There is one day every Tony Awards season when the campaigning quiets down. No one has won anything yet, no speeches have been delivered, and for a few hours the nominees simply get to celebrate being in the room together.
At the annual Tony Awards nominees luncheon, Broadway’s biggest stars, breakthrough performers and veteran craftspeople traded nerves for laughter, candid confessions and mutual admiration.
Here are six moments that defined the day.
Sarah Levine Hall and Jack Sussman at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
1. The producers promise a celebration of Broadway’s full season.
Executive producers Sarah Levine Hall and Jack Sussman previewed a Tonys ceremony designed to embrace the breadth of this Broadway season, teasing surprise moments and major presenter appearances they weren’t ready to reveal.
The 79th Tony Awards will be hosted by Grammy-winning superstar Pink, marking one of the ceremony’s most high-profile pairings in years.
“We’re putting together a big show with everything that’s happened on Broadway this year,” Sussman shares.
Levine Hall added: “We’re expecting equal excitement and celebrating all of the nominees in a very fun way this year.”
Christiani Pitts at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
2. Ben Levi Ross and Christiani Pitts became the luncheon’s emotional center of positivity.
Some of the day’s most affecting moments came from first-time nominees still processing how quickly their lives have changed.
“Ragtime” breakout Ben Levi Ross, 28, had never originated a Broadway role before earning his nomination for the acclaimed revival. He described nomination morning as deeply personal and unexpected.Alone in his apartment, Ross lit incense and watched the livestream on YouTube.
“The second my name was announced, my mom was calling me,” he says. “And we wept on the phone together for 10 minutes.”
Mid-interview, fellow nominee Christiani Pitts from “Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)” crossed the room to greet Ross with an extended hug. Earlier in the day, Variety saw her enthusiastically shouting across the lobby to “Chess” nominee Nicholas Christopher and congratulating him on his deserved recognition.
By the end of the afternoon, Pitts had effectively become the luncheon’s unofficial morale captain — a one-person Broadway cheering section radiating warmth through every conversation, even if it wasn’t from her own production.
Ben Levi Ross at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
3. The “Ragtime” cast lovingly roasted Joshua Henry.
The funniest recurring bit of the afternoon belonged to the “Ragtime” company, who spent much of the luncheon roasting co-star and fellow nominee Joshua Henry with the kind of precision that’s reserved for siblings and family members.Tony winner Brandon Uranowitz led the charge.
“First of all, he cannot sing. He’s horrible at singing. And he’s not nice,” Uranowitz jokes in deadpan humor.
Lead actress in a musical nominee Caissie Levy eagerly joined the bit, who is widely regarded as one of Broadway’s kindest figures.
With his million-dollar smile, Henry responded by deflecting praise back toward the entire ensemble, which produced five Tony-nominated performances, including Nichelle Lewis.
All the thespian’s chemistry felt less like castmates promoting a production and more like siblings teasing one another out of deep affection. The jokes landed because the admiration underneath them was unmistakable.
Later that night I would watch a production of the musical revival with all five nominated actors and their talented ensemble, and you can see why the jokes fly coming from a company deeply engraved in a story of the moment and undeniably moving.
Brandon Uranowitz at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
4. Stephanie Hsu and Brandon Uranowitz know what’s missing from Broadway.
Every nominee was asked the same closing question during their interviews with Variety: If money, power and profitability were irrelevant, what would you put on Broadway tomorrow?
The answers varied, but two had responses stemming from deeper places.
“Rocky Horror Show” nominee Stephanie Hsu skipped over personal ambition entirely and instead imagined a radically accessible Broadway ecosystem.
“Every public school student in New York City should be able to see a Broadway show — any Broadway show,” Hsu shared. “If there’s an empty seat, a young person should get to just be there.”
Meanwhile, “Ragtime” star Brandon Uranowitz fantasized about building a much-needed new theater near Lincoln Center, and taking over Times Square’s theater district and rotating Stephen Sondheim revivals through every house. From “West Side Story” to “Follies” and more.
The question turned into an accidental personality test, exposing some of each artist’s values. The other interviewees answers will be forthcoming in a future article.
Carrie Coon at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
5. Carrie Coon delivered the day’s most honest answer.
The luncheon’s most candid moment came courtesy of “Bug” lead actress in a play nominee Carrie Coon, who declined to frame the moment as career triumph.
Asked whether she felt she was experiencing a professional high point in her career, Coon answered with startling bluntness.
“I mostly just feel tired.”
Rather than romanticizing the awards-season whirlwind, Coon described the logistical reality behind it that includes 18-hour days, early-morning events, parenting responsibilities and the invisible labor required to sustain a performing career.
She credited her husband, playwright and actor Tracy Letts, for carrying much of the parenting load during the run, while also acknowledging the childcare support systems working families depend upon.
“We all need childcare to be able to do the thing we love,” she says, referring to the need for universal childcare and healthcare in the U.S..
In a room designed for celebration, Coon was the rare nominee willing to articulate the personal cost behind the glamour, the political atmosphere that clouds it, and the honesty resonating throughout.
Freddie Hendricks, Kenan Thompson and Justin Ellington at the 79th Annual Tony Award Meet the Nominees press junket held at Sofitel New York on May 14, 2026 in New York, New York.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety
6. Kenan Thompson turned a teacher tribute into the room’s sweetest surprise.
One of the day’s most heartwarming moments arrived when “Saturday Night Live” star and Emmy winner Kenan Thompson appeared to surprise his former teacher Freddie Hendricks, this year’s recipient of the Tony Awards’ Excellence in Education honor while he was on the red carpet taking photos.
The tribute was a nice reminder that Broadway (and many other artistic) careers often begin long before the curtain rises. It starts in classrooms, rehearsal spaces and teachers willing to nurture young artists before anyone else sees their potential.
The 79th Tony Awards will broadcast live coast-to-coast June 7 on CBS and stream on Paramount+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
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