harriet (2019) in the titular role as the famous abolitionist, but beyond the silver screen, she is a Tony winner herself; Erivo took home the Tony for Best Leading Actress in a Musical in 2016 for her role in “The Color Purple.”
Erivo made waves with her co-star, Ariana Grande, on the press tour for Wicked this past fall/winter for appearing borderline romantically close to viewers—For example, Erivo and Grande have at least four matching tattoos, and tearfully held hands through most of their interviews. The film itself, as the play has been for upwards of two decades, has struck a nerve with the gay community as an allegory for the LGBTQ+ experience in the increasingly conservative world we live in, so it only makes sense that the lead actresses of it (one of whom is openly queer) would spark gay allegations. Straight media called it weird, straight fans called it codependent. As a queer media outlet, however, we think it’s downright adorable. We’re holding space for it.
The nominations for the 78th Tony Awards will be announced on May 1, and the ceremony will take place on June 8 at 8 p.m. EST.
Photo courtesy of social media
