Lin-Manuel Miranda Promises “A Doozy Of An Opening Number” By Tony Awards Host And ‘Hamilton’ Alum Ariana DeBose

deadline.com:

Lin-Manuel Miranda promises that Tony Awards host Ariana DeBose, an original cast member in Hamilton before her Oscar win for West Side Story will have “a doozy of an opening number” kicking off Sunday night’s show.“There will be dancing,” he predicted in a telephone interview with Deadline, without revealing specifics. “You couldn’t ask for a better host.” Miranda noted that he is attending the Tonys even though he “doesn’t have a horse in the race.” In large part, the night will be about celebrating Broadway’s return from the devastation of Covid.“We’re just rallying,” he said. “It is Job-like what theater has gone through, so this will be an incredible rally for the whole theater community.” The Omicron variant, which gathered steam at the end of 2021 just as the holiday season was beginning was “crushing at a tme when we most depending on tourist business,” Miranda noted.The interview came two weeks after Miranda had to skip a gala in his honor at the Greenwich International Film Festival in Connecticut due to his own bout with Covid, from which he has recovered.The playwright and filmmaker received the Changemaker Award, which GIFF gives to artists who have used their public platform and the medium of film to further positive social change.

Branching out from his theater roots, Miranda has assembled an increasingly robust body of film work, with last year seeing a peak level of activity.

His original songs appeared in Disney’s animated Oscar winner Encanto; he directed Netflix’s Oscar-nominated musical tick … tick … BOOM!

And he also appeared in and produced the big-screen version of his breakthrough musical In The Heights.At the gala in Greenwich, Jimmy Fallon accepted the award on Miranda’s behalf.