And the Award Goes To... Hosted by Ilana Levine
Candid interviews with Broadway’s most celebrated Broadway Award winners describing the moment they heard their name announced , their acceptance speech and everything that follows.
All Episodes
Ep29- "The Art of Kindness" Special Crossover Episode
Broadway star Ilana Levine returns to The Art of Kindness with Robert Peterpaul to discuss all things kindness during awards season, an amazing Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews story and much more. Ilana is a Broadway star best known for playing “Lucy Van Pelt” in You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown.
Ep28 - Katie Finneran (Promises, Promises - 2010)
Katie won a Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play in 2002 for her role as Brooke Ashton in the Broadway revival of Noises Off.
Ep27 - Deirdre O'Connell (Dana H - 2022)
“Please let me standing here be a little sign to you from the universe to make the weird art.” Deirdre O'Connell has worked extensively on stage, screen, and television. She began her career at Stage One, an experimental theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts.
Ep26 - Harvey Fierstein (Hairspray - 2003)
Harvey Fierstein is an American actor, playwright and screenwriter. He is best known for his theater work in Torch Song Trilogy and Hairspray and movie roles in Mrs. Doubtfire, Independence Day, and as the voice of Yao in Mulan and Mulan II.
Ep25 - Allison Janney (I, Tonya - 2018)
In a career spanning three decades, Allison Janney is known for her performances across multiple genres of screen and stage. She has received various accolades, including an Academy Award (the subject of this episode now!), a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and seven Primetime Emmy Awards, in addition to nominations for two Tony Awards.
Ep24 - Matt Doyle (Company - 2022)
Known for his work in musical theater, Matt Doyle made his Broadway debut in 2007 in Spring Awakening as replacement for the role of Hanschen, and later had supporting roles in the Broadway productions of Bye Bye Birdie in 2009 and War Horse in 2011.
Ep23 - Joaquina Kalukango (Paradise Square - 2022)
Joaquina is best known for playing Nelly O'Brien in the Broadway musical Paradise Square, for which she won the 2022 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. She was also nominated for Best Actress in a Play in 2020 for portraying Kaneisha in Slave Play.
Ep22 - Andrea Martin (Pippin - 2013)
Andrea Martin is an actress, singer, and comedian, best known for her work in the television series SCTV and Great News. She has appeared in films such as Black Christmas (1974), Wag the Dog (1997), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016), and Little Italy (2018).
Ep21 - Julie Taymor (The Lion King - 1998)
Julie Taymor made history being the first female director to win a Tony Award for Best Director of a Musical. One of the most iconic directors of our generation, Julie is also a writer of theater, opera and film.
Ep20 - James Lapine (Passion - 1994)
James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim wrote three shows together - Sunday In The Park with George , Into The Woods and Passion. In this episode of And The Award Goes To, Lapine shared what made working with Sondheim so incredible.
Ep19 - Charlotte St. Martin (President of The Broadway League)
“I consider myself the luckiest person in the world because my avocation is my occupation” is how Charlotte St. Martin describes what it means to be President of The Broadway League. When Charlotte St.
Ep18 - Cady Huffman (The Producers - 2001)
Tony Award winner Cady Huffman had just driven across the country to come back east after performing with Dame Edna.
Ep17 - Donna Murphy (Passion - 1994)
“Everyone needs a good mole joke” is how five time nominee and two time Tony Award winner Donna Murphy made the audience howl with laughter during her acceptance speech for her stunning portrayal of Fosca in the Sondheim/Lapine musical, Passion.
Ep16 - John Lloyd Young (Jersey Boys - 2006)
On the night John Lloyd Young won his Tony the stars who announced his category were Harry Belafonte and Glenn Close! During his emotional speech where he disclosed that his mother had died when he was only two years old, Mr.
Ep15 - Heather Hitchens (President and CEO of The American Theater Wing)
The first Tony Awards ceremony took place on Easter Sunday in 1947. It was a small affair where awards were handed out to notable artists of the day. Some of the winners that evening included actress, Patricia Neal and playwright, Arthur Miller.
Ep14 - Tonya Pinkins (Jelly's Last Jam - 1992)
Tonya Pinkins had a very complicated journey with the musical Jelly's Last Jam. From the very beginning she felt she was up against a cast that was not happy that she was replacing the original Anita in the show, she was away from home with her nine month old baby and in rehearsal she found herself holding back.
Ep13 - Stephanie J. Block (The Cher Show - 2019)
Stephanie J. Block was no stranger to playing real people on Broadway having portrayed Liza Minnelli in The Boy From Oz so when director Jason Moore asked her to take on the role of Cher in the Broadway musical The Cher Show, she was quite trepidatious.
Ep12 - Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Seven Guitars - 1996)
Ruben Santiago-Hudson had dreamed of being in an August Wilson from the first time he was in the audience of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
Ep11 - Kristin Chenoweth (You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown - 1999)
Kristin Chenoweth first auditioned for You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, having no idea which character she was reading for. It wasn’t until she got to the first day of rehearsal and she looked at the place card by her seat and it read “Kristin Chenoweth as Sally Brown.” That was the beginning of a journey that took Kristin from working actress to global star.
Ep10 - Laura Benanti (Gypsy - 2008)
Laura Benanti dreamed of one thing and one thing only- performing on Broadway so winning a Tony Award for her role in Gypsy was the most amazing dream come true and one of the happiest moments of her life.
Ep9 - BD Wong (M. Butterfly - 1988)
When BD Wong asked his parents to lend him money to fly to New York for an audition for M. Butterfly he told them he was certain he would not get the job but he could not pass up the opportunity to meet the creative team. Well we know how that story went!
Ep8 - John Benjamin Hickey (The Normal Heart - 2011)
When Ilana, host of AND THE AWARD GOES TO.. had the privilege of talking to John Benjamin Hickey - the winner of The Tony Award for The Normal Heart- it was the day after Larry Kramer had died so it was so timely and beautiful to have this conversation while John was still processing this news.
Ep7 - Cynthia Nixon (Rabbit Hole - 2006)
A self described “theater junkie” Cynthia Nixon has been in love with the theater for her entire life, She was cast in her first Broadway role at the age of 14- the play was The Philadelphia Story.
Ep6 - Norbert Leo Butz (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels- 2005)
Growing up in the midwest the seventh of eleven children- Norbert Leo Butz was surprisingly unaware of The Tony Awards. If he had practiced any speech in his bathroom mirror it most likely would have been for the Academy Awards or Grammy Awards yet here he is - a two time Tony Award winner.
Ep5 - Nikki M. James (Book of Mormon - 2011)
When Nikki M. James was in kindergarten her teacher invited her to sing in a school performance. It was obvious to everyone that she was exceptionally talented but what became clear to Nikki, even at this young age, was that she found her passion.
Ep4 - Judith Light (Isabelle Stevenson special Tony Award - 2019)
In 2019 Judith Light, one of the most beloved members of the Broadway community, was awarded the Isabelle Stevenson special Tony Award for her fierce advocacy on behalf of those affected by HIV AIDS and the LGBTQ+ community.
Ep3 - Karen Olivo (West Side Story - 2009)
“This is a story about love” is how Arthur Laurents- writer and director of West Side Story- described the show to Karen Olivo who was cast as Anita. He went on to say “You fight because you love.
Ep2 - James Monroe Iglehart (Aladdin - 2014)
James Monroe Iglehart grew up obsessed with Disney and Robin Williams ( the Genie in the film Aladdin) was his childhood hero. At 17 his graduation gift from his mother was going to see Aladdin so clearly the role of the Genie was his destiny but there were many hurdles along the way.
Ep1 - Patti LuPone (Gypsy - 2008)
In 2008 Patti LuPone won her second Tony Award. She has been nominated a total of seven times. Join host Ilana Levine and Patti as they listen to Patti’s 2008 acceptance speech and Patti takes listeners on a trip down memory lane, recounting that evening and all that led up to her second Tony win -- 28 years after her first!
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