Despite the Writers Guild strike, the show must go on\u2014at least this year\u2019s Tony Awards gala. In solidarity with Broadway unions, the striking writers have pledged not to picket or at next month\u2019s Tony telecast.
While the union turned down a request by the Tony organizers to grant an interim waiver\u00a0for the ceremony, the Guild noted that the Tony organizers \u201care altering this year\u2019s show to conform with specific requests from the WGA, and therefore the WGA will not be picketing the show.\u201d Though details of the changes are not known, it\u2019s likely that a non-scripted telecast will happen on June 11.
A similar scenario occurred in 1988, when the Tony awards show was broadcast during a Writers Guild strike. On that occasion, hosted by Angela Lansbury, presenters spoke ad lib, without the benefit of scripts provided by writers.
In a statement released this week, the Writers Guild of America promised solidarity with various unions representing the Broadway community, including Actors\u2019 Equity, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and the American Federation of Musicians, \u201cAs they have stood by us, we stand with our fellow workers on Broadway who are impacted by our strike,\u201d the WGA continued.<\/p>\r\n