I 2026 Tony Awards started with a bang – meaning a solid opening number of 170 people including the first host Pink, Neil Patrick Harris, Megan Thee Stallion and many, many more singing a parody number of Pink‘s hit “Lady Marmalade.”
CBS’s three-hour telecast of the Tonys had just begun, but for attendees of the ceremony at Radio City Music Hall it’s already been a busy day on the green carpet.
Keep scrolling for eight things viewers at home didn’t see from the Tonys telecast, complete with inside scoop from the hours-long carpet, backstage media room and more.
1. Whitney Levitt – who performed at the Tony Awards as part of the 30th anniversary celebration Chicago – introduced yourself to *NSync’s Joey Fatone again JC Chasez (who walk the carpet together), telling them that she is a big fan and introducing the singers to her husband, Conner Levitt.
2. Unlike the Oscars – where celebrities usually arrive in cars, get out and hit the carpet quickly – the Tonys had less traffic where everyone who made the carpet had to wait in line for about 45-60 minutes. Yes, even VIP nominees like it Daniel Radcliffe, Carrie Coon again Jim Parsons they all had to wait in the heat outside. Naturally, it turned into a catch up fest!
3. Remember their names! Best Choreography winners Omar Wiles again Arturo Lyons drew cheers from the media when they announced a dream project: the revival of Fame.
4. John Lithgow he won his third Tony for his performance as Roald Dahl in the play giant, talking about anti-semitism. “It ended in an indescribably bad moment,” Lithgow explained to reporters in the press room after his win, referring to the actual phone call Dahl had with a reporter. “My challenge has always been to encourage that last moment, [to] try to help people understand where that kind of cruelty comes from, because in my mind that’s exactly what the game is about. … [There’s so much] cruelty of all kinds, hatred of another. These are the things we deal with these days, and I think that’s what you do A bully it is very important and what made it successful.”
Broadway’s biggest night features this year’s nominees and past winners for the unforgettable 2026 Tony Awards. Pink made her Tonys debut hosting the ceremony on Sunday, June 7, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon! ahead of the nominees this year with 12 heads each. Ragtime follows close behind […]
5. Julia Louis-Dreyfus had an interview with the red carpet Vogue‘s Anna Wintour. Wintour’s daughter Bee Shaffer he was a fan – he introduced himself to Dreyfus on the carpet.
6. Pink knows how to start a party, but she does Usher – who brought his drink to the afternoon carpet.
Usher and Jenn Goicoechea
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions7. Alden Ehrenreich won his first Tony for his role in the play Becky Shaw like a Nice Guy’s boyfriend who turns out to be something terrible. In his televised speech, he spoke of his mother’s support. Speaking to the media afterwards, he spoke at length about his role in his life.
“He is an artist used to quote his grandfather, [who] he used to say, ‘It takes the same energy to dream big as it does to dream small,'” he said, “So whenever I’d come home, like, ‘Oh, I want to open an ice cream parlor,’ he’d be like, ‘You can build a worldwide franchise.’ He just encouraged and supported every emotion he saw [in] My love for make believe and wear. He raised that from the first moment and made me feel like I could do anything.”
8. Darren Criss, last year’s Tony winner Maybe a Happy Endingkicked things off on a positive note with media and photographers swarming the carpet, thanking everyone for their time and checking out how the event was unfolding on a very hot NYC summer day. Class action.
Additional reporting by Shelby Stivale
