Ariana DeBose will return to host the 2023 Tony Awards
Ariana DeBose is pictured here on the Academy Awards red carpet at Hollywood's Dolby Theater in March.
By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN
And she’s back.
Ariana DeBose is set to return as the host for the 2023 Tony Awards in June, the Broadway League and The American Theater Wing, the organizations that produce the Tony Awards, announced on Wednesday.
The Oscar-winner hosted the Tony Awards for the first time in 2022.
“I was honored to serve as host last year and even more so to be asked back! So looking forward to celebrating this incredible season and the people who make the work happen. Here’s to adding some uptown flavor to the magic of the Tony Awards,” DeBose said in a news release.
Debose is a celebrated figure in the theater world. She earned a Tony nomination in 2018 for her role as Disco Donna in the stage production of “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical,” and has appeared in many Broadway and off-Broadway plays like “A Bronx Tale,” “Pippin” and “Motown the Musical.”
She also appeared in the Tony-winning musical “Hamilton” alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda, and the TV movie version of the play that won an Emmy in 2021.
The triple-threat went on to win an Oscar in 2022 for her performance as Anita in the Steven Spielberg-directed film adaptation of “West Side Story,” making history as the first openly queer woman of color to win in the supporting actress category. She also won a BAFTA and Golden Globe for the role.
Speaking of the BAFTAs, DeBose made quite a stir at that awards event earlier this year, when her rap performance as part of the opening number unexpectedly went viral.
The Tony Awards honor theater professionals for distinguished achievements on Broadway and will air on CBS on June 11. The ceremony will also be livestreamed on Paramount+.
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