LAURA BENANTI AND TITUSS BURGESS TO HOST “THE TONY AWARDS: ACT ONE”

New York, NY (May 20, 2026) - Tony® Award-winner and five-time Tony® Award nominee Laura Benanti and six-time Emmy and SAG-nominated actor, musician, and writer Tituss Burgess will host THE TONY AWARDS: ACT ONE, a live pre-show with exclusive content that is available to viewers for free on Pluto TV - a global leader in free streaming television - beginning Sunday, June 7 at 6:35-8:00 PM, ET/3:35-5:00 PM, PT. The two stage-and-screen icons will kick off Broadway's biggest night with the presentation of the first round of Tony Awards during the exciting pre-show telecast.

Viewers can access THE TONY AWARDS: ACT ONE on their smart TV, streaming device, mobile app or online by going to Pluto TV and clicking on the "Live Music" channel, found within the Entertainment category on the service.

Immediately following, the 79th Annual Tony Awards will broadcast LIVE to both coasts from 8:00-11:00 PM, LIVE ET/5:00-8:00 PM, LIVE PT on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+*. This year's show, hosted by music superstar and global icon P!NK, will return to the legendary Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

A full list of this year's nominees and honorees is available HERE.

Tickets are priced at $731.80 (including $136.80 in fees) for Third Mezzanine and $936.60 (including $141.60 in fees) for Second Mezzanine, and are available for purchase at TonyAwards.com and Ticketmaster.com. There is a four ticket limit and all ticket sales are final (Ticketmaster service charges will apply).

The Tony Awards are produced in collaboration with Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League. Raj Kapoor, Sarah Levine Hall, and Jack Sussman are Executive Producers of this year's show. Kapoor and Levine Hall will also serve as Co-Showrunners. Patrick Menton and Rob Paine will Co-Executive Produce, with Menton also serving as Head of Talent.

Tony® Award-winner and five-time Tony® Award nominee Laura Benanti is a highly celebrated stage and screen actress. Ms. Benanti can currently be seen as a series regular in the role of 'Cindy' on the acclaimed Paramount+ series MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN, starring opposite Jeremy Renner. Ms. Benanti co-starred in the hit film NO HARD FEELINGS with Jennifer Lawrence and Matthew Broderick and had recurring roles in Max's GILDED AGE, Hulu's LIFE & BETH (created by and starring Amy Schumer), YOUNGER, and ELSBETH on CBS. Benanti earned rave reviews for her portrayal of a grieving widow in Netflix's film WORTH, starring opposite Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci, and Amy Ryan, and reunited with Keaton in the film GOODRICH. Ms. Benanti's iconic impression of Melania Trump on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is widely praised. Other TV work includes ZIWE, GOSSIP GIRL, SUPERGIRL, NASHVILLE, and INSIDE AMY SCHUMER (among many others). In the theater, Ms. Benanti took Broadway by storm at the age of 18 as Maria in THE SOUND OF MUSIC and has subsequently starred in ten more Broadway shows (musicals, straight plays, comedies, and dramas), including INTO THE WOODS, NINE (opposite Antonio Banderas), GYPSY (for which she won a Tony Award), SHE LOVES ME, MY FAIR LADY, and Steve Martin's METEOR SHOWER opposite Amy Schumer and Keegan-Michael Key. Ms. Benanti debuted her highly celebrated solo comedy show LAURA BENANTI: NOBODY CARES at the Minetta Lane Theater. Benanti created, wrote (songs co-written with Todd Almond), and starred in the show, which was recorded by Audible and is currently streaming on the platform. She has since brought the New York Times Critics' Pick to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival where it played to sold out shows and rave reviews with encore performances at Underbelly Boulevard in London and the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. This summer she will be taking the show back to London for two weeks and then embarking on a US tour for the summer and fall. Dates can be found at www.nobodycaresisacomedy.com

Six-time Emmy and SAG-nominated actor, musician, and writer Tituss Burgess has quickly emerged as one of the entertainment industry's most versatile and dynamic performers with his work in television, film, and theater generating both critical and commercial acclaim. Most recognized for starring as 'Titus Andromedon' in the hit Netflix comedy series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (nominations for four consecutive Emmy Awards, a SAG Award, and two Critics' Choice TV Awards). He reprised his role in the Netflix interactive special Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend and was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor. Upcoming, Tituss will next be seen on screen in Warner Bro's The Cat in the Hat, in theaters in November 2026. He will also voice Elephant Gerald in Paramount +'s The Elephant & Piggie Show! alongside Ellie Kemper. In 2025, Tituss starred as Mary Todd Lincoln in a limited run of Cole Escola's hit Broadway comedy, Oh, Mary!. In May 2024, Tituss debuted his own musical adaptation of The Preacher's Wife at Atlanta's Alliance Theatre. The musical is based on the 1996 film starring Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington. The show, featuring music by Tituss himself, and reimagines the beloved story with fresh energy and gospel-infused compositions.In Winter 2023, Tituss returned to Broadway for a turn in Moulin Rouge! The Musical, playing the role of club owner, "Harold Zidler". A veteran of the stage, Burgess made his Broadway debut as 'Eddie' in Good Vibrations and has played 'Hal Miller' in Jersey Boys, 'Nicely-Nicely Johnson' in the 2009 revival of Guys and Dolls, and 'Sebastian' in The Little Mermaid. In summer 2023, Tituss created and starred in Center of the YOUniverse alongside Jane Krakowski for three nights only at Off-Broadway's Minetta Lane Theatre. The recording was released exclusively on Audible in winter 2023. Other credits include voicing 'Sunny' in Netflix's Spellbound, the second season of the Apple TV+ musical comedy Schmigadoon!; the Netflix films Set It Up and Dolemite Is My Nam; and MGM's Aretha Franklin biopic, Respect. An accomplished voice actor, Tituss starred in the animated musical comedy series Central Park for Apple TV+, for which he was nominated for his sixth Emmy Award. Tituss currently resides in New York.

About the Tony Awards

The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards are presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing. At The Broadway League, Kristin Caskey is Chair and Jason Laks is President. At the American Theatre Wing, Ted Chapin is Interim Chair and Heather A. Hitchens is President & CEO.

Sponsors for the American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards include: City National Bank - the official bank of The Tony Awards; Capital One and Mastercard - the official payments partner of The Tony Awards; Carnegie Mellon University - the first-ever, exclusive higher education partner; Baccarat - the official partner of the Tony Awards; Cunard - the official cruise partner of The Tony Awards; Delta Air Lines - the official airline of The Tony Awards; Dewar's - the official scotch whisky of The Tony Awards; AKT - the official partner of the Tony Awards; Rockefeller Center - the official Destination of The Tony Awards; Sofitel New York - the official hotel of The Tony Awards; Playbill; Rainbow Room - the official partner of the Tony Nominee Luncheon.

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*Paramount+ Premium subscribers will have access to stream live via the live feed of their local CBS affiliate on the service as well as on demand. Essential-tier subscribers will have access to on-demand the day after the special airs.