56th Tony Awards - The Ceremony

The Ceremony

The show opened with a tribute to Richard Rodgers, featuring a medley of his songs performed by Marvin Hamlisch, Harry Connick Jr, Michele Lee, Mos Def, Lea Salonga, Peter Gallagher, John Raitt, Bernadette Peters, Gregory Hines, and the company of Oklahoma! A Broadway/New York song medley was performed by Bernadette Peters and Gregory Hines.

Presentations from nominated musicals:

• Into the Woods, "Children Will Listen", "Ever After" and "Into the Woods" - Vanessa Williams, John McMartin and company;
• Mamma Mia!, Medley;
• Thoroughly Modern Millie, "Forget About the Boy"/"Thoroughly Modern Millie" - Sutton Foster, Anne L. Nathan, Casey Nicholaw, Noah Racey and company;
• Sweet Smell of Success, "Dirt" - John Lithgow and company;
• Urinetown The Musical, "Run, Freedom, Run" - Hunter Foster, Spencer Kayden, Jeff McCarthy, and company;
• Oklahoma!, "The Farmer and the Cowman" - Company.

The First Ten awards were presented prior to the full ceremony and broadcast on PBS. The awards presented were: Best Direction of a Play, Direction of a Musical, Book of a Musical, Original Score, Choreography, Costume Design, Lighting Design and Scenic Design. There were also interviews and "rehearsal and performance clips from the nominated shows."

The broadcast won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program; the director was Glenn Weiss.