Tony Awards has stars — and those usually far from spotlight


NEW YORK (AP) — Darren Criss’ favorite night of the year has arrived.

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It’s the Tony Awards. “I’ll never shut up about the Tonys. I love the Tonys,” he says.

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Criss will not only be watching the Tonys on Sunday, he'll also be working.

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He's co-host with Julianne Hough of a one-hour pre-Tony celebration at Radio City Music Hall,

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and he's even written an original song about the show that he'll perform, revealing “a bit of my nerdy proclivities.”

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Criss and Hough will be handing out creative arts Tonys on Paramount+ and

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then pass hosting duties to Ariana DeBose for the main three-hour telecast on CBS from

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the same stage, live coast to coast for the first time.

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The season — with 34 new productions — represents a full return to theaters after nearly two years of a pandemic-mandated shutdown.

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